Russell, Ontario
With Kids and Parents
I landed at the Ottawa
Airport and my eyes opened to a wonderland of white. The ground, and each and every tree limb and branch were prettied
by that soft, ‘crystally’ snow. After days of meltdown, and rain washing the
pile-ups away, the snow now returned with a fresh layer.
I tell people I don’t
mind the changes of seasons. People are
quick to condemn winter because driving, and even trekking, becomes somewhat
restrictive. My take on that is
“reducing speed ain’t a bad thing.”
On the topic of speed,
I was graciously hosted by Krishna Dulal and Vraja Bhumi, who run a school for
Vaishnava children, and it being their holidays, a slew of fast-moving, fidgety
kids were assembled in front of me. It
would have been good to know beforehand who my audience
was, because when I saw the darlings before me, I knew I had to adjust my sails.
Krishna Dulal had expressed
a desire for a mid-day ‘program’ and now I got to realize who the listeners
would be. Now, I love kids, and it’s a
pleasure when parents are right behind them.
I’m tested by circumstance to see how much I can hold their attention,
which could be ‘not at all’. Story-telling, goofy and not so
goofy moments, and helping them to follow along with chanting at different volumes and
tones is what I occupied them with. We
implemented interactive-ness.
I know the Montessori method, which the school
adheres to,
encourages repetition of actions, and that
we did. But I find introducing something fresh and new to a presentation also
keeps everything lively and holds the interest.
Despite my methodology, I couldn’t succeed
one hundred per cent in harnessing the senses of the little ones. Essentially, they did have a good time
hearing about Prince Dhruva, chanting with some frivolity, and acting out
demonstrations of bhakti (devotional behaviour).
May the Source be with
you!
0 km
No comments:
Post a Comment