Work
English Drama Workshops
Day 1
The first workshop session held with the students at the Prajna Foundation was one filled with mirth, oodles of creativity, and more than a little artistic prowess. The students read some of the Mole Books and were instructed to sketch, from their imagination, their interpretation of the content of these books. Drawing on the Community Helper Series of Mole Books, the students produced remarkable works of art that far exceeded expectations. They were also very engaged in the activity and found the session both educational and enjoyable.
Day 2
The second workshop session was geared towards the formation of a closer, and more open interpersonal relationship with the students. Food has historically been a means of coming together and building a platform of friendship, ‘breaking bread’, so to speak. To this end, we organized a meal with the students and faculty of the Prajna Foundation, numbering around seventy people in total. Over samosas, bread pakoras, channa bhatura, and gulab jamuns, we engaged in a riveting discussion with the students about the role, and impact, of various community helpers in society. By the time dessert rolled around, the students were discussing the capacities in which they wanted to serve their community: featuring aspirations such as doctors, teachers, and police officers. One of the students, Atul, had even settled upon being a research scientist to study and address the prevalence of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was a highly fruitful session that allowed us to get to know the students better, and concurrently, helped them feel more comfortable opening up to us.
Day 3
It is often the case that children growing up in vulnerable communities do not have adequate space to engage in play, and games of make-believe that test the imagination. The role of drama in this mission is not one to be underestimated, and it is to this end that the third workshop session was conducted. “Armaan’s English Drama Workshop,” created a space for the students to both explore these modes of expression and education, while also developing their English language skills.
The session consisted of an activity wherein students formed groups, after which, each student was given a chit with the name of a community helper on it (policeman, postman, doctor etc.), and were given ten minutes to develop a short skit. The roles assigned to the students were based on characters and settings from the Mole Books. The skits presented by the students involved the development of these characters, settings, and plots with a focus on English language skills: which were corrected politely when they faltered so as not to impede the students’ confidence or self-esteem. The third session was also a highly productive one: some incredible pieces were performed that critically investigated the roles of these community helpers and their interactions with each other, and society at large. The students also had lots of fun with this activity and even requested another English Drama Workshop for their next session!
Day 4 - Diwali Session
The fourth day of the Mole Workshop Series sought to bring the festive spirit into the sessions. Diwali, famously dubbed “The Festival of Lights,” is a nation-wide holiday that is celebrated across the country. As a time marked by togetherness, light, warmth, and fellow-feeling; we sought to bring these virtues into the session. The activity had students divide themselves into groups, and pick up chits with the myriad ways of celebrating Diwali, written in Hindi, on them: “Make Rangolis,” “Decorate your Home,” “Light Diyas,” and “No Firecrackers” being some of these. The students were then tasked with coming up with two sentences, in English, to describe the activity on their chit, and the way they celebrated Diwali in their homes. With a bit of time left over, some students also performed short skits of the Diwali activities they selected, an activity that continues to be received with fervent enthusiasm. With polite assistance being provided where required, this activity was a huge success both in developing students’ English skills, and building their excitement for the upcoming festive season!
