Killing fears and exploring beauty of life......

Words from Jay Vasavada , Kavishri Rajendra Shukla has provided seeds of inspiration for home schooling years ago. Being impress from an idea and putting it into real life are two different things, but I was firm about - study must be fun first. Not fully willing to send Ashna school at age of 2 1/2 ,but applied at one school nearby and got admission without donation. Frankly, school decision totally taken by watching other's example.Not happy with school environment,uniform etc. Playgroup passed without much problem. Jr. KG teacher started complaining about writing reluctance. Same complain in Sr. KG and in 1st too. Teacher's biased attitudes, no child-centered vision of school, age old teaching methods, more pressure on academic development and always blaiming parents responsible for child's poor performance....all these has vanished our hope that there may be some change in today's schools. Everyday feeling guilty for sending our child at school and killing her originality,curiosity,happiness and disturbing peace at home....still we could not think about leaving school.Why?


This school is counted as one of the best schools in Surat and that too near to our home.
No exams upto 1st standard unlike other schools.
Ashna never said she doesn't want to go school.
She was getting touch of her age children.


What if we leave school? Home schooling always attracted us but as I said to believe in something and to act upon it are different. Thousands of questions...and fears attached with them. Applied in same school for Megh and same as Ashna got admission without donation but before that decided to follow will and home school at least Megh. Then don't want to be in condition like hemlat,before school opening in June asked Ashna if she is ready for homeschooling, she agreed and big relief!


But following will is not so simple - have to be clear & firm in each and every aspects attached with homeschooling decision. What a child learn at school? Is it possible to teach everything being at home? We are never in teaching field, will we prove good teacher? What about methods of teaching? Will she miss school ever? What about socialization? Apart from courage to take such decision, dedication and responsibility are major criteria. Then what about my career? because with service oriented work it is not possible to home school children. Need to learn how to be effective teacher. How to control our own temperament? Provide them all facility to nurture their interests and keep away all our conventional parenting and teaching conditioning. When anybody ask about it we must be firm and confident to answer any question, so children too feel confident about it. Read lot (many home schooling websites, people’s experiences,Russell,Vasily,Osho.Krishnamurti etc.), thought lot....and was sure about this process will not end , but have to create our own unique way.One of my customer who is chairperson of a school trust asked "Don't you feel you are detaching your daughter from her school life?" A friend asked "Suppose in future you ever feel your children are lagging behind than other children then?" My uncle's first reaction "Are you crazy? I know a girl who was home schooled and can never mix with people" One of our friend's mummy who was teacher still try to convince us rethink about it. My parents who completely trust me and never resisted my decision were too bit worried but now happy. Thousands of questions (fears) - social, financial, psycological, educational, pedagogical etc. So,killing fear of future,fear of uncertanity in life,fear of any obstacle coming into way of following our will.


Killing fears has given us strength,courage and opportunity to explore beauty of life.We learn things at our convenience and pace,according to our interest. No duck and horse comparison,no compititon,no exam and minus points of school removed away.Have enough time for developing our interests. Children completely enjoyed last monsoon season-bathing in rain,playing with sand,taking rain-walk,learning about rain and water cycle etc.Megh leaisurely enjoys his gardening passion instead worry for school timing. Ashna is not tired during her gymnastics class like other school going children and enjoys it very much and in morning can take enough sleep!.Can apply our own innovative ideas to academic education too,no restriction of syllabus can go for any book or website which can satisfy our curiosity or thrust to learn.Can enjoy camp fire in winter.Can take equal part in matter of home from shopping,renovation,planning garden to cleaning and feel responsible. We are not worried about her performance at school and no hurry to start academic education for Megh.Most important is we have time ...children can come to us,ask and we too have enough time to answer & explain them,play with them...less chance to miss beautiful moments of life which we were missing because of hurriness and lack of time....advantage - more attachment between family members.Freedom of time,selecting syllabus,thinking,working,learning & enjoying!!! Open and aware to learn from everything -nature,book,website,life around or people around.So,this is beauty of life for us.

Butterfly Garden

After we planted caterpiller host plants like milkweed and a kind of lily (we call it baby lily) we have noticed many caterpillers and their life on those plants. We decided to do something more in this direction and planned for butterfly garden. For butterfly garden one needs two kind of plants 1. nectar plants which can attracts adult butterflies and 2. host plant which can provide food to caterpiller. We already have barmasi (perwinkle) ,jasood (hibicus), plumbago and many other flower plants which atrracts butterflies. But when we came to know about and brought pentas,lantana,verbena,jetropha we have seen difference. Some butterflies sticks to these flowers such that we can do photography. Still we are learning together more about butterfly garden and different species of butterfly. Butterfly likes sunlight,wet places,flat stone to enjoy sun light on.


Nikhil a crazy plants buyer brings new plants for butterfly garden everyday. Ashna is learning about different plants ,their name and their speciality from our talks. Sometimes Megh too babbling some names but he is the most hard working person on this program! He enjoys digging for plantation. My work is research about different plants and butterflies.


Ash too joined digging and plantation work but while digging she found a small statue Megh has hide few days back in soil. And she reminded video she seen on net digging and finding dainasour's fossils and she has imitated those girls on video. Clean statue with paintbrush and collected broken parts of it.

Tides

For Gymnastics class daily we have to cross bridge on river Tapi. Children are use to observe river and keen to notice water level goes up and down. Day after full moon day while passing from bridge Ash noticed water level was low. She asked why? I told her there are two tides everyday but on full moon day and new moon day you can see difference clearly in water level. Now, Why on full moon day and new moon day?

She was having knowledge about how day and night and how moon rotates around earth but not knowing how full moon and new moon occurs. Started experiment with globe and source of light. First experiment how day and night occurs by projecting her as Earth first and then using globe. Then using mirror as moon explains how full moon and new moon day occurs and how different phases of moon. Still her question was unanswered. And because it is difficult to explain her gravitational forces of sun and moon (though tried to explain with magnets), centrifugal force of earth and other reasons behind tides on full moon and new moon days. Answer in short ,because positions of sun and moon on these two particular days are so which causes tides. Though her curiosity half satisfied she was happy knowing something new about full moon and new moon day and enjoyed long discussion about how earth born and how life came into existence. Now we are going to take record of water level each day.

Mirror Magic!

Making Patterns

Shopping+Maths

Yesterday we went for some shopping. We have learnt Line Symmetry recently so finding symmetries in buildings,flyover,vehicles,numbers etc. It was fun for Ash as she digested Line Symmetry perfectly. There was a cell no. on one advertise board 9377793777 …confused for a while then said “No”.

[ She has enjoyed following links to understand line symmetry.

http://www.linkslearning.org/Kids/1_Math/2_Illustrated_Lessons/4_Line_Symmetry/index.html

http://regentsprep.org/regents/math/symmetry/Lsymmet.htm

She like making 7 pins Polygon and finding symmetries in them. Is there any symmetry in Alphabet letters? Yes, then Vertical, Horizontal or Both? Found 3 Symmetry in Triangle,4 in Square, 5 in Pentagon , 6 in Hexagon – summarized the rule and most surprised by Circle! ]

Then we have purchased two kind of dates- Irani & Kapkap. Irani date box weighted 2 kg 600 gram and Kapkap box weighted 3 kg 400 gram. Irani – 40 Rs. per Kg and Kapkap 65 Rs. per kg. It was date and jaggery wholesale merchant- Ash noticed whole shop – big weighing scales, types of dates & jaggery. I have asked her amount of irani dates. She is familiar with kilo and gram words but not knowing relation and still unaware of division and fraction so got confused. On road I just told her 1kg=1000gram. Then she counted Rs. 110 but then left it pending to make it clear at home.

At home, we took 3 clay pot (diya pot) and marbles. For 1 kg took 10 marbles in one clay pot and explain her 1 marble=100 gram dates. So three clay pots containing 10,10 & 6 marbles. Now, for 1 kg we have to pay 40 Rs. Then how much for 100gram? To simplify divided 10 marbles in 5’s two group …now 20 Rs. for 500 gram and got answer 4 for 100 gram. And then final amount of Rs. 104 for 2 kg 600 gram dates.

Same way she found amount for Kapkap dates. Just simplified calculation by changing rate to Rs. 60. and She enjoyed it.

Saurashtra Trip

Travelling is good way to know world. Since we have started homeschooling somehow could not arrange any field trip for children but saurashtra trip this diwali has given good chance to explore other part of our Gujarat.

They are too little to understand historical importance of Somnath or religious importance of Dwarka...they enjoyed it as just a different place and huge temples. They are fond of Krishna’s stories and Narsinh Maheta’s Jal-kamal….so Ash felt excited by visiting Dwarka-Bet Dwarka as Krishna’s city and Junagadh as Narsinh Maheta’s. When we visited Damodar kund…She reminded me my fav.- Gir taleti ne kund damodar tya mahetaji nahava jaay….Junagadh’s Uparkot has surprised her most…she wanted to explore Adi-kadi ni vav & Ra’navghan no kuvo more but climbing Girnar has made us disabled for it.

Upto Jamnagar …they have got experience living in Dharamshala,Ashram,Guest House. Have seen people’s faith or blind faith at religious places and diwali rush at such places. Saurashtra’s fafda-ganthiya-jalebi stalls every street. Groundnut fields on the way. Different taste of water at different place.They experienced what is high heat – when return from Bet-dwarka found water in bottle was boiling and bottle’s shape changed due to too much heat. Children were surprised when they see a sadhu walking fast in reverse! “Ahi nat-jat na bhed rakhva ma aavta nathi”- have to explain Ash when she read such instruction at some eating place. Shown and explained Ash ‘Paliya’ found almost at every village but could not remember any story.

Narara islandwas a most interesting spot for Ash. Upto now she has seen corals in pic. or movie…here she found different kind of corals of various colours. Sea cucumber ,sea flower,sea grapes, sea worms,crabs, different fishes along with her fav. puffer & star fish and Octopus- everything live and in touch! My little nature-lover just got crazy here. For Megh getting wet was biggest fun.

Next day visited Khijadiya Bird sanctuary. Have seen flamingo,stork and other birds near Porbandar and at salt fields near Narara too…but visiting this place itself was beautiful experience. Ash carefully listened forest officer about different residencial and migrated birds and their habitate and was missing binacular at such place. As here birds can have salty water and sweet water both kind of habitate Khijadiya is one of the rich bird sanctuary. We have found a nilgai and deers too.

Then on the way to Dhangdhra we visited Morbi. Children enjoyed lot at ‘Zulto Pul’ doing jumping. Next day Ash was very excited about visiting Rann (desert). When she came to know this desert was once a part of Arabian sea …it clicked many questions…left pending to answer until we reach home. Forest officer there gave her binacular. She found cracked earth and open landscape but could not found sand dune as she expected with the name of Rann. Randomly left boats at some places has given her proof that during monsoon this palce is full of water and upto december it becomes dry. Visited fields of salt. Found hundreds of asiatic wild ass. On Discovery have seen running Zebras in African jungles but watching this beautiful and powerful rare animal running at open land is amazing experience.

Our village was the last stop and children were very happy as they are going to live in village for few days. Visited farms and seen how they get rice. Visited village dairy and enjoyed riding on camel-cart. Meeting relatives and experiencing village life was great fun for them. They visited Kumbhar Vas. Ash taken photographs.

After returning she has question do people visit our Surat like we visited other cities? As we do not have any famous temple,fort,palace,jungle or even a dolls museam!

Change is in progress...

When someone ask me how is homeschooling going on…I always have lot to talk about but a matter which can appeal most people is that we completed 2nd Std.’s maths syllabus within 2 month. Actually syllabus doesn’t matter but just to follow a direction in maths we use Gujarat Board and CBSE’s books.

I compared my this experience with last year’s school experience. She was good at maths since start,got full marks in first test then her performance became weak (her teacher blaimed our goa tour for it!) and it was difficult to tought her addition and subtration.

So…I am happy with homeschooling maths. Have done lots of practice and hands on upto now and idea of preparing a maths lab (don’t imagine hi-fi things…just want to keep some cheap things like marbles,bamboo sticks,straws,stones,thread and different things/ ways for measurement etc.) floating since few days and done some shopping for it today.

Maths is very interesting and easy for both of us. Eagerness to learn and methods are important. This is my experience and what I learned. Here is an article by David Greenberg about how he taught 9 to 12 year old children Maths 6 years worth in 20 weeks.http://www.mountainlaurelsudbury.org/Rithmetic.asp

Upto now we have 1 to 2 or 3 hour depending on interest/convenience study time daily for Ashna ,when Megh enjoy his afternoon nap. Mostly we start with maths as it’s most interesting subject. For Gujarati…reading/writing skill is our aim and touch of English…and this much time is enough.

Now, I’m thinking about cutting off this “study time” from our routine …..because devoting special time for study routine or taking learning subject wise or time which feel like school is not always interesting.Though most of the time we take learning as play, I have noted til it is play everything is fine but as soon as it become subject or matter of study it becomes bit boring.

If a movie is not interesting…

If a movie is not interesting…how long you continue to watch or be concentrated on it? Lastly, we have seen “Drona”. No doubt it was very interesting for Ashna and she enjoyed it thoroughly though she said “it looks like pieces of story connected together”. Apart from story there was something that can interest her. For Megh…only fighting sequences are interesting and he was concentrated and quiet during that time only. For me …sometimes interesting sometimes boring. We were at theatre so seen whole movie but probably could not see if not in theatre.

What about breaking rules? If it is traffic,then rule must be followed but is it always good to follow rule? Osho has given simple definition of creativity…creating something that was never created before. Then without breaking rule or thinking out of box creativity is impossible. To discover something new,to create something never created before one needs curiosity,originality and out-of-box thinking.

If you are interested in any activity you will be concentrated and the moment you find something more interesting,new or which can make you more curious… you will diverted to that other activity…about adult person this might be not true always but what about little children? It is natural for them. It is age when they are driven by their own interest and curiosity. But short attention span and distractibility are symptoms of ADD/ADHD!

Misplace things and could not understand importance of time…are other symptoms. Disorganized behaviour…they says. I believe that if not imposed any kind of force or descipline children are like that naturally. Still their concept of time is under development. Organized personality have to be built after experiences of disorganization. And they learn it with time.

Can't sit still longer…some children are more energetic or more interested in physical acitivity and when they not found something interesting which make them quiet and sit longer they can’t.

Could not follow descipline/rule…it’s great characteristics,isn’t it?

Poor internal supervision…they are just kids!

So, this is ADD/ADHD!!!ADD and ADHD both different but using ADHD for both is confusing. ADD with Hyperactivity and ADD without Hyperactivity. One side there are thousands of websites about what is ADD/ADHD (They says it mental disorder…causes not clear but may be genetic, poor parenting, improper classroom techniques), types of ADHD,diagnosing ADHD (Diagnosing ADHD is highly subjective) ,treatment and medications of ADHD (horrifiying picture of American children taking medications ) , 504 plan and special arrangement if in US and how it effects relations. It is very confusing. Other side http://www.sntp.net/ritalin/myth_2.htm which I felt more closer to truth.

When Ash build different architecture models from blocks sitting for hours,can complete 300 pieces jiggshows,practice cartwheel or hand stand for hours or plays chess or cube…how can I say it is short attention span? She could not follow rule. For example…She likes to do drawing in her way only,no instruction require or accepted. Her drawing not sound techanically,but originality of idea always amaze us. Writing skills requires following some rules,and that’s why it’s boring for her. If she writes herself…without thinking of spelling mistakes,cleanliness,space or uniformality of letters than again ideas and using words are good.

They gives some causes for ADD/ADHD behavior are poor parenting and improper classroom techniques. About classroom technics,I can say it was improper and about poor parenting I’m responsible. I never wanted to nurture my children quiet and obedient like key operated toy. Never suppress their freedom,curiosity and originality in the name of manners or anything else. Someday her insight or vivek will develop and she will differentiate where to follow rule and where not or what is right and what is wrong.

So, as I know my child better than anybody else…diagnosed this myself and it is not ADD…It is just a poor parenting!

Day started playing with Ice!

Day started playing with Ice!

Y’day Ash put a cake mould filled with water and different colour flowers in freezer. This activity is their favourite and they enjoy watching melting of ice while playing.

Then Megh want to make his ice and he filled water in a small vessel and put it in freezer but very impatient about freezing. He want it in few minutes and it is about to take more than hour. Could not wait and asking frequently…when will be ice ready? I know it was useless to say him but I answered “when water will reach at 0 degree”, now Ashna wanted to know it how? And what is degree? Shown her how tempreture measures with thermometer and then measured different temp. of water. Raising and falling of mercury was interesting for her.

Nikhil noticed Ash’s question what is degree left unanswered…explained her use of degree in measurement of temp. and angle. And shown her how angle measures. When she came to know about angle measurement of circle she relate it with watch and then some exercises about angles between two hands at different time.

At noon,during study time we read “Gavri gay no hinchko” a Rusian children story translation …about how Gavri is different from other cows and how she takes help of her friend Kagabhai for hanging swing on tree. All left pages read by me and all right by her. She was not worried by reading whole book herself, modeling myself for reading style,good practice for her and this is our favorite story. It was fun!

Then reminded her how we got 30 degree angle between any two no. on watch by dividing 90 into 3 parts. That was explained by 9 chocolates have to divide in Ash,Megh and Manu. When she came to know it is division,her eyes open wide and said “ohhho I thought it was like subtraction!” She knows multiplication but still does calculation by adding no….like if have to buy 4 pencil each Rs. 3 then instead multiply 4*3 she adds 4 three times. So,in her mind multiplication is like addition…so division might be like subtraction…like instead adding 4 three times..she has to minus or something like that unclear concept was there. Then explain her relation between addition & multiplication and what’s common. Same with subtraction & division.

At last in study time – a shopping sum…her favourite! She has to buy 1 KG Washing Powder,3 Bath soap and a packet of Chapta Chana and She has Rs. 200. At shop washing powder available in 500gm bag and 80 Rs. Each, soap Rs. 14 each and Chana packet Rs.22. Bit difficult for her…but she tried ,took enough time and got total bill of Rs. 224 then? What we have to remove from list? She was confused. Tried removing Chana Packet but no help, removed all soaps…..but soap is urgently needed at home…then at last remove 1 bag of washing powder and one more subtraction.

Study time over!

Honey Bee!

There was a honey bee hive in our garden. Somewhere I read about dance patterns honey bee shows. To experiment and check how one honey bee find source of honey and inform other bees about it…we have taken some sugar mixed water (such idea found from net) and try to see practically how it happens.Was ready with binacular and constantly under observation for more than a hour our patience ended and left water there with hope that bee will find and use it. Flop experiment!

Then after some days found a book “Mathemagic” by Nagendra Vijay and found amazing facts about this great mathematician. I was in confusion how will I start this topic with Ash then found clue from that article only.

First I took paper,pencil,scale and compass and show Ash how mummy needs all these to draw perfact hexagone and then ask her to start drawing hexagone from two different points on paper. Then she amazed knowing fact that Honey bee prepare perfact hexagon cells without any instrument mummy have used and never do mistake even they start building hives from different points.

Then our discussion concerntrated on why hexagone only and not square,circle or triangle or not any other shape? It was became interesting episode for her becouse one by one amazing facts came in front of her about honey bees and their working just from this question why hexagone? !!!!!!!! How it save their costly wax? How it gives facility to save maxium honey in comparison to other shapes? How it gives strength to hive? How it is even useful in health of hive? Etc. How two hexagonal prizam joins back to back is shown in a picture in this book but it might difficult to understand for her but then her menifestation or what , all bees left hive in our garden. One day our gardener took it from outer wall of our house and then Ashna has real hive in her hands!!!!!

Then she came to know about three kinds of honey bee….Queen,Male & worker and find their role and very much impressed by worker’s role. How hard working and devoted they are! Their dance patterns,their working in co-operation,their care for larvah and how they find honey and produce wax. Though it becoming bit complex for her later I was so much mesmerized by this creature that could not left collecting more and more info about them and keeping Ash informed how much she can understand.

Earlier I have thought about taking this topic as a project and will prepare report like that….but Ash the craft lover made front cover page only and as writing is boring for her she left it in mid way. Anyways,knowledge is power ,to feel something is more powerful and keeping proof of everything not possible and not neccessary.

Article on our homeschooling

Courtesy : Balmurti

Sorting by 4 senses!!!

Sorting by observation








Sorting by touch








Sorting by smell








Some leaves are small so need to check by touch,smell and taste too!

Atlast after completing 'sorting'...He washed all leaves except Mhendi and chew them all! No worries...Ajwain and Tulsi both are good herbs!

"Butterfly"

Since Nikhil brought more plants of vibrant coloured flowers and attraction for butterfly,there are increased no. of butterflies in our garden. Butterflies are centre of joy and curiosity for children. Then collected some videos/pictures from net and explained how butterfly's lifecycle progress from egg,caterpillar,pupae to colourful butterfly. It was amazing to see for them that how a tiny caterpillar eats crazily and becomes big! and how butterfly coming out from pupae!

We were searching for butterfly caterpillar. We have observed many pupae found on leaves,walls or different places. But they were not butterfly's. One day Ashna came very excited...."Mummy,I have found butterfly's caterpillars,come fast". There were 7-8 small caterpillars of beautiful dots of orange,black and white colours.




Then we observed them for few days and noticed their journey from small to big caterpillar. Megh has many questions ...Why it eat leaves only? Why they eats only,they do not do anything else? Where they sleep? etc. First day they were 7-8 then day by day no. decreased and they eat out those plants completely. Then we thought may be they are busy preparing pupae somewhere but could not found them or pupae after that.

Walls are dirty now!

Nowadays my 3 year old don't like walls of our home. He wants to break all of them or wants new house!!! One of my friend visited our home after a year and she was shocked by looking at art work of my little one. Every wall honoured by his freedom of expression. I could stop him doing this,could explain to use paper instead of walls, or could shout at him for making walls dirty...but then he might loose the joy he was getting from natural force within him. Now we are happy that he himself realised that "Walls are dirty". Now no problem if we spend money in colouring walls and most important is he himself learnt what is dirty and what is clean!

Gijubhai's writings on this...without knowing dirtyness how can one know what is cleanliness? Without knowing what is unstuctured how can one know what is means of stuctured? Knowing something by own efforts is very much important, no matter how it is difficult or how much time it takes.

Balmurti

I think this is the only Gujarati monthly of it's kind and not much popular. It's main purpose to spread awareness within parents of little children and teachers about pedagogy and psycology of child. It's small and simple magazine of 25 pages ,no picture,no colour,no glossy pages...in short nothing attractive for today's generation, but material is very useful for parents/teachers. Because principles of education and parenting are no different in any age..."Balmurti" remind us our role by providing articles from Gijubhai Badheka,Taraben Modak,Jugatram Dave and other educationalists from India and abroad. One can find articles related to children & education from Gunvant Shah,Dr. Raish Maniyar,Kiran Shinglot, Dr. I.K. Vijliwala etc. too in "Balmurti".

I strongly recommend to subscribe this magazine for parents and teachers who are sincerely thinking about child's development and especially interested in child psycology.

In India
Yearly Subscription Rs.30 to Rs.50
Rs. 300 to Rs. 500 Lifetime Deposite
For Abroad...By air yearly subsription Rs. 300

Address:-

Balmurti
Nutan Balshikshan Sangh
c/o, Lalbahadur Shashtri Vidhyalay
Harni Road
Vadodara 390 022
Ph. No. 0265-2464451

Creativity

Me and my american friend Joe were at book fair. He suggested me to buy some drawing books for my daughter. My first response was like “She still need to develop patience and need peaceful concerntrated mind before getting advantage of such books”. He is artist (guitar player) and know what is art better than me and explained me “ I have seen her painting and you know what is art,person just express himself ”. Simple words and left me thinking.

After few days I met a famous artist Jagdeep Smart and have talk with him about how could I cultivate my daughter’s interest in painting? He said “ Upto 7-8 year just give her lots of colours and papers and let her express herself completely and then under proper guidance her art will flourish”.

What was situation at School? They have to draw perfact circle,have to fill colours under boundry,have to copy what teacher draws on board. Where is freedom to express oneself? Where is chance to develop creativity? Where is the joy which one experience with Art? At home she loves to draw,colour the way she like and at school she never like drawing!

Where was I? I have given excess books & colours to my daughter from start and she too naturally enjoyed colours. She loves painting. I have always encouraged her to express herself freely. Never suggested colour or never given readymade colouring books. But then I don’t know when I started following school’s rule- forced to draw perfact circle and fill colour properly. I didn’t want that my daughter’s performance look poor.

That’s where all do mistakes-Comparison. According school’s standard she was poor is drawing , I was anxious and confused that is this the adverse effect of freedom I have given? Even though having natural interest for drawing will my daughter fail to develop it?

Probably after homeschooling I come to know my daughter better. Have seen her getting uncomfortable adjusting rigid systems,but truly found her free spirit after homeschooling only. She never like to copy me,always creating something her own way. Never follow instructions about art or craft,always want to do her way. Never like that I pick any craft activity from net.

Then I read Osho’s “Creativity”: Unleashing the Forces Within and found where I was wrong.

Today, she draws when she wants,whatever comes to her mind. Though techanically not so good ,but she express herself completely. More important is we are free and happy-essencial for any art!

Nature!

“You learn science by keeping your eyes and ears open and looking around at this world. The real inspiration of science, at least to me, has been essentially the love of nature. Really, in this world, wherever we see, we see all kind of miracles happening in nature. To me, everything I see is something incredible something absolutely incredible. We take it all for granted. But I think the essence of the scientific spirit is to look behind and beyond and to realize what a wonderful world it is that we live in. And everything that we see presents to us not a subject for curiosity, but a challenge, a challenge to the spirit of man to try to understand something of this vast mystery that surrounds us.”

Prof. C.V. Raman.

Nature & science – When a kid asks thousands questions about everything around him it amaze us. But we hardly think he is trying to find truth – he is not less than a scientist or Rishi. Then under name of learning manners, descipline , safety etc gradually he gets detached to nature. We stop them getting dirty while playing in rain/mud,climbing trees,trying new ways to find something and then those children learn science/environment science- about rain,rainbow,trees,substances etc. in class using books! No they do not learn, they just come to know what other people has found in past,nothing new – any question,any doubt,any discovery added to something which is already searched in past. They remember facts upto exams and then everything disappear. Gradually they loose sight to see world around them and ways to enjoy nature. Do we realize to build scientific attitude we need to preserve our love for nature?

“I tried to get the children,before they opened a book to read their first world syllable by syllable, to read the pages of the most miraculous book of all,the book of nature.”

Vasily Sukhomlinsky

Nature & love for learning- Vasily has written nice book “To children I give my heart”. How he used nature to nurture love of learning in his student is spreaded in this book.

http://www.gyanpedia.in/Portals/0/Toys%20from%20Trash/Resources/books/Vasily.pdf

Just encourage your little one by giving answers to his questions about world around him and see how he continuously ask thousands of questions and spontenieously goes on the path of learning about science and life.

My children already fascinated by Aquarium shop near our home. We have built aquarium few months ago, many different kind of fishes,their life,food,habits etc. Roaming into different shops and meeting different people and talks about fishes has blast love for knowledge regarding fish in them. Moulie has given hundreds of kids first month ! They are trying breeding of more difficult fishes with their father. Feeding and observing for any disease/abnormality in fishes is sole responsibility they took themselves now. Their interest increased from aquarium fishes to other fishes and their life to other marine life to ocean’s on earth!. Trees/plants/flowers around and birds/butterflies/insects coming to garden are too their center of atrraction and always eager to know more. Can easily explain habitat and eco system and how everything in nature connected to and depend on each other. Apart from knowledge their kind feelings for different creatures and their love for nature amazes me.

Why we send our child to school?

Do school really educate them? School may give them certificates,chance to cultivate various extra curricular activities, gives opportunity to socialize. But is it true for all students? Unfortunetly, “No” atleast in India. School where a child can develop love for learning and life instead became a place which is cause of stress and waste of very important years of childhood.

Teachers- their inclination to compare two students is very dangerous to normal development of any child. When teacher calls parent to school and show them workbook of their child along with another good writing work book of other student and tells …look,this is the difference! Or embarrassing moments when teacher/principal says your son/daughter is slow in writing. Slow compare to whom? Does they care for adverse effect it create on child’s mind? When we see their rough behaviour with little children I always remind Osho’s words : primary teachers are sadistic people ! A single good teacher can change student’s whole life, but unfortunetly today rarely one can find a teacher who is dedicated to their profession and understand child. Comparision leads them to partiality in extra curricular activities! For particular problem in child do they communicate with parent and truly try to understand child?

When we have to purchase/repair any electronic appliances or computer we try to know about company/person (technically or as a person) who is going to repair it, but when we go for school and teacher do we really care for it? We never demand to know qualification of teacher.

Curriculam- I strongly believe there can not be common syllabus or common way of teaching any two child. School can not follow their teaching according to student’s interest and speed. They even do not try to adopt innovative ways to teach boring curriculam stuff in interesting way. Curriculam are far from real life and it’s problem/solutions.

Some alternative schools are doing nice but other school are hopeless. They may build career but fail to build concrete character.

A film based on a book Danger:School

http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=qhFueNOJyCU

First Post

Hello Friends,

Vipul’s word “just start” clicked and here is my first post.

Being only daughter never seen any infant in home or in close relative…so almost knowing nothing about infant care and all. People had confused me lot by giving different unasked advices. Then started reading books and some really helpful sites and got new direction. And I found Parenting fascinating and challanging job.

Emotional and sensitive nature has made me extra caring mother , but it has given me chance to find creative/innovative ways for parenting issues. Like we were giving Ash bottled milk . The day I come to find how it affect teeth and other negative effects, I have decided to leave bottle within a week. From that day started giving mini choco bar when she ask milk and changed it to popcorn packet after two days and slowly before a week her habit of milk-bottle has gone!

In India elders gives lots of advices to keep infant safe and healthy. Hardly people think about intellectual development at such a small age. I was very much sure to introduce love for reading at early age and brought hard books for Ash at 5-6 month and surfing for good book sites. From Bruno Bear’s site found very important truth about 0-6 year’s importance. Later come to know Madam Mountessouri and Gijubhai, and come to know methods for sense development and how it affects intellectual development.

http://www.multcolib.org/birthtosix/braindev.html
http://www.brainy-child.com/article.shtml

All these readings and experiences tought me that Parenting is very important subject and we have taken it very lightly. Familiar parenting ways are not enough and not even effective. Finding better ways has lead me to endless searching for truths in this subject.

Here I would like to share my journey to parenthood and homeschooling with you all and kindly comment or suggest what you feel.

Thanks,

Sejal