Amit was fascinated with cars and bikes. He knew most of the models, their manufacturers, the max speed, company logos, Television advertisements, and more. This fascination slowly piqued his interest in new areas like the usage of different fuels, engine power, and aerodynamics.

Anjali loved helping her grandmother in their little terrace garden. She would keenly observe her following watering routines, pruning the plants, and nourishing them with organic manure. These observations led her to questions about plant behavior, flowering cycles, how plants and trees grew in forests, who watered them, and many more. This further led to many story sessions between the aaji and her granddaughter where the conversation invariably veered towards science.

Aswath was not only a foodie but an aspiring cook. He spent his free time in the kitchen either learning cooking from his parents or experimenting independently. The science behind making a successful recipe using various techniques brought a smile to his face along with the marvel at trying to grasp kitchen science.

Ramya loved to draw and color. She was most fascinated by the play of light on her coloring. Mixing colors to give rise to an altogether new color always made her wonder about how this was possible.

Little Amol was his sister’s assistant in household repairs. His job was to move around with the little toolbox and give her didi the required tools. More than helping her sister he looked forward to the barrage of questions he bombarded her with about the workings of different household things.

All these above scenarios remind us of similar incidents with our kids. This brings me to the topic I want to touch upon which is that kids delve into scientific thinking inadvertently. It is up to us whether we want to engage with them on the topic or thwart away this golden opportunity of opening the phenomenal world of Scientific learning.

I firmly believe that we should not leave any chance to engage with our kids when they want to learn about science. It helps a long way in making science their friend rather than a dreaded monster in books that haunts them throughout their school life. Familiarity brings about an ease of handling things.
Imagine a scenario where Anjali and her friend learn about the various flora and fauna in the forests. It would be much easier for Anjali to relate to the topic as a result of her previous interactions with her aaji. Or Aswath may find Chemistry interesting as he learns about the properties of different elements due to his kitchen experiments.

While all of us may not be in a position to answer all our kids’s questions, showing the will to engage with them rather than absolving oneself from such a situation would augur well for our child’s thinking skills.

We all should make efforts to make science a topic of discussion just like the discussion on food, entertainment, or behavioral traits. The aim must be to let the kids understand that it is an integral part of our lives as opposed to just concepts and diagrams in the books. Indeed anything that we do is based on some scientific fact. Be it studies, entertainment, hobbies, rest, or travel, all come under the purview of science. Let’s try our best to make science a close and everyday friend of our kids rather than just a subject to be studied in school for the sake of exams.

Let us as parents resolve to make our kids science enthusiasts rather than science phobics. Let us resolve to make them aware of their surroundings by learning about Science rather than being ignorant about it. Let us learn to make them rational, logical, and practical doers armed with basic knowledge of how things work rather than just believers of magic. Let us try our best to make the bond between Science and Kids – a loving lifelong friendship rather than a bond made out of compulsion.

Book reviews are a dynamic way to learn about a book, the gist of its context, and how it’s been written. They allow you to learn about the book from previous readers, their experience with it, and the emotions that they associate with it. As an avid reader myself, book reviews have been a great source of information that allows me to explore various genres and writings while sticking to the style I prefer.

This proves how much a book review has an impact on the book itself. Only when the book in itself is appealing, do the readers tend to share it with others, which effectively increases the number of people reading the book and a positive return for the author.

But, when it comes to exploring books based on their book reviews, there are quite a few things that one should look forward to, and look away from. These points help in effectively choosing a book based on its review and give credit where it’s due. I have come across these myself, which have helped me choose an appropriate book based on my liking.

The foremost thing one needs to look into is to make sure the book one is searching for suits an individual’s reading style. As an enthusiastic reader who loves adventures and mysteries, I would look out for aspects of mystery in the book. Moreover, one should also make sure the author has a writing style that one prefers to read.
A book review that is articulate and gives a balanced view of the book’s strengths and weaknesses is often a pointer to deciding whether to delve into reading the book or not.

The next thing to look into while reading a book review is to explore a host of reviews before reading a book. It gives a clear understanding of different perspectives surrounding the book, but it shouldn’t be taken too far. An Over-excessive book review reading can spoil the plot of the book beforehand, which makes it uninteresting to read.

Reviews that give some information about the author’s other works also help one in knowing the range of genres in which the author’s work exists. This helps in venturing into a new reading genre.

It is not only what one needs to look for in a book review. The knowledge of things or aspects to avoid or the red flags also helps one in maximizing the utility of a book review. While preferences might change from person to person I’m usually offended by the super long book reviews that cover the entire story into it, spoiling what is to come. Reviews that over-explain everything and tell everything about the book must strictly be avoided.

A review that has vague or generic statements does little to decide on whether to read or not. Such reviews do more harm than help by confusing the readers.

Moreover, book reviews that exaggerate about the book indeed put me off. Especially those who never point out the negative aspects. A book review must contain a well-structured viewpoint of the reader, which must include both the positives and negatives associated with the book. This gives those reading the review an understanding of what to expect.

Not only these but several other aspects push back the ability of the impact a book review has. But, we must take a moment to appreciate those well-structured and wonderfully written book reviews that help in making informed decisions for readers, including me.

As the New Year celebrations settle down and life gets used to the routines, a new season starts for the student and parent communities. Yes, – The EXAM SEASON. It extends from February to the first half of April, subject to the board-one studies.
For most kids, it’s usually a time of anxiety, apprehension, nervousness, oscillations between the phrases “Yes, I am prepared” to “Gosh, Mera Kya hoga,” burning the midnight oil to cover the syllabi, frantic phone calls, and trips to friends’ for notes, parent trips to the nearby photocopy shop, and extreme hunger moods from becoming an all-encompassing food gobbling machine to a resist all food creature.

The parents become reactive simulators vis-à-vis the mood of their kids. Yet, they endure these volcanic mood swings with a single-minded pursuit: finding means to lessen this very erratic behaviour exhibited by their child. They realize that it is not the time to question such behaviour but, to have a workaround so that the anxiety of kids trying to overpower their concerning emotions is replaced by a belief that they can do it.
Kids of all ages exhibit this exam behavior with or without their knowledge. We must become their sounding board, absorb the negative impact or its repercussions, and let them land safely in their quest towards preparedness for this exam. Easier said than done. As a parent, I try to follow a few ways:

• The Present Parent: It applies to all of us, whether we are at home, working from home, or going out for work. It is not essential to be with your child 24/7. What is essential is to be with them when they need us.
  1. For example, the revelation of a completely new topic in the syllabus might make the child anxious. When this happens, the child needs to communicate his or her thoughts, positive or negative, to someone. We need to be that someone. It does not change the fact that the new topic must be studied. Yet, the pent-up emotions of its realization are all dissipated once the dialogue happens. How? Well, once the child lets the parent know, many solutions to the issue also come into the picture, and the thought of “How can this be done?” changes to “Oh, this is how it can be done.”.
  2. Discussing one’s plan for covering the entire syllabus acts as a reinforcing mechanism for the child. It lets the child become confident in his or her schedule with the parent’s approval. Some insights or tweaks, as suggested by parents, also help the child to concretize the schedule and follow it.
  3. Many times, all a child wants from a parent is to be present. It’s like the presence of a silent guardian who will keep a vigil and let the child know if there is any deviation from the decided path.

• Food Supervisors: With the pressure of exams, be it boards or otherwise, comes the overdependence or reluctance of food to cope with.
  1. As parents, we must ensure that we provide them with the sumptuous and nutritious food they need for the added brain activity. We must try to balance the kids’ demands for 2-minute food preparations that satiate their taste buds with foods that would provide them enough energy to withstand the rigors of their schedules. So, a maggie can be enjoyed after the consumption of healthy fruits and berries.
  2. The mindset of having a constant intake of tea or coffee can be replaced with shakes or juices that are soothing to the eyes, tongue, and stomach.
  3. We must try our best to maintain their eating times for good body function. Let’s not forget that the satisfaction of having food before the brain starts sending stress signals as pangs of extreme hunger translates into a renewed vigor to start the study marathon.

• Sleep Managers: Kids tend to have erratic sleep patterns in a rush to prepare for exams. As parents, we need to ensure that they are getting proper rest amidst these preparations.
  1. Build a schedule as per their child’s study patterns. Some stay late at night to study, while many others are early risers. Reschedule other things to ensure a proper rest period.
  2. Ask the child to take power naps while continuing long hours of study. Studies have shown that it rejuvenates the brain and the body.

• Recreational Activities: “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.” As the exam days are near, one of the things that kids slash out from their routine is playtime. While playing for the usual times may not be feasible considering the syllabi and cognitive dissonance post-play time, some recreational activities are essential.
  1. Ask the kids to reduce their playtime rather than stop it completely. Suggest alternate ways to engage in activities like cycling for some time, a badminton match, or playing table tennis at the home dining table.
  2. Post-Corona kids still rely on gadgets for their studies, especially those in the secondary sections. Remind the kids to take “greenery breaks.” Ask them to gaze at the plants inside the house or outer spaces.
  3. Listening to music or playing an instrument( if they know) can also be a good recreational activity.
  4. Indulging in yoga or dance can also lead to meaningful breaks.
  5. Enjoy some light-hearted conversations with kids to give them a break from their monotonous study routines.

• Comparison – Out of the Window: This proves to be the most potent mood and morale damper. However noble the intention, comparison with anyone, must be avoided at all costs. This red line that results in the alienation of relations must never be crossed. As I have stated in many of my previous articles, nurture your child’s uniqueness rather than resorting to comparisons that hurt them.

• Inculcating excellence as a habit: Yes, we all want our kids to excel academically. Let’s not say otherwise. Yet, what we must focus on teaching or guiding them about is the right way to do it. Academic excellence is always welcome, but not at the expense of the child becoming a score-churning machine. It must become a habit rather than a good thing to have. Motivate and guide the child to study to understand the concepts rather than rote learning. It may not yield results in the immediate exam, but the inculcation of such a habit goes a long way in developing the persona.

• Words that matter: “You are doing great,” “I can see your hard work,” “Your desire to excel is evident in your efforts,” “Keep up the good work,” or a mere “shabaas” or “lage raho” is enough of an encouragement for any child. It costs nothing to say it yet the rewards are multifold.

Many of the above are simple to follow, like food and rest routines, while others are exams for the parents themselves, like refraining from any kind of comparison.

Who said being a parent is simple? What is simple, is the passion that every parent has to help in all ways possible to see the cynosure of their eyes evolve into mentally, emotionally, and physically strong individuals, who over a period of time, are ready to navigate the “EXAM SEASON” of life.

Image Credits: Ref

Does wearing patriotism on one’s sleeve make one more patriotic? Does patriotism come from the heart or by shouting slogans from the rooftop? How does one qualify to be called a patriot? In this era of ‘global village’ does the nation- state hold any relevance? With borders melting because of the penetration by Multinational Corporations in different countries how can we define patriotism?
Are we, the slogan-shouting generation, more patriotic than our grandparents who went about their lives quietly, discharging their duty and serving their Motherland by being responsible citizens? And then there were those people who sacrificed their lives fighting for India’s independence. They worked selflessly and tirelessly to unshackle the country from the chains of the colonial power. They published papers, wrote letters to the editor as well as petitions appealing to the masses to arise and fight the colonial power. They have been buried in the pages of history but have no regret for they served the Motherland. For the generations gone by, it was not an independence day or a Republic Day on which the nation had to be remembered and celebrated. Serving the nation was a part and parcel of their lives unlike today when many of us are not very sincere towards the nation but are the first to wear the garb of patriotism.
And where can we best showcase our feelings towards the great nation? The answer is obvious and very vivid. It is on the social media, the virtual world where we spill our feelings for India or motherland. We gush about our country, its rich culture and heritage, its diversity and how it was once a leading power, since ancient times. We talk about India’s contribution to the world harping on its various aspects of richness. We dig up heroes who are long forgotten. In the fervour of patriotism we ignore the stark reality. And what is the reality ?
The reality is that this nation can again become a superpower, a leader among leaders but to attain that potential it is the people who have to be sincere and honest. Are we sincere towards discharging our duties? It’s only when each of us gives one’s best without excuses can we prove ourselves to be real patriots.
The digital age has also led to the rise of extreme nationalism. If we are proud about the diversity of India then we should learn to respect it. Extreme nationalism is being engineered and designed. This can be a dangerous trend, because it leads to a new kind of authoritarianism which can gobble up diversity and the beauty of any nation’s rich heritage. The rhetoric can be dangerous. Technology can steward such rhetoric and populism is spread very quickly. The deepening of such nationalist sentiments which do not take into account the feelings of other communities can harbour danger for the entire state. The dangerous outbursts coated with religious sloganeering is a new aspect of nationalism in many countries, including India.
We have to remember that digitalization has also led to increase in globalisation and liberalisation. With the opening up of economies there has been, and continues to be large scale movement of people from one continent to another. So we have pockets of diversity in every country which needs to be accommodated as well as respected.
We’re seeing an increase in hate filled form of nationalism. In a world and in a country which thrives on pluralism such hate rhetoric can only damage the psyche of an entire generation. And what is ingrained once cannot be erased easily. And it is the young who are using the Internet to the hilt. We have to remember that the young have to step out of their comfort zone and maybe travel to different countries through different time zones for employment or for other assignment. Would such extreme nationalism be of any help to such young people?
Daniel Conversi, a political historian, author and a social theorist calls the phenomena where members of virtual communities come together to form a national consciousness as ‘long distance nationalism’. The people don’t meet each other but are still bound to each other by a common thread called nationalism. There are situations where such binding helps people to be psychologically strong especially when they are sitting on foreign soil. But slowly this comfort- binding can snowball into a group which can become a rallying point for bullying and suppressing.
There was a time when nationalism was a monopoly of the governments. No longer. Today, every citizen has one’s own take and space on nationalism in the virtual world . The political parties have cashed on to this wonderful phenomena of harnessing nationalism in the virtual world. Political parties have their dedicated teams which focus on social media and crafting new angles of patriotism . Various issues are discussed in a manner that opinions are also engineered and manipulated .
The cyber troops and the cyber warfare can sometimes prove more dangerous than wars fought by soldiers on land, sea and air .Nationalism in the digital age can affect events and politics of the entire country. Nationalism has graduated to digital nationalism where messages are shared as a sense of duty. And when it comes to the state and one’s identityirrespective of the country, the messages are made viral in seconds. The authenticity of the message is not checked. Facts do not matter where feelings become dominating. This leads us to the question whether our nationalism is as virtual as our virtual world?
It’s time to ponder….

Image Credits: Ref

I used to be a very shy kid. Yes, I was an introvert. I did my best not to mingle with people. Since I was not interested in talking to people, you can guess that I was not comfortable showing my emotions in public. So, I never danced except for some foot tapping in the school shows. And I tried my best to be in the last line, away from the public gaze. My mother tried to persuade me again and again to dance, but I simply told her that I was not interested. She must have realized that I hesitated to dance because a mother understands every strand of her child’s body.

This game of persuasion and refusal continued between my mother and I. It was fine until one day, when my mother told me, during my summer vacation, that she had signed me up for the school’s dance team. At first, I thought that it was nothing more than a joke but when I saw my mother’s serious expression and my name on the list of students registered for the team, I was shocked.

My mother was sure that I did not even know one step of any dance, let alone Bhangra (traditional folk dance of Punjab) or any Western dance form. I pleaded with my mother to let me stay at home and enjoy my summer vacation. I begged my sworn enemy, my brother, to convince my mother. He refused as he said that I should dance just as he did in school. He was happy that I had to ask him for help. I even called up my maternal grandmother to convince her daughter that I should not be forced to dance. I was sure of victory as my grandmother is very fond of me and only she can order my mother around. To my utter surprise, nay shock, she refused to come to my aid. In fact, she felt that dance would help me to get over my shyness.

Nothing worked at all on my mom, and I had to go and learn to dance. I wanted to go and hide in the wings. I tried to get side-lined but failed miserably. I was told, by the teachers, to dance in front of everyone. I thought that I would get laughed at or even get thrown out. Instead, I was told that my body was stiff, something I already knew.

I did not want this to be repeated about me again so, I kept practicing at school and at home and I slowly got better with my steps. I could feel my body getting more flexible and agile with every passing day. I even got a few compliments. I was really surprised. I started enjoying dance and the manner in which we can express ourselves. In the end, I was happy that I stepped out of the shadows and learnt something that I thought I never could. I confess that my mother was right about dance and the way it can change a person, even someone as shy as me.

Dance helped me feel confident about my body. It helped me to get rid of any shame I felt about my body. It helped me lift my spirits. I felt joy and happiness that I had never felt earlier. As a thirteen-year-old boy who was just stepping into his teens, dance helped me to deal with the changes that I could feel in my body. I learnt to feel comfortable with my body. The swaying of my body with the music transported me into another world. I am the first one to be on the dance floor now. It does take a minute for me to shrug away my shyness but then there is no stopping me. Dance helped me evolve. I found new friends in the dance group. I look forward to wearing the colorful dresses which transport me into a magic land.

I realized dance is power, fun and loads of laughter. Dance liberated me from the shackles of shyness. I realized that it is a form of therapy that can lift one’s mood. A few steps every day can keep away boredom, monotony, and depression. Dance strengthens the body and gives it a certain gracefulness. Dance can be the answer to many physical and mental problems. In fact, dance helped me to become a positively happier person.

Image Credits: Ref
“He watched her small figure disappear and brought the bag back to his shoulder to continue onward. But before he took another step, he looked at the tall mountain that touched the moon, its peak soaring into the sky as if holding it up. Misty clouds draped softly, but up where the mountain met the moon, Rendi thought he could still see what he expected to be there. There was old Mr. Shan, the Spirit of the Mountain, who sat at the mountain’s tip with the book in his lap.”

Born in New York, Grace Lin is a celebrated children’s author and illustrator, with more than 25 books to her credit as a writer. Lin writes about racial identity, cultural representation, harmony, peace and love. Incorporating the tender nuances of Asian-American life, with characters retaining these identities, while emphasizing upon the cultural diversity, with a lens that’s much more grounded and sensitive as compared to that of the generalized stereotypical versions available in the global pop culture. Colorful, vibrant and minutely intricate, Lin’s illustrations further raise the bar of her storytelling, with a steady engagement and a fun reading experience. Regular mentions or influences of folk tales and their legacy pave their way into Lin’s writings.

Her most popular titles include the ‘Pacy’ series and ‘Where the mountain meets the moon’ series. ‘Ling & Ting’, ‘Robert’s Snow’, ‘Fortune Cookie Fortunes’, ‘Bringing in the new year’, ‘The ugly vegetables’, ‘Olvina Flies’, ‘The twelve days of Christmas’, ‘A big mooncake for little star’ and many other titles constitute the long list of Lin’s body of work.

Lin has repeatedly spoken about her book ‘The Ugly Vegetables’, the making of it, and the inspiration behind the book. She reminisces her childhood memories where her mom used to grow Chinese vegetables in their garden, as compared to all the other adjacent gardens where flowers blossomed. This odd one out Chinese vegetables idea embarrassed her big time, especially being an Asian family living in the United States. But now when she looks back and revisits those days, the heartwarming and affectionate memories of those Chinese vegetables makes her smile and inspires her to write. An adorable childhood photo of Lin and her mother standing in that very Chinese vegetable garden also served as an inspiration for one of the primary artworks in her book, loved and appreciated by her editors and readers alike.

Lin has been constantly advocating for and passionately endorsing the idea of increased and steadily rampant awareness of diversity in children’s books. The significance of education revolving around race and culture has been one of the central things she keeps rooting for, while specifically emphasizing upon the importance of literary education through stories and books which paint a sensitive, nuanced picture of race and culture.

“Because stories are how we share our lives and what we truly mourn when they are lost. Stories are what connect us to our past and carry us to our future. They are what we cherish and what we remember.”

As the beautifully penned excerpt from Lin’s ‘When the Sea Turned to Silver’ states, the stories are what makes us who we are, and these stories allow us to embrace our vulnerabilities, become a better version, and celebrate humanity, and eventually return back to them when we feel the need to smile.

Image Credits: https://www.amazon.in/Before-Goodbye-Coffee-Gets-Cold/dp/1035023423

Funiculi Funicula is a magical cafe that allows people to time travel to the past, reunite with their loved ones, and make amends. Yeah, yeah its sounds very magical. But the journey comes with risks and rules. The risks follow as the travellers must have visited the cafe and must return to the present before the coffee goes cold.

Monji Kadokura, an archaeologist and professor, was always away from home with his wife and kids. Suddenly, his wife goes into a vegetative state while he is away, but he has one last thing to say her. Sunao Hikita is a woman who couldn’t say farewell to her dog in his last moments and is living with regret and agony, so she returns to the past to say goodbye. Hikari Ishimori couldn’t answer a wedding proposal, and she still lives with bitterness as she couldn’t answer, so she wanted to go back to the past to give an answer to his proposal and say goodbye for the last time. Mikiko Kijimoto deserted her father and left home to study in Tokyo six years ago. But her father unfortunately died after she drove him away.  So she wants to apologise to her father about everything, which is why she wants to return to the past.

Dead people receive more flowers than the living because regret is stronger than gratitude. This quote was written by Anne Frank. The reason I quoted it was that we take everything for granted; we never realise it until it’s gone. We take people and their memories for granted and they’re gone, and you’re still there with their memories. You can grieve or cope with it, but don’t live with sorrow until you die. Even if you get to spend 5 minutes with them, be happy. Don’t live with the regret of not getting to spend more time with them. Make it meaningful. Don’t be sad about the people you lost. Be sad about the people you’re going to lose. I really enjoyed this book before we say goodbye. I learned a lesson about not taking death as a joke and spending time with your loved ones. It was pretty convincing for me that your life doesn’t end when your beloved ones are gone. It’s okay to be happy.