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)

At the end of every training session we do for children, we are left with sheer joy and amazement. We think they are only kids what could they possibly know? What could they possibly learn in a day or two?

The level of understanding they display and the knowledge they already have about life is phenomenal. Children have unique personality traits that remain consistent throughout their life. However, it is easy to get trampled and overshadowed by what people around impose on them. Understanding your child is one of the most important things that a parent should learn to do. It is very helpful in helping and nurturing your child as they grow and mature.

During the NLP through Theatre program, we could see evidence of what fear of adults can do to children. Their self confidence, self-esteem, attitude and how they perceive the world is affected by this. Fear of being judged, fear of the expectations from parents, grandparents, teacher etc , fear of being shouted at and many more all adds up to how a child performs at home, at school and elsewhere. The lack of confidence that we mistake for shyness comes from being judged, what will people say about me? what if I go wrong? What if I fail? The expectations that they should excel in everything the parents/ grand parents could / could not excel in, is too much. The emotional baggage that teachers and parents unconsciously dump on them can pull them further down.

What can be done in situations like this?
Such situations will keep coming up in everyone’s life. The best we can do for our children is to help learn how to respond rather than react to such situation, being empathetic and yet be able to communicate positively how they feel about something, be able to access positive state of mind rather than being angry, sad and scared. Make them emotionally strong and build a better and fruitful future for them.
NLP helps individuals to understand and accept self and others, which is a liberating experience. Theatre helps to integrate the learning through experiencing and being in the moment.

Kids had a blast at Schoolkutti.com Children’s Library attending the ‘Lets get messy’ program on Vishu day. Anjali Rajan Dileep of Apple Story Club mesmerized the children with sensory play, stories, movement songs and messy activities. She got the kids and parents up and moving to the beats, exercising gross motor skills with high energy movements like jump, spin and shake.

What followed was a lovely story session based on the ‘Cave Baby’ by Julia Donaldson, which was enjoyed by both the children and children-at-heart. The highlight of the event was the messy play where kids played with home made dough and colors in total abandon. Overall, it was a fabulous fun time for both kids and parents alike. Here is a little peak into the fun we had.

Dear Friend,

We have the following programs coming up at Schoolkutti.com Children’s Library in April.

Robotics Workshop

Schoolkutti.com Children’s Library in association with MyRobo Robotics Academy presents a 3-hour Robotics Workshop for children.

This workshop will provide school students the fundamentals of Robotics and it’s significance in today’s world. It consists of the practical concepts of basic electronics, basic mechanics, robotics and its various applications, presented in a way that children can easily understand.

Dates: April 22(Sunday)

Time: 3 PM to 6 PM

Age: 6 to 15 years

Venue: Schoolkutti.com Children’s Library

Contact 0471-4015293 or 9847320281 for registrations

Theater Driven NLP Workshop

Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) teaches children to use their brain (Neuro) effectively, use language to understand and express themselves (Linguistic) and gives them the best strategies for their future (Programming).

MindLinks in association with Schoolkutti.com is organizing a 3 day Theatre driven NLP workshop for children. Allow NLP to be your guide through the more challenging times so you can enjoy your children for who they are and allow yourself to be the best parent you can be!

Age Group: 11 – 14 years & 8 – 10 years | Batch size : 20 children

Dates: 26 – 28 April 2018 | 3 – 5 May 2018 respectively

Venue: Schoolkutti.com

Registration in advance to secure your seat

Venue: Schoolkutti.com Children’s Library

Contact 0471-4015293 or 9847320281 for registrations

Cuemath is an organization that introduces math to children in a fun and engaging way. Cuemath believes that engaging children since a young age in “math-ful” events will actually make them learn to appreciate and love the subject.

At schoolkutti.com Children’s Library, Cuemath organized ‘Math Adventure’- a fun filled program that aims to engage kids with physical kits with interesting puzzles /activities. The category based division ensured that students of different age groups are able to work on relevant puzzles and activities. There were logical reasoning based puzzles and also activities using physical learning aids. The idea behind these activities was to ensure that kids see how interesting math can be and that they don’t shy away from it. Cuemath team is working towards creating an environment for students where they can understand Math in the most interactive and engaging forms. All the children that took part in Math Adventure got their dose of adventure and fun with this.

It was a buzzing saturday evening – we had excited children, enthusiastic parents, story-telling, songs, fun, craft and colours at Schoolkutti.com Children’s Library on March 31. We enjoyed having Bina Maria Mathews narrate the cute and delightful story of ‘Farmer Falgu goes to the market’ from Karadi Tales. Bina passed around some cool props for the items in the cart (tomatoes, brown eggs, duck eggs, coriander and so on) that really helped spice up our storytime. Kids simply loved the wonderful phrases and sounds, beautiful illustrations and all the interesting happenings in the story and of course, the fantastic outcome.

There is an artist in every child. Our litle participants loved the egg craft and veggie garden finger painting too. Here are some glimpses from the session.

Prasanth of Learning Alternatives enthralled the young audience at Schoolkutti.com Children’s Library on March 24 with his program ‘Utter Nonsense’. They thoroughly enjoyed the humorous tales and verses with their fanciful phrases, meaningless words and rhythmic appeal.