Summer vacations for schools in India span a little over 50 days and come along with tons of holiday homework for students, which rarely deviates from the standard academic curriculum, ensuring that the takeaway for children is mostly limited to their syllabus.
Come to think of it, do you even remember any of the activities that you were asked complete or any homework that made an impact in your life on a holistic level?
Except for a few odd instances, we are sure that this has been the case since the establishment of the formal education system in India.
However, a higher secondary school in Chennai has ventured to the road less taken and has come up with an amazing holiday homework idea—but not for students!
A circular released by Lydia Devasagayam, the principal of Annai Violet Matriculation and Higher Secondary School, lists holiday assignments for parents and entails them to actively involve themselves in a string of developmental activities for the benefit of their wards, in order to make them more aware and sensitive towards the society and different professions. It also lists relationship-building measures.
“Have at least two meals together with your children. Teach them the importance and hard work of the farmers and ask them not to waste their food. Let them wash their own plates after the meal. Children learn the dignity of labour from such activities.”
These are the first two tasks in the heartwarming list, which also sheds light on various important values and life lessons that families are sadly losing out as we inch towards a more technologically advanced lifestyle.
“It’s just that I felt that the world has become techno-savvy, we are losing our kids in the rat race. We are focusing on marks and making money, because of which the society at large has become selfish and is losing values. I sent this circular as a refreshing break from the mundane. Until and unless parents invest time and create lovely memories for our kids out there, we are going to lose our precious kids,” a concerned Lydia explained to Edex Live.
Besides asking parents to enlighten their kids about the sweat and blood that goes in each profession, the circular also directs parents to incorporate the same about their own professions by taking children to their workplaces.
This way, the children will be able to better understand their parents’ hard work in supporting the family.
From sharing stories from one’s own childhood to getting the children spend more time with grandparents, the school administration aims to directly involve parents in the emotional and psychological growth of their children as better human beings who are socially conscious towards their family, society and the planet.
To raise environmental consciousness amidst the younger generation, the list highlights interesting activities like raising a kitchen garden, adopting a pet animal, and most importantly, “let them play outdoors, get hurt and get dirty because an indoor comfortable life on the sofa will make them lazy.”
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Amidst all the fun activities, the school hasn’t forgotten its basic tenets and has made sure to involve some learning too. “Learn five new words in English and list them on a notebook. Get some storybooks with colourful pictures for your children,” lists the circular.
The best yet most important part of the list directs the parents to visually document the completion of each of these activities through photographs that the children are required to bring back once the school reopens.
Lastly, the exceptional circular concludes on a poignant note for the parents, which asks them to celebrate their children and be grateful for their existence.
“Look into their eyes of your little one and thank God for giving you one wonderful gift. In a few years from now, they will be soaring to greater heights.”
(Edited by Gayatri Mishra)