Telangana: Empowering children in endearing environment

People with strong social-emotional skills more easily succeed than those struggling with inter-personal communication challenges. They benefit academically, professionally, and socially. Social-emotional learning (SEL) is the process of developing the self-awareness, self-control, and interpersonal skills that are vital for school, work, and life success.

Making education more accessible and inclusive, a city-based NGO, Learning Curve Foundation, has devised a programmne, Connect @Home, for anganwadis and primary schools. During the lockdown the NGO reached out to 30,000 vulnerable children virtually in seven districts of Telangana.

Subbu Parameswaran, the co-founder of Learning Curve Foundation, says, "Enabling a child's social-emotional development in the early years is crucial to their growth. In strategic partnership with Think Equal, a non-profit charity in the UK and USA, we intend to impart social and emotional learning and scale up the early years education programme for children in anganwadi (3-6 years) and primary schools (7-8) years. We are planning to launch this programme, Connect @Home, in 100 anganwadis from May or June. With the help of Women Development and Child Welfare department, we will identify anganwadis and primary schools in the city."

As anganwadis and primary schools are shut due to the pandemic, learning could be home-based. They would train anganwadi teachers and primary school teachers, so that they could upskill the children. As part of this, the NGO distributes some printed tool kits that include activity worksheets, story books and affirmation cards on well-being to each child to motivate them and enhance their learning, in a social yet emotional environment. Teams will constantly work with parents and deliver specially made kits to children.

"We are trying to build the mental immunity of the children, which would help them to become irrepressible and emotionally strong. In this mission various corporates and like- minded people are supporting us financially. The NGO began in the year 2016 to empower children with social and emotional skills to help them realise themselves completely," adds Parameswaran.