Happy Independence Day!
Date: August 16, 2022
Theme: Independence Day
Facilitators: Simran K, Simran J, Raveena, and Jasmine
Introduction
Independence Day is celebrated in our country on 15th August every year. In our class, we decided to celebrate it the next day with each learning experience planned in accordance with this theme.
Celebrating a cultural event in class educates the kids about the traditional ethos of their country. Culture is an essential part of one’s identity and learning about its roots can help a young mind relate with the world around them. Also, festivals can give us a sense of togetherness that can help build a healthy personality.
How did it go?
Work-time: It included coloring the national flag, the outline of which was drawn on a canvas and pasted on a small table. The kids were presented with five shades (Orange, white, green, blue and brown). Soft pastels were used and it seemed like the kids enjoyed smudging these colors using their fingers. Aayansh was able to recognise each color correctly. Atharv Goyal spent most of his time smudging the colors over the floor. Yasha made mini circular scribbles over the canvas while Saanvi preferred to move the color in straight smooth lines. Ratujit and Krishay helped the facilitator clean-up after the activity.
Small Group: Here, The outline of the national flag was printed on A3 sheets. Rice granules were painted in orange and green colors while for the white stripe, white rice was directly used. The kids were shown to put glue first, rub it across the sheet and then sprinkle particular colored rice over the stripes. Rice and glue gave a very sensory experience to the whole process. All the kids sat down and seemed to be engaged in the sticking of the rice over the flag.
Sensory Play: Three ribbons (orange, white and green) were joined together on an ice-cream stick and the kids were given each stick to play with the movement induced by the ribbons. The kids first explored the ribbons and the urge to move the stick in random directions. Subsequently, they were given prompts to induce full body movements.
Skills Enhancement
Celebrating Cultural Identity: Independence day is an event of national importance that informs us about our country’s freedom struggle. Celebrating this cultural event can inform the toddlers about who they are and how they connect with others around them, thereby enhancing their sense of belongingness and leading to holistic development.
Fine Motor and Gross Motor Development: While the kids sprinkled colored rice over the sheet, their fine motor skills got strengthened. Also, during the sensory play, where the kids danced with ribbons in their hands, their gross motor skills got a chance to expand.
Learning about the National Flag: Throughout each activity, the kids got to know about the colors of our country’s flag and which color goes in which stripe. This knowledge paves the way for learning about global geography in the future.