Arabic alphabets

Cave of the yellow dog

Reacting to her friends

Maths -- following the story of Nansal from the Cave of the Yellow Dog

A 60-piece jigsaw puzzle

Chicken Pox

Cards for all the group mates and diyas

We were having a conversation. She had been shouting like a class mate of hers and crying to get work done. I told her to be herself and to not copy other people. But she turned around and said "I will copy or follow whatever is good. After all you are following Vijay uncle's advice on how to deal with my chicken pox.

The Happy Land Bank

Maths with Rangometry

Black Pearl

Origami

Butterfly walk

Visit to Madhav's house

She had long been wanting to go to Madhav's house. She seems to have had a great day there.

Over dinner I asked her if she missed me and she said "No, because all along I was imagining that I had another mom, dad, a big brother and a little sister".

Madhav has been her inspiration for drawing well. She drew in their house too. Madhav brought her drawing and gave it to Rashmita didi the next morning. It was beautiful!

There was a lot of water with an island in it. There was one tree on the island and a giraffe was trying to reach one of the high branches. It had just come out of water and water was still dripping from its tail. Two more Giraffes were in the water swimming and only their necks could be see above the water.

Running

The Fish floor painting

Lakshmi got sent back from school today for having gone late. She had been warned before and it really happened today. She was in tears for half an hour. After that she seems to have got new "josh". She decided to draw something and it turned out to be a large but intricately decorated fish in the front yard. Then she took water colour and painted it in green too. Then she painted four fish, two schools of fish on either side of the large fish. Drew the sea bed with weeds. All painted with green lines. The front yard was looking beautiful.

Candles and Western Classical music

Vijay, Sudarshan's dad had brought us lovely lamps from Kamala for Diwali. We had not used all of them We had saved them for Kartikai.

One evening Lakshmi wanted to make a stage. First till daylight she was outside and drew herself a stage alongside the gate. She shaded the whole area blue and put the pine cones for stage lights.

After it got dark she came inside and wanted to created a stage inside.  She turned off the lights and we lit a tea light in a cut terracotta lamp. This was casting a lot of beautiful shadows. Then she wanted some music on. I put on the Spanish wave which was L. Subramanium with Stephan Grappelli. It would was too loud and fast she indicated in her own. She wanted "ballet music". I have a whole box of many unopened western classic music CDs that Vinod had sent. I opened one which said "Childhood Memories". It has music by many composers. She loved it. She was dancing for over an hour!

Then to get her to eat I had to leave the music on, put the candle on the table and call it candle light dinner.  

Guru Purab

The school decided to celebrate Guru Nank's birthday on Wednesday, the day before Guru Purab. Jasmeet and Anjana did the Paath and sang a Shabad and went to Red group and sang it. The Red group followed them and we went to the Blue group. Then both the groups followed and went to the Green group. After which the whole group went and sat under the Bargad tree. Jasmeet told them the Sacha Souda story. They had also brought Prashaad.

Since it was a half-day for Lakshmi and Rian was coming home, I asked Jasmeet if we could go to Bangla Sahib. Jasmeet, Arav and Ruhan went with us. It was good to go with Jasmeet because she explained things to kids. She showed us where the Guru Granth Sahib goes to bed at night. We had Kada Prashad at least five times. The walk around the Sarovar was most enjoyable. We probably met every fish in the pond.

Late in evening after dinner I searched for a Shabad on Youtube that she could listen to -- Guru Nanak Tuhi Nirankar. Then I asked her if she wanted to draw Guru Nanak. We opened a site with sketches and she tried to draw Guru Nanak and Guru Gobind Singhji. Then she saw Sikh warriors on horses on the same page. Then decided to draw a horse with a bridle. Then when reminded that she had to make card for Arav's birthday she converted that horse. Arav and Ruhan were sitting on the Horse and jumping through a loop of fire. She then made another drawing where they had won the world cup for horse jumping. They were standing in the first place on the podium, their horse was standing to the right of the podium and Krishna, their dad was standing to the left and watching. As an afterthought she added herself to the picture. The horse which had a long body  now had three riders. All three of them were holding up a cup.

Two days later

The school took them all on Friday to the Gurudwara and also told them Gurunanak stories from a book that Sukanya, Samved's mother had sent.

In the evening, Anand came home after school. Lakshmi set up a stage with blocks. Put the Gurunanak Story book (I had borrowed it from school) on it like the Guru Granth Sahib had been kept. She tied a handkerchief to a stick and was waving it over the book and humming in a Shabad like tune. Both she and Anand had tied scarves around their head.

A few says later

She remembered that Jasmeet had told her that there were ten sikh gurus when the school had taken them. In the Gurunanak storybook that we borrowed from Sukanya, we learnt that Bhai Laihna became the next guru Angad. She then wanted to know the names of all the other Gurus. I learnt a lot in the bargain. What each Guru had done, how was the Guru Granth Sahib compiled and how Guru Gobind made the Granth Sahib the next guru.

Maths with marbles that Jaya Chithi had on show at home

Today we decided to set up games for each other using the flat marbles. Lakshmi was leading the play. She took ten of one colour and asked me to take ten of another.

Then we were giving each other problems.

Sudarshan came with three flowers and now there are this many she said showing me a certain number within ten. How many were there before he came?

(She can create her own problems!)

I said: Soham brought Arav and Ruhan. They brought Neel. I have ten Murukkus and I don't want to give each of them just one.  How many can I give each of them?

I then put sixteen green marbles. Four diamonds of four each with a central brown one. I told her that it was a restaurant. Each brown stone was a table and there were four chairs around. There were four tables. There were three extra chairs for people who were waiting. I asked her how many people could sit in the restaurant.
Then I told her that Lakshmi and Rishika were playing on the table and spilt food all over. So that  table cannot be used and so how many people could sit now? Then We got four plastic chairs and put them outside. They were marbles of a different color. So many people could sit now?

When it was her turn, she made an F1 track. With three cars big to small. The player had to make a car on either side as the next in the series. Only there were three different series in the car which was on its side view. The length of the car was a single row of marbles and it was increasing/decreasing by one. The cabin shape varied based on the number of marbles which was also increasing/decreasing by one. The wheels were always two but placed symmetrically based on the length. It was beautiful!

A week later Alpana and Neeraj came home. We did maths corners with them. Lakshmi made two three by three squares. They were dew drops and each had a dew drop fairy in them. How many wands would we need to give each fairy a wand?

That is when I realised that the texture and shape of the objects that we use changes the story...

John James Audubon

I order books from Amazon based on Lakshmi's interests. Usually the used books from various libraries are in a very good condition. They are hardback and you find books on almost anything imaginable. I bought "the boy who drew birds" a year ago. It is the biography of American naturalist and painter John James Audobon. His paintings of birds are realistic and beautiful. They are of birds in their natural surroundings.

Lakshmi loves this book. We have read it many times. This week late one night she pulled out an alphabet book where each letter has a object painted by a famous painter. "W" was for Woodpeckers painted by Audubon.

She went staright to the bookshelf and brought the book along to read. I got a brainwave and looked for more Audubon paintings on the Net. We found many documentaries. One of them was particularly beautiful. It had great music and flashed his paintings on to the screen. Lakshmi watched it two or three times and said she wanted to draw.

She took the book and tried to draw all the bird sketches or paintings in it. She sat till 11:15 in the night drawing three pages of birds...

The Parijat flowers

Everyday on her way to school Lakshmi picks up flowers that have fallen down. There are three Parijat trees on the way from home to school. She picks up a handful and one or two champa flowers.

Yesterday we read a story about how the Parijat tree came down to earth. There are many stories attached to these flowers and I looked for them.  Krishna then planted it in Satyabhama's house with all the flowers falling in Rukmini's house.

There is also a story about how Princess Parijataka who was in love Surya became the tree.

I found a page with  stories attached to many Indian flowers. I will read more about those stories.

Diwali

In the school they have been drawing Diyas. There was a big poster in her group with a man reaching out to light with "Prakash ki Or"  written. So in the music class this week, we decided to learn -- Prakash Mera Mera Prakash -- Hindi translation of a Tagore song. 

She has also drawn Narsingha in school  and has learnt to write "Shubh Diwali" in Hindi. 


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She has gone to Suhani's house this Friday. We gave Suhani a paper rangoli making kit made by an NGO as a birthday present. They have invited her to make it together.

Stay at the Ashram

Lakshmi is going to stay at the Ashram tonight with her group.

We have been telling her to get independent. Manju aunty taught her how to slip her T-shirt out without expanding the base. She has to cross her hands over and hold the opposite ends of the T-shirt. It just slips out out so easily. We have been getting her to get more conscious of time. We taught to wash herself after potty by pouring water out of  a mug instead of using a jet. She is so excited that she can do all this herself.

I bought a back pack that can be wheeled. Over the weekend, we painted on it with Fabric paint. She has painted herself and Soham and a bookshelf. She is handing him a book.

In school they made out a list of things that they thought they needed. they have drawn pictures of each object, written the name next to in Hindi. She has written it so neatly. Her list also includes a Doorveen -- a pair of Binoculars. Yesterday we packed her backpack and wrote her name on everything. This is the first time she is going to manage her own luggage and toilet kit. 

This morning she jumped out of bed on her own. She did not have to be woken up.

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Came back this afternoon. All her things have come back they were packed. All toiletries in the toilet case. All clothes including socks have come back.

"I was late for Sunrise" she said. They went out in the night with a torch looking for lions. She slept with her socks on. They slept on the floor with a quilt on it. I guess the rest of the details will come over the week. She is going to Heritage school and will stay there for three days next month. She is all prepared for it.

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At school on the notice board today didi had put up a drawing and descriptions of what each child liked about the night stay. She had drawn so many pictures on the page. Going up to ashram terrace to see the sunrise, making decorations with flowers, sitting in prayer, walking through the forest with a torch, sleeping...

Koel ka Sitar -- Ashok Chakradhar

Alpana mentioned to me that Lakshmi uses very common Hindi words which often sound jarring. I realised then that I had to improve my Hindi. When I was in the Jodo Gyan store, I saw this story book -- Koel ka Sitar -- by Ashok Chakdradhar. I knew Chakradhar was a contemporary poet and the book caught my eye. The whole book was in verse but it was a story with beautiful illustrations. The first page was in pastel shades and 3/4 of the double spread was covered with a tree's branches. A Koel and a Hoopoe were sitting on it.

I decided to buy the book even though it looked like complicated poetry for Lakshmi. I was trying to read it one day when Jasmeet dropped in. We read it together and she explained the words in the book that I could not understand. We loved reading it together. I decided that I must read it for Lakshmi. We actually managed to read the whole book one night at bed-time. She has got the whole story but has not begun to appreciate the words and the poetry yet. She however has looked at all the illustrations carefully. She told me "She did not like it when the Sitar was open-mouthed".

The book ends with all the stringed instruments in India. So this gives us an opportunity to look at all of them and hear them as well. I too will know the sound of these instruments and the maestros who play them.

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Mom and I actually looked up the instruments we listened to Sarin Marna -- a Pakistani Ektara player who was a wandering mendicant. What amazing music he created with just one string.

We listened to Annapurna Devi on Surbahar -- that was divine

Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt on the Indian Slide Guitar

Pandit Ravishankar on the Sitar

Maths -- Jodo Gyan Toys

We have started playing with the sticks. Make bundles of ten and place them in a circle. Place a few free sticks in the middle. Throw a dice which goes from 0 to 5. Take as many sticks as the number in the dice. If you get ten sticks put them back in the center and take a bundle. This is the second time we played today. She can clearly add two numbers till ten. She can take out ten from numbers till 14. She still has to learn to do the tens.

At one place though she surprised me saying how much is three times four. However instead of counting the sticks, she took four fingers in two hands and four toes. But she did arrive at 12.

This Navaratri

This Navaratri has been a full experience for Lakshmi. In school (Mirambika), she made a statue of Lakshman with Clay. That was displayed along with all her classmates' statues in the lobby.

She joined up with Rishika, Esha, Tara, Amaira and Tanisha and practised dance every day for 20 days. When we had to pick a song for the dance I asked Kausalya for a list of Tamil songs. So we learnt Subramanyam Bharati's "Om Shakti, Om Shakti...". I asked Shaumen Masterji for a song and he suggested "Durge, Durge...".  But Vidya decided on "Thumak Chalat Ramachandra..." by Tulsi Das. So Lakshmi by now had exposure to many songs and learnt Thumak Chalat fully...She also really enjoyed the dancing. At first she would jump around. Then I told her to imagine that she was little Ram's mother and that she should be graceful and watch her child playing and suddenly, it was a different dancer. She was more controlled and beaming.

After her practice everyday, the mothers would practice dandiya and garba and she got to see that and do it too.

We went to Sudarshan's house to see Golu. Lakshmi went wearing a saree. She heard Kausalya and Rukmini sing. They did not know the words of Thumak Chalat -- she lead and both Kausalya and Rukmini followed her. That was a tremondous boost to her confidence. The same evening we went to see Ramayan at the Akshara Theatre. It was in English...a minimal cast...tasteful costumes and great delivery.

We also asked Shaumen to teach her "Jaago Tumi Jaago...". She watched a video with the song too on Youtube many times. She would feel that way many times and stand like Durga. She sang the song with Nandita the day she visited. One evening we went to the Charmwood Durga Puja. They had recreated a Purulia Village for the mandap. We bumped into Mridu and Sharu. They took her up in a giant wheel.

We also went to see a dance at the Ananya festival. It was a mix of many Indian styles where each dancer presented a river and a story about that river was enacted.

On Vijayadashami we went to Mala Murli's house. She danced there with a group of her students. Mala is very gracias and the Pooja was a great experience for her. I am grateful to have Mala as her guru. After that we went to see Ravan burning at IIT which is still not a very pleasant experience for her.

Drawing -- greeting cards

Starting with Rishika's birthday we have started drawing for cards again. Now she has started to want to make the pictures look as real as possible. She wanted to draw her and Rishika playing football on the river bank. There were coconut trees on both sides. She wanted to draw something that would keep score! I was impressed but wondered where that came from. They have never played football together. Vish then re-collected that Anna and Akka play football in "Mallipoo...Where are you?" and the monkey keeps score. The illustrations and stories that she reads clearly play a great role.

On Parth's birthday she drew, Shiva and Parvati on Mount Kailash with Ganesh.Kartikeya was flying on a peacock. We wrote for him in Hindi. For Suhani's birthday she has drawn herself and Suhani in a garden. There are under a tree which is laden with mangoes. Her drawings are getting colourful and more real.

A couple of days ago the school had asked to draw what they wanted to take forward in themselves. She clearly is making an effort to draw well and realises that her drawings have gotten better.  She had written that  she wanted to get very good at drawing, learn to run very fast and remove all difficulties that she faced. She had drawn herself in our front yard sitting on a table and drawing. She was under a tree. Mom and Dad were standing holding hands and watching and trying to help out. Her cycle was parked, the front light had been drawn and so was the fan. It was a two-storey house with a balcony.

On Parth's birthday we were impressed with how well she designed her own T-shirt. The bottom of her T-shirt was a road with a white dividing line. Grass was growing along the road. There was a tree along the left seam. A butterfly.

We have been scribbling with side walk chalk in our front yard for a long time. I used to draw big pictures of what happened that day like a rangoli. Last week she drew a large Ganesh.

12th November...

For Anand's birthday she drew herself and Anand building large machines.

Wizard of Oz

We have had this DVD for  couple of years now. The first time, the twister in the movie scared her and she would watch it no further. This time she chuckled through. Movies have such a great impact. After the movie she has made herself the nails of a wizard with tape. She has scrounged around her room looking for things with which she could build wizard land. I'm quite impressed with the range of things she has picked up. The drumsticks stand up as towers and the powder box with a translucent lid is a crystal ball...

She has now made a poster for a movie called "The Wicked Wizard of the Eagles". Then she thought and changed the word wicked to wonderful. We have a water man, an eagle man, a snowman and a stickman. There is even a purple brick road. Drawing those bricks symmetrically was not very easy. She has now started drawing scenes. She spent three pages drawing a bridge. She is going to make the movie when she grows up!

We watched the movie again. The globe has become her crystal ball and she puts on clips on the fingers like the witch's nails...she loves to be the bad witch...We even play the bad and her people and look into the globe to see what is happening. 

Jigsaw Puzzle

Lakshmi could never do jigsaws. The other night we were visiting a friend. Her four-and-a-half year old could do a 60 piece puzzle. Was it something to do with concentration? It suddenly struck me that she always likes big things. Things into which she herself can get into and experience.

The other I suddenly bumped into a extra large jigsaw puzzle of a world map which had 33 pieces. On an impulse I bought it. I tried it with her one afternoon. She could do it although she had difficulty starting. And then she danced on it, slept on it and imagined herself travelling all over it. It turned out that my guess was right. 

What a range of drawings...contd

It has now exploded...

All through summer she drew dinosaurs.

Then came submarines and different kinds of machines.

After that it was Ganesh, Shiva and Parvati.

Now it is Krishna. She also tries to perfect it now.

Skating...

Suddenly a couple of weekends ago she started skating perfectly. The joy of having learnt it on her own was so evident on her face. She just couldn't stop and continued to skate for over two hours.

She wanted us to give her exercises. Skate between lines, in a circle, in a zigzag and it went on...

She started trying on the skates when she was three. It was a third birthday gift from friends. She would occasionally wear it and I would hold and get her to walk.

The first step was for her to walk steadily on her own without me holding. She then would put it on once every few weeks and now she was skating so beautifully. Once she has figured out that she can, there is no stopping her...

We went with Rhea to skate in the school. We tried skating in the duck pond. We tried skating in the basket ball court. But they were both talking. On the way back though. I found that she was now so comfortable with her skates.  She climbed everything she possibly could, skated on all surfaces and wherever possible she took the more circuitous route. She does not know what she can do and what she can't. That is getting her to explore more. It is perhaps a good way for her to learn anything new. Do it by herself and feel a sense of achievement at every small step, get very comfortable and then perhaps seek a teacher to get very good.

Learning Maths

I brought back a pile of foreign coins from Bangalore. Lakshmi now keeps her treasure in a treasure box.

We pull them out sort them, count them, make patterns with them, stack them and so on.

Once while counting she found 12 of one kind of coin. So she wanted to 12 of each kind of coins. We had seven or eight types in which they were 12.

Suddenly she wanted to add 12 to 12.

And then another 12 to that and count all over again...

till we finished all the 12s...

she had stumbled into the 12 times tables that we had painfully crammed...

Then she asked her dad ...and to her surprise he could answer each time she added another 12...

So she decided to do the whole thing with ten and ask him again...

Our coin pile is larger now. We took out all the coins left over from Vish's travels and have sorted them out and kept. When we play all three of set up a game corner and the other two has to come and play. I set up a sequence where there was difference of three between each number. Then a sequence which went 2,4...and? The answer could be eight or 6. We wanted her to know that the answer could be anything. We are not looking for a single answer.

She put out a game where one had to make different kinds of patterns with six coins. We were all making all possible combinations. Vish and I were making patterns and she was making things. She put four coins in one row and two in the center in the row below twice. We told her they were the same. She flipped the two coins to the row above the four. "There" she said "One is a park bench and the other a ship". So we were starting to talk that language too. I made a pattern and called it an escalator!

Malavika Sarukkai

We are going to see her dance today. I played several youtube pieces for her last night. Lakshmi was so restless. It is probably a bad idea to take her along with a lot of friends.

Malavika herself was divine. She was so articulate and brought the dance alive. When she danced to "Thumak Chalat Ramachandra", Lakshmi, Rishika and Esha began to dance. They had a great time. But it probably was not a very good experience to the serious watchers behind.

Her last dance was Mareecha's conflict. If Mareecha did not listen to Ravana and go to trick Ram, he would be killed. If he did go to trick Ram he would be killed. And so he chooses to get killed by Ram. Malavika explained the nuances in dance so well. "Each character breathes differently" she said. She also explained the major actions of all the characters and that brought it alive. I had to tell Lakshmi at each point what was happening. The story seems to have made a great impact on her because she came back home and a few days later drew Ram with a bow and arrow trying to shoot Mareecha the Deer. The picture also had Seetha waiting at the entrance of her hut. The Hut was decorated with a Kolam and peacock was sitting on it.

Drawing maps...

Can you draw a map of Great Britain? she asked when we were having dinner yesterday. We googled and found that an easy map of Britain is not available. When I showed her a map it seemed so complicated that she decided that she wanted to draw a map of Africa instead.

So we googled and drew Africa and Madagascar. Then she wanted to draw the biggest river of Africa. She took a blue pen and drew rivers wherever she liked. Than she wanted to draw a beach and asked Vish. "So where could the beach be?"

All around here he pointed out that the Ocean surrounded all around the bottom of Africa.

Then she came up with a game herself.

Tell me three things that are in America that are not in India.

So we played that game while we had dinner. We have no clue where all this urge has come from. But she has begun her own Geography lessons.

Back after 40 days...

I had to spend 40 days at home taking care of mom. Amazingly a number of parents took care of her. We involved her everyday in what was happening to paati. She was extremely concerned about what was happening to to her.

She would even ask what does paati have for breakfast. What does she have for dinner? Then she exclaims " Horlicks and Oats...! we have those at home already. I can share with her."

"When you get back here you sleep with paati. Don't leave her alone" she said one day. That was so touching!

Notices the illustrations...

Now she herself has started picking up books based on what she has done during the day. One day she picked up a book called "Sally Jean Bicycle Queen". They have been cycling in school these days.

While reading a book we have been playing a memory game based on how many things we can remember in a picture page. She has now started looking at illustrations carefully. In one page there is a little sign board that Sally, the little girl in the book hangs up. In the scene depicted moves left but the sign board has disappeared from the tree.

In another page, the girl is trying a trick on the cycle. So five positions of the cycle are shown in a centre fold. But the handle bar is a curved in the first position and looks straighter in teh next four positions. Lakshmi spotted that.

In another page, the girl is sitting and her trouser seams is torn at the fork. Her attention for detail is getting sharper.