Storytelling connects. There can be no greater joy than reading stories aloud to an imaginative, curious, enthusiastic bunch of little ones. This week we started off with ‘Freddie and the Fairy’ by the ever popular Julia Donaldson. Kids enjoyed this wonderful lighthearted story full of rhyme and wit, with a positive message about patience and effective communication. It also led to a discussion about what they would wish for if a fairy offered to grant their wish.

The second story of the day was the delightful tale ‘The Tiger Who Came to Tea’ by Judith Kerr. There was much joy and excitment when the children were asked to act out scenes from the stories. During the guided reading time, they also took turns to read out from some of their favorite books. We love watching these tiny tots blossom into independent readers.

We are starting a series of Creative Writing workshop sessions for children above 10 years.

Every month there will be an independent session. The lesson plan is as follows.
1. Short Story Writing Composing, including plot elements, brainstorming, and more.
2. Letter Writing Focusing on adjectives, figurative language and more to prepare a personal and descriptive letter
3. Drafting and Revising Essays Emphasize the importance of drafting and revising essays
4. Be a Journalist Learning the basics of journalism before writing a newspaper article
5. Blogging Expressing feelings and thoughts in a blog
6. Poetry
7. Persuasive Writing
8. Argument Writing
and so on

We look forward to your valuable suggestions. Please contact us at schoolkutti@gmail.com or call 9847320281 for more details and discussion.

Scrabble is one of the most popular crossword games in which every letter counts. Children at Schoolkutti.com Children’s Library had a challenging and fun time with the classic game as they competed among themselves at the Scrabble Camp conducted by Kerala Scrabble Club this week.

Children at Schoolkutti.com Children’s Library had the chance to spread their creative wings under the guidance of Ms. Anitha S (Asst Professor in English). She shared tips on how to be a better writer and use language effectively. Children enjoyed experimenting with writing, doing group activities and reading aloud their stories.

Looking for ways to creatively engage your kids? Schoolkutti.com Children’s Library has 2 programs coming up this month.

Creative writing is a great way for children to express themselves. We are coming up with a Creative Writing Workshop on May 19 and 20 which is aimed to help children develop their creativity, thinking and writing skills whilst giving their imagination a real workout. Our writing exercises, prompts, games and feedback on stories are all designed to promote a love of writing. The age group is 8 to 14 years and timing will be 4 to 6 PM. The workshop will be facilitated by Ms. Anitha S, who is an Assistant Professor of English.
Click here to register

Summer is the time to play games and have fun. Kids can boost their language skills through one of the best loved board games. Schoolkutti.com Children’s Library presents ‘Scrabble Camp’ – The Professional Scrabble coaching camp which enriches your child’s vocabulary through fun games. Then program will be facilitated by Kerala Scrabble Club. The camp will be held from May 22 to 25 from 10:15 AM to 12:15 PM. Children above 7 years including young adults can participate in the camp.
Click here to register

Please contact 0471-4015293 or 9847320281 for registrations.

Schoolkutti team had a great time sharing stories with children at the summer camp organized by Vidyamritam for less-privileged children. Stories with Indian characters with Indian names like Kutti and Kannan, are something most Indian children can relate with. Hence, it’s always a joy to read out stories from Indian Publishers like Karadi Tales. We started off with the perfect read aloud book – ‘Kutti and the mouse’. Children burst into peals of laughter trying to imagine the plight of kutti who almost swallowed a mouse while expecting to relish a kozhukatta. When you read aloud to kids, you can instantly tell if a story grabs their attention. The phrase “A picture paints a thousand words“ is one that definitely applied here – how eager the kids were to see the cute, engaging and whimsical illustrations on every page of the book.

Make summer fun, creative and educational with our holiday programs! Yes, our Schoolkutti.com Children’s Library is coming up with three programs in May.

Our aim is to help your child develop confidence and speaking skills through drama. Our Schoolkutti.com Children’s Library in association with globally acclaimed Helen O’Grady International Edu Drama Academy presents ‘Developmental Drama Programme’ – An exciting and interactive drama workshop for children – in the mornings from May 15 to 19. The highlights are Storytelling, dramatic play, speech training, mime, creative movement, poetry and many language development activities. This program is aimed at confidence building and self improvement for children.

Click here to register

We are also coming up with a Creative Writing Workshop on May 19 and 20 which is aimed to help children develop their creativity, thinking and writing skills whilst giving their imagination a real workout. Our writing exercises, prompts, games and feedback on stories are all designed to promote a love of writing. The age group is 8 to 14 years and timing will be 4 to 6 PM. The workshop will be facilitated by Ms. Anitha S, who is an Assistant Professor of English.

Click here to register

‘Speak to Lead’ is a 10-day Communication Workshop for children which will be facilitated by Renjitha Rajan, University debate champion and member of Nirbhaya Debating Society. Highlights of the workshop are Public Speaking, Debating, Presentation and Body Language Tips, Confidence Building, Voice Modulation. Children above 8 years can participate in this program from May 17 to 30 (Evening 4 to 6 PM).

Click here to register

Call us at 0471-4015293 or 9847320281 for enquiries.

Blog posted by Arjun M (Class 9, Christ Nagar International School)

Ever heard of Big Dog? Maybe not. You must know Amazon’s Alexa though, right? You may wonder what they, and many other such recent inventions may have in common. Let me run you through the detailed and interesting robotics workshop held by MyRobo, an organisation that conducts training sessions at different venues for robotics and related subjects. Check out www.myrobo.co.in for more information on them.

Kinds of robots

There are various kinds of robots, each suited to aid us in a different way. A basic introduction was given on the major categories. Some short videos were shown on the different kinds and their functioning. Some examples that were touched are:
Man labour substitutes (at factories, construction sites, etc.),
Domestic help (cleaners like Roomba & Braava and cooks like Moley),
Security (Big Dog; small, but stays upright on impact and can be armed),
et cetera.

Interactive

The session saw all the active and bright children being given a chance to answer and share their knowledge with the others. They were very active participants, and the facilitators listened patiently and were ready to correct or add on to their points. The videos shown were also interesting and the children took home lots of new
information. The discussions held were vital to the session and allowed a lot more to be absorbed than just the direct information from the data presented.

Hands on

The session had a surprise at the end, where the kids got to build their own robots. After showing them some robots they had brought with them and how they worked, the kids were free to make their own robot, after being split into teams. The only available materials were paper cups, sketch pens, tape, a motor and a cell. Creativity took over
as the kids decorated their cups exquisitely using the sketch pens, and then used them as legs to support the robot. It was called a Wiggle Bot. Later, each team assembled a robot on wheels that used a remote control, using which the kids later enjoyed on the platform. The teams competed using them to see which bot would be the last one standing. It was utter chaos however, as the RJ-45 cables used to control the bots got all tangled up! The
kids would have loved to take them home, I bet. Overall, the session was a fruitful one, with plenty for the kids to take home, including the memory of this fun and informative session. A repeat of the immensely positive response to this session would truly justify the popularity and interest of the modern generation in robotics and artificial intelligence.

– Arjun M
Class 9
Christ Nagar International School

Blog posted by Arjun M (Class 9, Christ Nagar International School)

Recently, I had a chance to participate in a 3-day Theatre based NLP Workshop at Schoolkutti.com Children’s Library, Trivandrum. I was not sure what to expect, but I went with an open mind since I generally enjoy programs where I get to interact with other children and make new friends. Let me try to briefly share my experience over there.
Day 1

We were initially given an introduction to NLP, and to the facilitators themselves. They asked us about our expectations, and boy, did they deliver! After the break, we had a self introduction, after which each kid had to mention three things about the children to their left and right. This helped us all get familiar with each other. A lunch break later, the games session began with dumb charades and truth or dare. A short session where we learned to differentiate between reflexes and responses, and what to rely on and how to use them finished and gave way to the drama class, which began soon after. It had everyone cracked up, with the drama sir showing us the different aspects of drama including actions and dialogues. All the children also got to do a demonstration of each one, and the teacher was always ready to correct and fine tune our attempts. This went on into the evening, with the very entertaining class coming to a close around 5 PM.

Day 2

This day began with the drama class, where the children were taught of different rasas, or emotions, and they used them in short scenes. It was an enjoyable and enlightening session, and it kept us occupied until the lunch break, after which we played games like Pictionary. This was followed by a session on deletion, distortion and other factors which played a role in the way information could change as it went on from person to person. The further it travels and the longer it is, the more it can get changed, just like in Chinese whispers. A short set of role plays were also performed. However, it was soon time to call it a day. Another interesting session had come to a close.

Day 3

First, a short session on how we must treat others the way we expect to be treated. We also talked freely about what we thought of each other. The day became lively with some warm up stretches and breathing exercises, led by the drama teacher, after which a very helpful and interesting session on tackling our fears was held. This saw each child explaining what they knew about a certain kind of fear, how it could be tackled and if it was a valid solution or not. After this, it was already quite late, but we did manage to play Pictionary. To close, different topics that were touched upon in the last few days were assigned to the students, who were assorted into teams of two or three. We had to design a poster on the topic we received. I believe that each child did a great job in explaining his/her own poster wonderfully. Certificates were handed out to all the children, and that was that.

That was how this three day workshop had succeeded to leave a lasting positive impact on each kid who had walked in and out of those doors, and that is why this workshop will surely be remembered by the students and the facilitators alike.

Blog posted by Arjun M (Class 9, Christ Nagar International School)