Learning Forward Saturday

Quick recap

The meeting focused on teaching English language skills to students through various classroom activities, including verb usage, silent letters, and interactive exercises. Brinda and Neelashi discussed plans for future teaching sessions and agreed to meet in Delhi to coordinate further activities. The group also covered teaching methods and classroom enhancements, emphasising the importance of creating engaging learning environments and proper English language instruction.

Next steps

• Brinda and Neelashi: meet next week to plan future Saturday sessions
• Brinda: show Neelashi around the school in Noida on a weekday, including the prep section and skilling academy
• Sakshi: Share photos of classrooms with well-designed classroom libraries for the Learning Forward Saturday group
• All teachers: create classroom library corners with age-appropriate children's stories and books
• All teachers: Set up word walls in classrooms for vocabulary revision
• Teachers: Use the Learning Forward Saturday group to ask questions and share lesson plans with each other

Summary

Teaching Plans and Collaboration Meeting

Brinda discussed plans to teach Damsharaz and related activities to students, focusing on verbs and adverbs. She and Neelashi agreed to meet in Delhi next week to plan further Saturday sessions and potentially visit the school in Noida. Brinda introduced Reena, the principal of Arthur Foot Academy, and other participants to the group. The conversation ended with a discussion on respecting each other and following guidelines for teaching practice.

Classroom Knitting Activity Session

The meeting focused on a classroom activity involving 11 participants, with Neelashi emphasising the importance of keeping cameras on during the session. Brinda guided participants through various activities, including knitting, and encouraged them to practice and perform simple tasks as guests. The discussion included instructions in Hindi and English, with participants engaging in activities like knitting and stitching, and Brinda requesting a repetition of the word "knitting" for clarification.

Silent Letters in the English Language

The group discussed silent letters in English, focusing on words such as "know" and "knowledge." Brinda explained how silent letters can change the pronunciation and meaning of words. The participants practised identifying and pronouncing silent letters in various words. The conversation concluded with Brinda encouraging the group to volunteer and take action, while also mentioning something about Rinajikari and Bhartikha.

English Verbs for Daily Actions

The meeting focused on teaching English verbs related to everyday actions. Brinda guided the participants through examples of verbs like "making roti," "rolling chapati," and "applying lipstick," emphasising correct usage and pronunciation. Participants practised using these verbs in sentences, with Brinda providing feedback and encouragement. The session aimed to improve English language skills by reinforcing verb usage and sentence structure.

Verbs and Adverbs Practice Session

The class practised identifying and using various verbs in context, with Brinda guiding students through actions like dancing, writing, and eating. Students were asked to remember the verbs they learned, which included knitting, making, dancing, cooking, writing, eating, closing/shutting, and applying makeup. Brinda explained the difference between adjectives and adverbs in describing actions, using examples like "cooking nicely" versus "cooking like an expert."

Enhancing Classroom Learning Techniques

The meeting focused on teaching methods and classroom activities, with Brinda and Neelashi discussing the importance of creating a library corner in classrooms and using interactive activities, such as guessing games, to enhance learning. They emphasised the need for teachers to revise key words and sounds in English, particularly through phonetic methods. They highlighted the correct use of capital letters for proper nouns and at the beginning of sentences. The session also covered creating word walls and the importance of teachers learning alongside their students to better understand phonetic sounds and teaching techniques.

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Learning Through Productive Failure in Grade 1 – Swati Tripathi

 Tiny Bridge Challenge – Class 1

Experiment in Productive Failure –

In our class, we tried a very small experiment to see if struggling before teaching can help children learn better.

1. The Task-

Children were shown two chairs with a gap between them and a toy car. The task was simple: “Build a bridge so the car can cross without falling.”
At first, the children worked in pairs for five minutes without any instructions. Many bridges fell down. Some children stacked blocks into tall towers, some made only one side, and some gave up quickly.

2. A point of change -

After this, I gathered the class and asked, “What happened when your bridge fell? What can we change?”
Then I showed one small idea—making the base wider and supporting both sides.
Second Try
The children went back to build again. This time, most bridges held the car. Children added more supports, used tape, and tried different shapes.

3. Observation -

Before the tip, only 3 out of 18 bridges worked. After the tip, 12 out of 18 bridges held the car.
A child explained, “It worked because I made two big walls and put blocks across.”

4. Overall lesson-

When children were first allowed to struggle, they explored more ideas. After a short teaching moment, they improved much better and could explain why their bridges worked.
This small classroom experiment shows how Productive Failure can be applied even with 7–8-year-olds. Instead of just theory, the activity gave us real data, quotes, and photos that can be shared and repeated by other teachers.

From Confusion to Clarity: Exploring Verbs in Grade 1 

जब मैंने अपनी कक्षा में “Verb/क्रिया” का विषय शुरू किया, तो मैंने सीधे पढ़ाने के बजाय बच्चों को स्वयं खोजने का मौका देना पसंद किया। Productive Failure के विचार से प्रेरित होकर, मैंने सोचा—अगर बच्चे पहले struggle करें, guesses लगाएँ और खुद सोचकर उत्तर खोजें, तो उनका सीखना गहरा और मज़बूत होगा।

Activity 1: What is happening?

मैंने बच्चों को कई तस्वीरें दिखाईं—दौड़ता हुआ बच्चा, खाती हुई बिल्ली, कूदती हुई लड़की, लिखता हुआ बच्चा। फिर मैंने पूछा: “तुम बताओ, इन तस्वीरों में क्या हो रहा है?” बच्चे अलग-अलग जवाब देने लगे: “ये भाग रहा है!” “ये खा रही है!” “ये कूद रही है!” कमरे में हलचल थी, हँसी थी और ढेरों guesses थे। कुछ बच्चों ने सिर्फ वस्तुओं पर ध्यान दिया, जबकि कुछ “action” पकड़ने लगे। Confusion तो था, पर curiosity भी उतनी ही थी।

Activity 2: Sorting Game

(सही और गलत को खुद पहचानना)
मैंने शब्दों के कार्ड मेज पर फैलाए—boy, apple, run, jump, table, eat, swing, girl। फिर कहा: “जो शब्द कुछ करने को बताता है, उसे इस टोकरी में डालो।” बच्चों ने trial and error से कार्ड्स चुने। कई बार वे noun भी उठा लाते, फिर खुद ही कहते—“Arre! Ye toh koi kaam nahi batata.” यहीं confusion learning में बदलने लगा।

Activity 3: Tools for Clarity

(अब अवधारणा स्पष्ट करना)
जब बच्चों ने काफी खोजबीन कर ली, तब मैंने बताया—“Verbs वो शब्द होते हैं जो किसी भी action या काम को बताते हैं—run, eat, play, jump…” अब उनकी आँखों में समझ की चमक थी। जो बातें पहले उलझी हुई थीं, वे अब बिल्कुल स्पष्ट हो गईं।

Activity 4: Action Time

(सीख को अनुभव में बदलना)
मैंने कहा, “Jis action ka naam main kahoon, woh karo!” — Jump! — Clap! — Walk! — Laugh! बच्चे उछल-कूद करने लगे और हर action को क्रिया के रूप में पहचानने लगे। उनकी clarity अब और मज़बूत हो चुकी थी।

Learning Outcome

इस प्रक्रिया से बच्चों ने सीखा—Verb वह शब्द है जो किसी action को बताता है। Verb वाक्य को जीवंत बनाते हैं। Confusion से clarity खुद होती है जब बच्चों को खोजने का मौका मिले। Productive Failure ने फिर साबित किया कि संघर्ष सीखने में बाधा नहीं, बल्कि उसे मजबूत बनाने का रास्ता है।

Swati Tripathi
Sunbeam Gramin School