PENCIL PALS

It is rather exciting when a class becomes the fountainhead of new ideas. Especially when children come up with them and seek to help each other out in executing them!

I never thought that a grammar exercise on rhyming words in English would ignite these young minds into something as creative as what I am about to mention!

The excitement to create rhyming word strings was palpable as every child was busy thinking of lines ending in rhyming words and subsequently a simple four line poem.

I could see children in the class who could make poems at the drop of a hat! The scene was quite astonishing! Having read their poems at length, I felt that these children had immense potential and they needed an honest appraisal of their work which would steer them towards deep rooted interest in poetry!

I suggested that they wrote a four liner daily and compile them which could become a useful resource for their juniors! I could see the sense of achievement and pride they carried that day! But what came as a delight were their mutual offers to draw illustrations for these poems! Trust me! I had no clue as to what these kids were up to! They put their heads together and conceived this idea of creating a booklet with small pictures. Some of them offered to give tunes to these poems and turn them into songs!

I discovered that at the tender age of seven, if children can ideate in this manner, our roles as mentors grew manifold as nurturing this raw talent and transforming it into something constructive is a humongous responsibility! I take pride in the bonding between the children and their enthusiasm for collaborative learning! I felt that it is moments like these when the classroom becomes the metaphorical temple of knowledge and ideas take birth!

I cannot name the feeling that I experience when I see them retiring to a corner after their class work is done, to create what they call their booklet for juniors! I wish more ideas could come up in this form and each child gets his due which he rightly deserves! Every single day has been a learning experience; these children have taught us so much! To make! To believe!  To be one!

I hope and wish I could compile the poems and give them a surprise in the way they wanted..!

BY:

Surya Nair

Mentor IWS Indore