This month, we had a unique workshop by a very unique personality, Vikram Sridhar. Vikram is a Performance storyteller and theatre practitioner who uses his art and story telling gift to make a difference. Vikram believes the body is a tool of communication. Through his workshops he assists students in becoming more aware of their own bodies and helping them use them as communication tools like he does with his folktale telling performances.
Vikram animated as ever! The students were simply fascinated by his energy and comic movements.
Sometimes, all we need is a little inspiration to give us the thrust in the direction of action. With simply the intention of inspiring on the third anniversary of the E-Base, we had a small celebration to mark three years of educating and motivating to lead change.
This anniversary the students got an opportunity to interact with very dynamic guests- Bhajju Shyam, Vikram Sridhar and the Special Tiger Protection Force (STPF) of the Pench Tiger Reserve, Maharashtra.
The immensely talented and renowned Gond artist Bhajju Shyam wowed the students with the story of his life. Coming from the Pradhan tribe, a sister tribe of the Gond, Bhajju Shyam has seen it all and done it all. From working as a security guard in Bhopal to giving talks in Paris and London; Bhajju ji’s life took a complete 360 degrees turn.
Bhajju Shyam taking the students through his first book: The London Jungle Book. Captivated by the systems and culture of London, Bhajju ji retells each of his experiences with enthusiasm as the students listen and marvel at his Gond depictions of the same in his book.
Our planet as it once began has been constantly undergoing changes. The only difference between the changes taking place in the last few centuries and those before that is that now these changes are instigated by man’s actions.
The students know one thing like a gospel truth: life cannot exist without oxygen. It was time to however introduce them to other atmospheric gases playing equally significant roles in the upkeep of our planet.
Students understanding the task at hand. The atmosphere consists of 78 per cent nitrogen, 21 per cent oxygen and 1 per cent of all other gases and water vapour. The students were meant to correctly label the pie chart.
Amrita Lalljee, Amba Jhala and Anirudh Nair were down in Pench to conduct a very unique workshop this month. The trio, established names in the field of performing arts, visited our students with the motive of making them have some fun and simultaneously helping them find their voices.
Our students walked into the E-Base, unaware of what we had in store for them for the next three days. The workshop encompassed all kinds of learning and fun, from laughing out loud to performing skits based on personal experiences.
Performing Arts is strongly linked to building one’s confidence and opening up. Our aim is to help our students not only find their voice to make them confident community leaders but also identify performing arts as a strong medium of expression and raising awareness.
Our students in an exercise that involved laughing their hearts out! Yes, it works wonders to them open up.
With immense help from two wonderful ladies, Divya Nawale and Monica Szczupider who joined us in Pench this month, we have gotten through the bulk of our work.
Our volunteers, Divya (left) and Monica (right) helping with registrations of students.
This month, we began work on our reading program baseline study. Before we open up the library to our students in Pench, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, we wished to determine the as is state of affairs. Our focus remained on two major components of the reading program- the fluency of reading and content knowledge. The students in the region of Pench grapple with similar problems in the education sphere as those in other remote locations in many parts of India.
To introduce students in schools at the Karmajhiri side of the Pench Tiger reserve to simple scientific concepts, professors from the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) conducted a hand- on entertaining workshop.
Mr .Surendra Kulkarni of TIFR has been our partner since the last two years. IT is thanks to him, we have been able to bring to these children such a wonderful session on the wonders of science.
Trees come in different shapes and sizes. They are those that may be planted by our city managements or those that stubbornly firmly planted themselves in favourable nooks. They sway above us and temporarily offer us shade on a hot summer’s day. Their flowers and fruits colour our streets red and blue in spring. And, in monsoon, you give a million thanks to it when you forget your umbrella and need to take cover under the giant canopy it so beautifully provides.
Learning about the value of our forests.
This year has been a real test for our plants. After a few pleasantly wet days after sowing, we were back to the dry spell.
Needless to say, the patch didn’t fare too well (to add to our troubles, we’ve been having trouble with the hand pump in the school).
The patch that appears to have braved the terrible monsoon.
We’ve returned to organic gardening once again this year, but only in a different school. This year, Kohka Middle School has taken it on themselves to go organic.
Plowing the patch for his peers to sow.
Have you ever picked up the wrapper of your favourite cookies or chips to understand what really went into making it?
This week our students at the E-Base did just this. Very often, we, as consumers, are unaware of the impact of our choices. Be it in the form of our carbon footprint or fueling the business of mining precious elements of the Earth.
Pooja elucidating the meaning of having a product that travels endless number of kilometres to reach a customer. (Image: Jash Koradia)