Skype interaction with British peers on Reading and Writing for classes 6-8

" The idea is to write it so that it slips into the brain and goes straight to the heart " Maya Angelou.

Students of classes 6-8 of The Indian School interacted with the 8th graders of Montsaye Academy, UK, on the Google Meet platform on 26 November at 4:30 pm IST. The session aimed at inspiring and driving children to write stories and poems.

Ms Nina Mathews of the Montsaye Academy and Ms Vandana Tewari of The Indian School facilitated the online meet. It took multiple communications to ascertain the interests of children, from preferred genres for reading and writing stories to the difficulties faced and ways to overcome them. It is a challenging task for teachers to retain the interest of students for reading and writing. These skills enable the young ones to express themselves, enhance thoughts and become balanced human beings.

After month-long deliberations, the two teachers chose pen friendship to establish communication between students from both schools through emails. They paired students according to their preferred genre of writing.Thus, the penpals were able to learn from each another, peer critique and share their ideas, inspirations and creative work.

The session commenced with the Indianites asking the British students to share their impression of India. The prompt responses included Indian curry, Taj Mahal, Yoga, Indian dresses, Bollywood, and Namaste! The Indianites were delighted to hear praise for the Indian cricket team, as well! An impressive Power Point presentation unravelled enigmatic India through a rich portrayal of its heritage, culture, food and music, including a segment on the fascinating story of the Taj Mahal.

On the other hand, the British schoolchildren shared posters made by them to welcome their Indian friends; flags of both countries to mark their friendship, and promote the importance of being creative.

An animated discussion on creativity kept all engaged. Ms Nina Mathews asked her class to define creativity, as they understand it. For a few children, it was a chance to release emotions, while for others, it was an opportunity to infuse life into things. Finally, all participants concurred that creativity has nothing to do with age; it does not die with old age; it is just that most people choose not to use it!

As the interaction progressed, it became more engaging and entertaining. Two students each from both the schools read out their stories to the virtual assemblage.

Joe Healey told the tale of a 10-year-old boy who wrote a diary. His story, appropriately titled 1939, focussed on his emotions and feelings for his father, a soldier in the British Army during World War II. After Joe, Richard Goodman narrated his enthralling sci-fi thriller, Five Nights.

Next, it was the turn of the creative writers of The Indian School to put forth their stories. Aarav Bansal of class 7 shared his beautifully illustrated fantasy tale of The Phyre and the Flame. The riveting story of the little girl and her belief in the phoenix- a symbol of courage and optimism catered to the captive audience who wondered if her faith would hold forth despite all the odds.

Mahak Mahto of class 6 transported the listeners to the land of fairies and magic with her story, The Kind Reward. The central idea of the story was that staying kind and happy would end all worries.

In the end, on popular demand by the British school students, Divyanshi Nayak of class 7 taught everyone a simple yoga asana to relax the mind and body. She asked her audience to take a deep breath and then chant AUM using their exhale flow of breath. This asana also helps to improve concentration.

The highly eclectic meet ended on a warm note, with students of Montsaye Academy saying a cheerful Namaste to bid farewell!