LEARNING TO BE PATIENT FROM 8-YR-OLDS

Being a teacher isn’t an easy job when you’re averse to the idea of children. The noise, the tantrums, the mischief, the pranks and perhaps, even the inquisitive mind, can make children a difficult lot to handle if you’re low on patience. And yet, teachers stick on. They tolerate the naughtiness and the squeaky voices and sometimes, even miss it in the rather mundane, sophisticated company of organised, well-mannered adults. They stay not simply because they need to teach the ‘future generation’. It is the image of those innocent faces, curious eyes, oily ponytails and carefree smiles that makes them want to stay. It is in the little hurdles that they cross that a teacher experiences unmatched happiness. And the love received is multi-fold that you could never walk out of that classroom even on a bad day. 

“Inside the classroom, there is love and acceptance like there is in few other places”

Teaching is one profession where it isn’t merely the student that’s learning something new. Children are often a mirror of those values that adults seem to lose in their quest for a better life or simply because they wear the mask of adulthood. Whether it’s an undying curiosity or the thirst for learning, young minds can teach us more than we can imagine.

In our second part of this series, we see what chirpy, intelligent and creative adolescents from the 6th to 10th grade learn from 23-year-old Yashasvini Rajeshwar. A Humanities graduate from the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-M), Yashasvini teaches English as a second language at a private school on the Tamil Nadu-Kerala border. The school caters to children (largely first-generation learners) of the local tribes in and around the area. From learning adjectives and prepositions to having their pieces published in national dailies, the beaming faces of these children coupled with their undying spirit is what keeps her going. As she opens their eyes to the world of Marquez and Wordsworth, she learns a lot more about life and being grateful. 

WHAT’S IT LIKE TO BE A TEACHER IN YOUR 20s?

There was a time when most of us cribbed about going to school. The incessant ring of the alarm clock would begin at 6am and with groggy eyes, we’d step out of bed and find our way to the shower. Soon, we would gobble down hot idlis, drink milk and hop on to the bus. Not much has changed for a bunch of 20-somethings even years after they finished school, except that they no longer sport a blue or white pinafore but a salwar set or a saree, as they head to their classrooms to teach young minds. Belonging to Gen Y, these youngsters are open-minded, a little low on patience (mind you, they end up really working on that) and a bundle of energy that’s seldom out powered by the jumpy, bright faces of second and third graders they teach. Their fresh, out-of-the-box method of teaching tiny tots seeks to shape the children into curious human beings with a strong conscience.

Celebrating the lives of these teachers, is a three-part series of articles that I’m starting on my blog, which will feature interviews with three teachers sharing their experiences about teaching and working with little ones. Peppered with sweet and heart-warming anecdotes, the blog hopes to open your mind to this wonderful profession of teaching and how, if it’s done right, it can significantly impact young minds. 

IRONIES – PART I

Little drops fall into potholes in the street. Tiny eyes look out from their yellow tents supported by tall, sturdy branches, to see if it’s that time of the year. Within seconds the shallow potholes are brimming with water – a muddy brown – and it doesn’t take long before the sound of heavy rain acts as a summon to the little children huddled in the tents of the nearby slums. They run on to the streets – jumping, playing and enjoying – the rain. While one splashes water, the other jumps into the puddle. They listen to nature’s music and dance to its tunes while we just sit within four brick walls, beside our windows with a hot cup of tea taking in nature’s beauty through the eyes of a concrete window. We capture a perfect picture to upload on social media, while they are a part of the picture itself. We order in hot samosas and bhajjis to hog on, while they stand by the petite roadside tea stall and munch on crispy treats in the chilly monsson. The fear of catching a terrible flu successfully suppresses the urge to play in the rain but nothing puts a full stop to their fun.

Surprisingly, you and I have greater access to medicine. 

Carefree, young and happy – they listen to nature’s music to enjoy it in the moment. They don’t take a picture of the rain from their windows to upload it on social media. They seem to understand nature better

(A 7-part series to bring out the ironies in life between the rich and the poor).

MOTION SPEAKS LOUDER THAN WORDS

His play tool. His earning. His education fee. His mother’s income. His father’s support. This twirling umbrella carries with it the dreams of those innocent eyes. How much something so small can reveal. Unbelievable. – Shot during Ganesh Chaturthi, in Chennai.

In response to The Daily Post’s weekly photo challenge: “Motion.”