August-September is the start of the festive season. It is the time when we have a lot of special events in our school calendar. What would you say if I told you that we did not compromise on the special celebration for even a single one of those events? Be it Independence Day, Ganesh Chaturthi,

The entire nation is on the defensive in response to the COVID 19 outbreak. We too had to close our center and keep everyone home. It seems particularly hard on our students as Swapaksh is the hub of their social and creative life. They do not have access to the many means of entertainment, information

“Don’t just learn. Think!” Our students dread hearing these words. They are all smart, intelligent children quite capable of deep thought. But they have been so conditioned to “do as you are told” that they just want to do that. So, we threw them in the deep end of the pool. We registered four of

It has been an eventful and creative September. First off with Ganesh Chaturthi. The tiny tots were so thrilled to make play dough Ganesha. And then, Teachers Day. The children literally showered us with their love! Take a peek at what some of our students came up with after being inspired by Chris Van Dusen’s

It’s been a month of stellar achievements this July. Fifty years of the moon landing, ISRO’s successful launch of Chandrayan 2 are both milestones in the history of humanity. Our students have been studying the Solar System in their science class and as such primed for an exploration of these events. Being the opportunistic teachers

It’s July and classes are in full swing. Along with studies, practising hygiene is an ongoing activity. The heat and dust of urban living makes it imperative. So, a 15-minute Hygiene Capsule every month serves as a timely reminder! First session started from the top, er, Head – a quick ‘how to’ keep hair and

It’s June! June is monsoon time. As also back to school time. Looking back at our posts from last June, the rain really played havoc with our schedules. So blessed that we are now able to house our school in much better quarters and lessons continue uninterrupted, come rain or shine. Support has poured in

Over the last month we have been running summer camp for the kids rather than regular school to give the children a well deserved break and expose them to various other fields and activities. Children have engaged in theatre, puppetry, craft, art, magic, singing, dancing and the like. It has been a good time for

One of these days I played Chinese Whispers with the kids. They learnt some new words and sentences and as the game moved on, they started forming their own sentences. Moving forward, I thought I would give it a twist. I just asked them some simple questions: While every kid was trying his best to

It has been a full year! Swapaksh launched on 25th March 2018 in a tiny shack with a handful of kids and we have come a long way in the last one year. We now have two fully stocked classrooms running three sessions in a day catering to about sixty kids in all age and

‘Good morning ma’am…’ It was a melodious chorus of around 25 joyful kids who were sitting on mats in a small one room school that I was visiting – Swapaksh. Most of them were wearing uniforms, had neatly combed hair and had an overall well groomed appearance. The other few, it became clear, were new.

‘Swapaksh’ loosely translates as ‘by the power of your own wings’. We chose the name because that is exactly what we believe our students need. They move forward in this world, soar to the skies by dint of their own hard work and determination.  Our school is simply the wind beneath their wings. So its

It takes all kinds to make an endeavour like Swapaksh tick. Volunteers who generously donate the time required. Sponsors who generously donate the means required. Community leaders who provide on-the-ground support. And a whole lot of luck. How fortunate are we that we have been blessed with all of the above! With the efforts of

Student attrition is one of our biggest problems. Kids float in and out of the school almost on a weekly basis. Many of the kids we originally started with are no longer attending. Some have moved, some have been sent ‘home’ against their wishes, some have been put to work, some would just rather play.

Sometimes, these kids do come up with such funny things – their sense of humour and powers of observation are amazing. So while explaining few and many, distributing worksheets, doing exercises like circle the few or the many, one of the kids suddenly comes up with – “Oh, I understand it’s like few ma’am, many

If there is one word to describe our approach to teaching it would be “opportunistic”. The floor is all wet with rain – we stand and play games. Someone sponsors lettering books – we sit down and practice lettering. Kids are in a great mood today grasping everything super quick – we grab at the

A very productive week this, at Swapaksh School. The kids are thrilled with their desks, and as expected, this has had a very positive impact on the school routine. What was unexpected is the level of ownership displayed by the kids. Their desks, their stationery, their work, their school – from helping us set up

Kids enjoyed a free art day with a volunteer family on 2nd June 2018. Creativity flowed as freely as the kids’ laughter and the day ended with some snacks for all.