Month: February 2012

The subject of the matter

Subject teachers at the school level have a major responsibility in terms of inculcating learning attitudes and generating interest in a particular subject. It is the passion for a subject that the teacher kindles in the student which takes him or her on a learning journey . It is only when a student cares deeply about a subject, is he motivated enough to share the learning with others.

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Planning a topic web

Ambika Parchure
It is important that a teacher creates a lesson plan before she begins to teach any subject. Some of the objectives that a teacher needs to keep in mind are: try to refer the topic across all subjects, keep the students engaged at all times, ask questions that will get the children to think. A cross-curicular topic web helps the child understand the subject more deeply and above all, the child has ownership of his learning.

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Family – A child’s academic barometer

Steven Paul Rudolph
There is a growing body of evidence which says that children’s success in learning and behaviour is closely linked to their parents’ involvement. Parents can help in their child’s education by helping them establish a routine, set study schedules and learning goals and generally take an interest in what the children are learning and talking to them about it.

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“Coloured” judgments

Geetha Durairajan

Often, in the course of our assignments, be it teaching or learning, we come across people about whom we tend to have pre-conceived notions depending upon the way they look or talk. These biases cloud our own judgments and we build our prejudices. This new column Touchstone will work as a reference point that allows us to measure our teaching, our accomplishments, in short , all that we do. It will, in fact, act as a mirror to all the things that we do and don’t do.

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The wonder wrought by words

Talitha Mathew

Words are like the ‘skin of our thoughts’. They are needed by students as food for the mind and spirit. They inspire, motivate and awaken the inner learning creature that can only be sustained, that can only grow and develop on a steady diet of meaning and symbol.

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Playtime = Learning time

Munusamy Raviraaj

Getting children to learn and incorporate value education in classrooms is a challenge faced by educators. A new fun and experiential learning aid for children in elementary schools called ‘Play and Improve’ helps teachers to talk about positive and negative attitudes in a fun way. Teachers can get across important messages with values to the children so that it is firmly imprinted in their minds. Read all about this exciting tool in this article.

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Balancing act!

Yasmin Jayathirtha

This article gives a description of how one can assemble a balance, how it can be used and tested and the important things to keep in mind.

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Puzzles and critical thinking

Solving puzzles helps to build self-esteem and confidence.Puzzles are excellent tools for channelling the energy of the young. They also develop the capacity to redefine a problem and the will to persevere.

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Penning that thought!

Manaswini Sridhar

Getting children to pen their thoughts is a daunting task. But the process of writing can be made both creative and entertaining. Here are a few tips on how this can be done.

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