Empathise and Connect with high-risk Teenage Behaviour to address it.

Learning Forward Saturday

To understand and address high-risk teenage behaviour through empathy and connection.

Key Takeaways

• Teen behaviour is often biological rather than rebellious. The developing teen brain drives risk-taking, making empathy and education more effective than punishment.

• Punishment is counterproductive. Suspension and expulsion create “alienation”—the very isolation teens seek to escape—and worsen the problem.

• “Academic Connection” is the solution. This approach values student effort and problem-solving, creating a supportive environment that provides a natural “high” from success.

• Teachers are the frontline defence. By building trust and making learning engaging, they provide the “shelter of loved ones” that gives students the confidence to resist peer pressure.

Topics

The Problem: Volatile Substance Abuse (BSA)

• The session explored Volatile Substance Abuse (BSA), a serious, often fatal, health hazard.

• Definition: Deliberate inhalation of volatile solvents (e.g., diluters, nail polish remover, glue) for intoxication.

• Motivation: Driven by psychological factors, not physical addiction.

  • Peer pressure and the desire to belong

  • The thrill of risk-taking

  • A misguided attempt to gain attention

The Flawed Solution: Punishment & Alienation

• Punishment (detention, suspension, expulsion) is a counterproductive response to BSA.

• Rationale: It creates “alienation”—the isolation teens are trying to escape—and thus exacerbates the problem instead of solving it.

The Effective Solution: Empathy & Connection

• An empathetic approach, combined with strong parent-teacher collaboration, is required.

• “Academic Connection” (Alan Mendler): A key strategy that values student thoughts, problem-solving, and effort.

  • Outcome: Creates a positive learning environment where students feel enthused to face challenges.

• Teacher’s Role:

  • Build Trust: Create a “culture of trust and learning” to prevent students from seeking risky alternatives.

  • Engage Students: Make school experiences interesting and relevant to keep students engaged and feeling valued.

  • Provide a “Shelter”: Offer a supportive environment that gives students the confidence to say “no” to peer pressure.

Real-World Application & Teacher Reflections

• Rekha Sharma: Built a personal connection with a nervous student, helping them overcome fear and win a competition.

• Pratiksha Dhiman: Connects with students individually during notebook checks, creating a safe space for them to share problems.

• Sandeep Dutt: Shared a poem highlighting the teacher’s multifaceted role as a counsellor, confidant, and guide.

Next Steps

• Sneha: Share the following in the WhatsApp group:

  • The term “Academic Connection” and Alan Mendler’s book, Connecting with Students to Limit High-Risk Behaviours.

  • The quote on analysing behaviour rationally and finding scientific causes.

  • The link to the “Right vs. Wrong” chapter summary podcast.

• All Participants:

  • Research “Academic Connection” and share reflections in the WhatsApp group.

  • Share personal experiences of helping students overcome fear or alienation. 

FATHOM AI-generated 

Love Learning vs Hate Learning

Learning Forward Saturday, March 28, 2026, with Brinda Ghosh and Sandeep Dutt

Today’s session was deeply thought-provoking, focusing on the emotional journey of a student who struggles academically. The passage highlighted how stressful and painful the waiting period for results can be, especially for students who lack confidence in their abilities. The line “The two months… had been sheer torture” clearly reflects the anxiety and fear students experience.

What stood out to me was how the student actually knew some answers and had put in effort, yet the rigid evaluation system failed to acknowledge partial understanding. This made me realise how important it is for teachers to appreciate students’ efforts, rather than just focus on final results.

The session helped me understand that many so-called “weak” students are not incapable, but often discouraged by the system and a lack of support. As a future teacher, I feel it is important to create a classroom where mistakes are valued as part of learning and where students feel encouraged rather than judged.

Overall, the session was insightful and reminded me to be more empathetic, patient, and supportive toward every learner.

Ankita Mishra

The reflection on ‘Love learning and hate learning’ resonates deeply. In this context, the role of a teacher is crucial. They can nurture the love for learning by creating a supportive environment, celebrating small wins, and making learning enjoyable. They can also help students navigate the struggles by providing guidance, scaffolding challenges, and fostering a growth mindset. By doing so, teachers can help students see learning as a journey of growth rather than a source of stress.

Monika Ojha

Today’s session was thought-provoking, highlighting the emotional struggles of academically weak students. The line “The two months… had been sheer torture” clearly showed the anxiety they faced. It made me realise that students often put in effort, but rigid evaluation fails to recognise it. I learned that “weak” students are not incapable; they are just discouraged. As a future teacher, I will focus on being empathetic and supportive, and on valuing effort over results.

Neha Pandey 

Today’s session gave me a deep insight into the emotional challenges faced by students who struggle academically. The line “The two months… had been sheer torture” strongly conveyed the stress and frustration such students go through during their learning journey.

It helped me understand that many students make genuine efforts, but traditional assessment methods often overlook their progress. Being labelled as “weak” can lower their confidence and motivation. In reality, these students are not less capable; they simply require more guidance, patience, and encouragement.

As a teacher, I want to adopt a compassionate and understanding approach. I will try to create a classroom environment where every child feels safe, respected, and encouraged to learn. 

Jyoti Pandey

The distinction between “loving ”and ‘hating’ learning is a powerful one. It highlights why the teacher’s role is so vital; by fostering a supportive environment and celebrating incremental progress, educators can transform challenges into growth opportunities. When teachers provide the right scaffolding and encourage a growth mindset, they effectively shift the student’s perspective from stress to a genuine love for the journey.

Jyoti Mishra

Emotional Intelligence - RP Devgan

Emotional intelligence is the ability to understand and manage one's emotions. It also involves recognising the feelings of others with compassion. Most children today are unprepared to face the challenges they encounter and give up far too easily. This results from the environment in which they grow up, their exposure to social media, peer influence, and feelings of insecurity.

To be emotionally strong, one must confront occasional failures and setbacks. Those who rise above the odds succeed in life. How does one cultivate emotional intelligence? 

Participating in team games, project-based activities, and solving problems together helps build self-esteem. Team games and activities are essential because they teach us to cooperate, plan, and share ideas. In the event of a match loss or setback, the team comes together to strategise on overcoming weaknesses. The sense of togetherness fosters strong relationships, providing a feeling of security while helping to combat challenges.

Sportspersons are generally emotionally intense because they have learned how to cope with losing. Failure is a great teacher. Losing a match or being unsuccessful is not the end of the world. One must be tough and resilient to get up once again and overcome the odds. This teaches us to manage our emotions both in victory and defeat, and emphasises respecting others' feelings.

Compassion, humility, kindness, and helpfulness are the virtues of an emotionally intense person. In today's world, where people tend to be self-centred, relationships and friendships play a crucial role in building confidence and a sense of security. These life skills help to develop emotional strength and prepare one for any setbacks.

RP Devgan is the Chairman of the Learning Forward India Foundation and a lifelong teacher with experience leading schools worldwide. He advises schools and serves on the board of a residential school in India.

Thoughtful Thursdays: 🎶✍️ Voices of War & Peace:

Exploring the Power of Poetry and Music to Heal, Reflect and Inspire. Art has always been the mirror to our emotions — joy, sorrow, love, and the scars of war. Today’s reflective session beautifully captured how poetry and music help us make sense of conflict and inspire peace.

Session Overview
The session focused on the powerful intersection of music, poetry, and theater, exploring how these art forms express the complexities of war and peace. The gathering witnessed a deep, reflective dialogue on poetry and music's emotional impact and societal relevance across cultures and generations.

The Curtain Rises
The session was introduced by Brinda Ghosh, who set the tone by emphasizing the timeless connection between music, poetry, and theater. She highlighted how these mediums have long served as vehicles to convey human emotions, particularly in times of conflict and peace.

In honor of World Theater Day, Brinda Ghosh paid tribute to William Shakespeare, acknowledging his significant contribution as both a dramatist and poet. She recited the iconic passage, "All the World’s a Stage" from As You Like It, beautifully depicting the seven stages of life and prompting participants to reflect on its relevance in the context of war and peace.

Discussion on War Poetry
The conversation then shifted to the subject of war poetry, a poignant reminder of the devastation and emotional turmoil caused by conflicts. Brinda Ghosh introduced renowned war poets such as Siegfried Sassoon, Wilfred Owen, and Rupert Brooke.

We read and reflected upon Wilfred Owen’s powerful poem, "Dulce et Decorum Est," which vividly illustrates the horrors of war and the deep emotional scars it leaves on soldiers and families.

Brinda Ghosh further enriched the discussion by explaining how war poetry is not confined to English literature but exists across various languages and cultures, including Hindi and Bengali, serving as a universal cry for peacthe and empathy.

Music and Its Emotional Power
The ssession progressed to the exploration Music’s role is to express emotions related to war and peace. Jatin Soni introduced the iconic protest song "Blowin’ in the Wind" by Bob Dylan, discussing its timeless relevance in questioning humanity's approach to conflict and peace.

The group engaged in a thoughtful discussion about how different music genres — including country, blues, and metal — convey diverse emotional experiences, from sorrow and protest to anger and hope. The session also touched upon the unique power of instrumental music, such as symphonies, to evoke deep feelings without the need for words.

Looking Back, Moving Forward
The session concluded with a reflection on how both poetry and music transcend boundaries of language and culture, offering comfort, raising questions, and inspiring action in times of both war and peace. Participants were reminded of the universal appeal and lasting impact of these art forms in addressing societal issues, human emotions, and collective experiences.

Key Takeaway:

Poetry and music are not merely forms of entertainment — they are powerful mediums that unite people, spark reflection, and inspire hope, especially in times of conflict.

💬 We’d love to hear from you!
Is there a poem, song, or piece of art that speaks to you about peace and humanity?
Share your thoughts in the comments. 🌿

Manisha Khanna
GSA Ambassador

Smile Vs. Frown - Sunbeam School Varuna

This educational video explores the emotional impact of a smile versus a frown, highlighting their significance in building positive relationships between teachers and students. Through engaging visuals and simple explanations, the video demonstrates how smiling fosters a welcoming, supportive environment while frowning may create distance or misunderstandings. This project, designed for both teachers and students, aims to promote emotional awareness and encourage positive interactions in the classroom. Sunbeam School Varuna Production Ankit Verma, Ranjana Singh, Alok Kumar Singh, Abhishek Pratap Singh and Aakash Aggrawal

Why Relationships Matter? - Vijeta Wilson

PC- LinkedIn

I will start with, if there were no relationship life would feel lonely and isolated. We wouldn't have anyone to share our joys, sorrows and experiences in life. We actually need a relationship because it matters a lot. Having someone to talk to and share our thoughts and views is so important in every aspect of life.

It helps us feel heard, understood, and validated. Whether it's discussing our dreams and aspirations, seeking advice, or simply venting about our day, having someone to share with makes life more enjoyable and meaningful. 

And not only this. We go through different types of relationships, in the workplace, we have professional relationships with our colleagues and boss. These relationships are important for Collaboration, Teamwork, and Career Growth. In personal hobbies or interests, we may have relationships with fellow enthusiasts who share our passion. And of course, in our personal lives, we have relationships with family and friends.

Each relationship adds its own unique value and enriches our experiences in different ways.

Last I will end up with this Quote...

"All relationships have one law, never make people feel alone, especially if you're there."

Vijeta Wilson 
Sunbeam Indiranagar

Masterclass Batch 2024

Courage and Patience - Guneet Kaur

Courage means facing one's fears. It is essential in all spheres of life and leads to a change in oneself, making one stronger. Sometimes one has to get out of one's comfort zone and adjust to a new environment. This, too, is courage. Being honest and believing in one's honesty is also courageous.

Teachers are like mirrors for their students. The students tend to imbibe whatever a teacher speaks through his or her words or actions. Not pretending and being oneself is also courage. A teacher must teach students to accept and be proud of themselves regardless of their weaknesses. They should be cherished for who they are and given the space where they can be more aware of themselves. In no situation should they be afraid or ashamed of accepting the truth about themselves or sharing it with others. Seeking help and shunning one's ego is also courage.  

As teachers, we must ensure that the children feel safe with us. They should be able to have faith in us. Simultaneously, they should learn to believe in themselves. A child asking his or her doubt in class, saying, "I didn't understand", in front of the other classmates, is courage.

Teachers need to be there for the students, make them feel safe and teach them to solve their problems themselves. This way, they will be prepared to bravely face life's challenges. However, if the learners make mistakes in solving their issues, their teachers shouldn't punish them. Instead, as adults, they should stand with them and show them the right path.

Courage also reflects in sharing one's experiences with colleagues or children of how one dealt with a situation. This can also help in inspiring them and getting over their fears. Being silently supportive of our co-workers is also courageous.

Patience is being tolerant and calm in handling situations. It means not getting anxious or annoyed too quickly. It does require a lot of courage to be patient. Not complaining, having a positive attitude, and giving time and space to others all come in the arena of patience.

Patience teaches us to have faith and hope that things will get better. Working with patience leads to growth. On the other hand, losing patience can ruin the task at hand. Most of us end up giving up our patience because of the pressure from society, peers, friends or family. However, if we have the courage and the belief in ourselves, we will not lose our cool, take a stand for ourselves and help to bring about a change.

Inaction should not be misunderstood for patience. Moving towards our goal with perseverance and a peaceful mind, accepting failures as stepping stones to success, and having the will to start all over again with the belief that the result will be favourable is patience.    

The farmer protest in our country is the world's most non-violent and peaceful fight for human rights. The farmers had immense patience and courage that helped them to withstand all sorts of physical, emotional and mental atrocities. They did not get frustrated and were convinced that their voices would be heard one day. 

We often lose our patience when we think we are better than others or deserve much more than others. This attitude leads only to exasperation. Whenever this happens, we should take a step back and introspect. High expectations from ourselves or from others can make us impatient. However, patience helps to increase our power of endurance, persistence and better decision making.   

As teachers, we need to be role models of being patient with our students. Being a good and silent listener and helping the children cope with their worries and hassles will help them become more accepting, contented and forbearing. They will learn to shift their focus from a problem to possible solutions without complaining. This will also teach them to be emphatic.  

Guneet Kaur

Mussoorie Public School

Mussoorie 

Happiness and Tolerance - Welham Boys' School

Reflection pieces 

1. An Unhappy Student

A while back, I came across this “unhappy student”, who I want to stay anonymous, so let’s call him X; clearly, the math teacher in me never fails to keep hidden. X’s parents recently separated, and he was living with his father, stepmother, and a step-sister who was almost as old as him.

X used to come around like a miserable, troubled kid who preferred to stay alone. He often cried and complained that he didn’t have friends and wanted to go home. Repeatedly refused to have food and acted stubborn as he was pampered by his grandparents at home. After discussing with his parents, we learned the scenario and that he felt unwanted and unloved because he was sent off to a boarding school whilst his stepsister wasn’t. Whereas his father just wanted him to have a better future, a higher sense of independence and self-awareness. Instead, his parent’s divorce created emotional turmoil and insecurity for him.

I felt the best way of overcoming this emotional barrier was through communication and creating an atmosphere where he felt wanted and comfortable sharing his feelings. That was not enough; we had to channel his energy into different things so that he could get distracted and becomes emotionally healthy again. We enrolled him in several activities like guitar and vocal music, which were his interests. That opened up various opportunities to perform on stage and build up confidence.

Love, care, patience, and empathy have made him a happier kid than he was initially. He has not opened up about his feelings yet, but I respect that and give him space, to grow more confident and content and time to reflect upon himself. It wasn’t just me battling against his emotional demons. It wouldn’t be a fair fight; it was a united team effort of the House-Mother, teachers, tutor, House-Masters, and parents, who did everything to mend and give direction to him.

2. An Intolerant Student 

Bob Keeshan was right when he said, “Parents are the ultimate role models for children. Every word, every movement, and action affects. No other person or outside force has a greater influence on a child than a parent.”

Children who witness violence between parents may also be at greater risk of being violent in their future relationships, and it becomes a part of their personality. I had seen such a case myself. 

Keeping the kids’ identity hidden and calling him Y, he had joined the school on a particular recommendation in the middle of the term, which was very unlikely. That was enough to draw attention to him, but he still managed to do that, as he used to hit and abuse other kids. He was a challenging child and had significant anger issues. By addressing this issue and taking the parents in the loop, we discovered that Y’s behaviour resulted from the domestic violence that used to take place at his house. 

The school took this sensitive matter very seriously, and firstly, his hostel was changed until he was comfortable and settled. Secondly, they changed the faculty that dealt with him to those staff members who knew and understood the matter in depth. Everyone showed patience and calmness, which slowly changed him, and even a little of his good behaviour was encouraged and appreciated. 

His way to cope with his anger was to hit people, i.e., he let his feelings out ‘physically’; now, our challenge was to channel his anger and frustration and give it direction. Thirdly, we introduced him to drums; this turned out as an excellent escape for him, gave him something to focus on, distracted him and in the end, he turned out to be one of the best drummers and became an asset to the school. 

During all this, Y was regularly undergoing professional counselling offered by the school, which helped him deal with his behavioural issues and anger management. 

After a slow, steady progress and baby steps over 5 years, we successfully taught Y how to make friends, manage his anger, balance his studies and lastly, WE transformed him from an intolerant student to a ‘tolerable’ one.

Neelima Parmar, Vandana Sahay & Monika Gupta
JOL Cohort 2022

Compassion - Bharti Rao

Compassion is a feeling of thoughtfulness. It is an emotion that is inborn in them. It is when we think about ourselves and others. You imbibe this value from your environment by seeing others and listening to others.

 

A compassionate person is influenced and influences others. We can identify compassionate people who are very emotional. They become upset when they see others in pain. Compassionate people understand others, think about others, lend a helping hand. If we are compassionate, we focus on how others feel without dismissing our own feelings. Situations, upbringing and environment, may also lead us away from compassion, so we need to be thoughtful and understanding.

Many times elders stop one to be compassionate by stopping them from doing small acts of kindness. Observing others who are not compassionate may also drive them away from being compassionate. In schools, it is a common sight where children show compassion in the classroom by sharing and showing acts of kindness. But in some situations, when groups come up, compassion is driven away. Then they start bullying others. Family affects one’s behaviour a lot. One learns values from families, peers, elders, and the environment. Many times children’s parents may not be compassionate, but children are encouraged by their friends or school, and they imbibe this value and become compassionate.

We should try to motivate others by going out of the way ourselves and help others; we need to be loving, caring and empathetic. The role of an adult is an important aspect to motivate students to be compassionate. Compassion brings in care, respect, love, kindness. Interaction, encouragement, collaboration, socialism, motivation, observation effects compassion a lot. Compassion is taught and learnt. Family, school, friends & environment churn compassionate people.

Bharti Rao

bro@fabindiaschools.in

The Fabindia School

Pandemic Diaries - Every challenge is a Lesson Learnt : Nidhi Jain

A few days back, early in the morning, my phone rang while I was asleep. The call was from the mother of one of my students. Hearing the news made me feel as if the wrath below my feet had slipped away. She had lost her husband and my student, her father!  They had lost him to the deadly ongoing pandemic.

I was surprised and shocked at the same time to see my student in the class on the same day. It was tough for me to face her as I had no words to console her. Her camera went on and off several times.  I had assured the student's mother that if the little girl needed to take some time off to be with her family, she might surely do so without worrying about missing classes. I would later work with her to help her catch up with what she would miss. But she didn’t want to. In fact, she said that being in class will help her forget about her loss.

I was quite convinced of her reason. As a student, and even now as a teacher, being in class has always given me the feeling of being safe and protected. A place where I could engross myself with like-minded people who are interested in seeking knowledge. I was happy that I could somewhere make this little girl feel the same kind of security. 

The nation continues to deal with the impact of COVID-19. As I look behind, I find that we have focused mainly on the technology and tools for making our teaching effective and interesting. Technology has taught us how to virtually connect with our students. But, I feel that we need to maintain an emotional connection along with the technical connection, especially in this unpredictable and unreliable time. 

The affective domain plays a vital role in today’s teaching and learning. The current situation has affected everyone deeply, and I often think about its influence on the students and the teachers emotionally, psychologically and even physically. 

So we teachers should ensure that we help and guide our students to maintain emotional balance and positive mental health. We must let our students know that we are always there for them, and they can reach out to us whenever they need. This will also certainly help to strengthen the bond between the teachers and the students.

Each of us dreams of going back to school, and we are eagerly waiting for all the conversations that we used to have with our students and colleagues. Till then, we as teachers shall leave no stone unturned to keep the river of learning flowing, and we will keep the spirits high of the little hearts we connect with day in and day out.  

Nidhi Jain
Gyanshree School

Unity and Caring - Achievers JMMS

Listen to the story of unity and caring, where the children learn that being united and together, helps them to achieve everything in their life. 

Unity is being together or in an agreement. It is the state of being united.  When we work together, we can achieve the things that we cannot achieve by being single. 

Caring is showing kindness and concern for others. A caring person gives emotional support to the people around him. 

"I can do things you cannot, you can do things I cannot, together we can do great things." 

- Mother Teresa.

Achievers JMMS @ John Martyn Memorial School, Salangaon, Dehradun 

- Sweta Thapli, Meena Kukreti, Dolly Pharasi, Jyoti Joshi, Nisha Pundir and Chandra Prakash. 

Importance of Social and Emotional Learning - Bharti Rao

Social & Emotional Learning provides a foundation for safe and positive learning. The whole focus of institutions should be more on learning than on teaching. Focus on learning helps to enhance the students’ abilities to succeed in school, career and life.

As Educators, we need to find different motivational ways to engage the students in learning to behave positively and perform academically. We need to find the potential of a student and help him grow accordingly. Mastery of Social & Emotional aspects will help us go a long way, but we need to practice empathy. Empathy needs to be inculcated in the student’s, and they will be able to recognize other’s emotions.

Social & Emotional Learning helps enhance their relationship skills, establishes & maintains a healthy, rewarding relationship. You inculcate the value of empathy and compassion. SEL helps one to become a responsible decision-maker, creates self-awareness & self-confidence. It inculcates communicative & collaborative skills in the students.

As Educators, we know that all our students are different. Hence, we need to understand our students, find their potential, develop their skills according to their ability, invite their experience, and sharpen their dreams. Emphasizes should be laid down on the all-round development of the student. The need of the hour is to develop one’s social and emotional learning in schools and at home, and in society.

Bharti Rao

The Fabindia School

bro@fabindiaschools.in

Caring - Monka Vaishnav

Caring means showing our concern or love for someone. We can call it the purest form of love also. When we care or show our concern for someone, it makes any relationship stronger and builds respect for each other. We can care for anyone, our family, friends, the creatures living around us like birds or animals. 

We can provide food and water to animals and grow plants for their shelter. Even we should care for the environment we live in. How much we will care for nature it will return us more than we do. In this time of the Corona pandemic, we all need to take care of our family and ourselves. Get in touch with friends, family, call them, talk to them, give them emotional support if required. 

We should make people aware of the situation and help them to escape from this pandemic can also be called caring. Caring for someone makes us feel good as well as others. It gives emotional support to the people. At home, we can help our parents and grandparents with their work to not feel tired. Doing a small act of caring every day without expecting anything in return can make you a better person in real life. It makes you a responsible person. 

Monika Vaishnav
The Fabindia School
mvv@fabindiaschools.in

How To Cope With Stress - Swabhi Parmar

Stress is a reaction to a situation where a person feels threatened or anxious. Learning healthy ways to cope,, and getting the right care and support can help reduce stressful feelings and symptoms.

After a traumatic event, people may have strong and lingering reactions. These events may include personal or environmental disasters or threats with an assault. The symptoms may be physical or emotional.

Feeling emotional and nervous or having trouble sleeping and eating can all be normal reactions to stress. 

Here are some healthy ways you can deal with stress:

1. Take care of yourself - Eat healthily, exercise daily, get plenty of sleep, and give yourself a break if you feel stressed out.

2. Talk to others - Share your problems and how you feel and cope with a parent, friend, counsellor, doctor, or pastor.

3. Avoid drugs and alcohol. These may seem to help, but they can create additional problems and increase the stress you are already feeling.

4. Take a break - If news events are causing you stress, take a break from listening or watching the news.

5. Recognize when you need more help - If problems continue or you are thinking about suicide, talk to a psychologist, social worker, or professional counsellor.

Swabhi Parmar

The Fabindia School

spr@fabindiaschools.in

Reference and Image  http://straightupvc.org/you-dont-need-drugs-to-deal-with-life

Courage - Prerna Rathod

Courage means an act of bravery.  It is to do something that you are frightened of. Courage has different meanings for different people. For example, for a dancer, courage is to be able to perform in front of everyone. For a speaker, it is to convey his views in front of everyone. For a leader, it is to keep up the team spirit in difficult times. But,  most importantly, courage is to take a stand for the right cause. 

We need the courage to conquer our fears. When we are trying to climb the steps of success, we must have the courage to face failure and accept it. It is only courage that will help us to try again and achieve success in our life.

 
There are 6 types of courage:
1.  Physical Courage: It means to do something against your fear like entering a dark room even if you are afraid of darkness. 
2.  Social Courage:  It means standing against others for what a correct cause. It may be to stand against your parents, society, for example, like organising a charity event, standing up to peer pressure.
3. Intellectual Courage involves asking questions and giving ideas during discussions or taking a risk in life to become successful. 
4. Moral Courage:  It means using our values into doing the right thing like helping a blind man cross the road or picking up litter and not caring what others will others say. 
5. Emotional Courage:  This implies always having positive emotions even if you are surrounded by negative ones. For example, caring for injured animals, helping friend grieve over the loss.
6. Spiritual Courage: This means asking questions or finding answers to questions like is there life after death? What is life? And so on.  It means opening to mysteries of life.

As Educators and parents, you must make our children understand why courage is important in our life. We can give them examples of our freedom fighters, who sacrificed their lives to achieve freedom for India. We must make our children understand that it was due to their courage to live in free India.

If children are taught to be courageous from an early age, then they will be confident to take the risk in their life. I would like to end with Walt Disney's quote "All your dreams can come true if you have the courage to pursue them".

Prerna Rathod 
The Fabindia School 
prd@fabindiaschools.in

Friendship - Punita Chouhan

A person can share his happiness, sorrow and every kind of thing that he can share. Friendship can come from anyone and in any course of life. A father can be a friend of his daughter; similarly, a mother can be a friend to a son, a husband and wife can be friends.

True friends are always caring, loving, loyal, passionate, mildly critical and most importantly, trustworthy to their friends. Friendship is a relationship where friends listen to each other's problems and try to understand. These qualities make a friend a good friend. The person who cheats you talks behind your back and laughs at you can never be your true friend.

Friendship is never tied to the financial status of people. A king can be a true friend of a poor beggar, and a poor labourer can be a good friend of a rich industrialist. Lord Krishna was in an unconditionally true endearing friendship with poor Sudama. The friendship between Krishna and Sudama is a milestone for all of us. They were like soul mates. Their friendship was at a level where if someone hurts another one feels pain.

Friendship is good for your school-age child's self-esteem. Friendship helps children develop important life skills, like getting along with other people and sorting out conflicts and problems. Children with these skills are less likely to have social and emotional difficulties later in life. 

Friends can help you celebrate good times and provide support during bad times. Friends prevent loneliness and give you a chance to offer needed companionship, too. Friends can also increase your sense of belonging and purpose.

Punita Chouhan 

The Fabindia School

pch@fabindiaschools.in

Importance of Mental Health - Swabhi Parmar

   Courtesy: 

https://www.toppr.com/guides/essays/mental-health-essay/

Mental Health is not just a concept that refers to an individual’s psychological and emotional well being. Rather, it’s a state of psychological and emotional well-being where individuals can use their cognitive and emotional capabilities and meet the ordinary demand and functions in society. According to WHO, there is no single ‘official’ definition of mental health. Thus, many factors like cultural differences, competing professional theories, and subjective assessments affect how mental health is defined. Also, many experts agree that mental illness and mental health are not antonyms. So, in other words, when the recognized mental disorder is absent, it is not necessarily a sign of mental health. 

One way to think about mental health is to look at how effectively and successfully a person acts. So, there are factors such as feeling competent, capable, handling the normal stress levels, maintaining satisfying relationships, and leading an independent life. Also, this includes recovering from difficult situations and being able to bounce back.  Mental health is related to the personality as a whole of that person. Thus, the most important function of school and education is to safeguard boys and girls' mental health. Physical fitness is not the only measure of good health alone. Rather it’s just a means of promoting mental as well as moral health of the child. The two main factors that affect the most are feeling of inferiority and insecurity. Thus, it affects the child the most. So, they lose self-initiative and confidence. This should be avoided, and children should be constantly encouraged to believe in themselves.

Courtesy Source: https://www.toppr.com/guides/essays/mental-health-essay/

Swabhi Parmar
The Fabindia School
spr@fabindiaschools.ina

Unity and Caring - Kusum Sharma

Unity is strength is the famous phrase that represents the power of strength. Unity and care are very important values for our survival. A caring person is kind and gives emotional support to others and can make people united by care and respect. A common example to explain the same can be a family situation. If all the members in a family stand united and help each other with their tasks each one of them will benefit in all events.

If we look around,  people respect and take care of each other are happier. The children there get a healthier environment which is essential for their all-round development and the adults in the family also live a good life. They depend on each other and take it as their responsibility to fulfil all their duties with joy. They do not crib or complain against each other. On the other hand, the families where people don’t stand by each other and are busy trying to put the others down do not only ruin their own life but also that of their coming generations. People belonging to such families often feel lonely and end up in depression.

Life of a human being is full of ups and downs.  So, on each stage of life, everyone needs someone who can care and understand with no expectation. Those special people are called truly caring people. Caring people have always their special place in anyone’s life and give emotional support to other.so the people who are caring and United can get freedom from all kind of negativity.

Kusum Sharma

The Fabindia School

ksa@fabindiaschools.in 

Responsibility and Cooperation - Ajay Vijayvargi

Responsibility is one of the attributes that can be considered as one of the `Master

Attributes`, the question is how? If a person is responsible, he will be trusted by more people, a person who can be trusted will be liked and loved more, so he will be respected everywhere, these attributes will, in turn, make him courageous and give him opportunities to lead, which will make him a decision-maker, one who makes the decision for others will be simple and honest, a combination of all this will create an aura around that person i.e. he can be distinguished easily in the society.

 Responsibility means duty which can be towards oneself also along with family, society, country or towards the environment (Earth) and humanity. It can also be defined as an obligation, responsible for your words and action. Responsibility will develop leadership and teamwork, now this teamwork will lead to the other value `Cooperation`.

Cooperation will develop trust and collaboration within his teammates which will yield better learning, output with an increase in work efficiency and results; this will also develop harmony in relations and understanding between stakeholders. The simplest example of cooperation is a family where every member of the family bound by blood relations work together with responsibility  - kids do their studies, lady look after the house and all family members performing household chores happily and of course, the head of the family safeguarding the interests of all members, giving emotional and financial support.

Similarly, the examples of cooperation can be the organisation in which we work, between the leader and the masses and so on. Academicians and Educators cooperate for school betterment.   

  

Ajay Vijayvargi

The Fabindia School

Ishu Chouhan: FRIENDSHIP

Friendship as the word is used many times but do we actually know the meaning of friendship. The first thing when we join our school and strikes our mind is how we will make friends? Will they be good to us or will they cheat us, help us put us more in trouble?

I would like to tell you that what friendship actually means? As nowadays we are reading memes on social media regarding friendship, relations etc. We are almost clear with the word friendship. But what about a small kid. He/she doesn’t know how to make a friend and to whom. So for a child, they enjoy the company who plays with them he/she shares the stuff. Generally, it is only the people of the same age, character and background, mentality, etc., who can understand him/her and understand his problems. Friends are needed for support and for sharing. Friendship is an elixir which is essential for a happy life. Besides being a companion for activities, the best of friends also need to provide emotional support. This is often where friends and best friends divide. As you get to know someone, you want to know if they have the same values as you. 

                                                                                                               -Ishu Chauhan