By June-July in a regular year, summer vacations are over, and schools have re-opened after the holidays. Children look forward to this time. Keeping in mind this usual school calendar timeline, and aligned with the expectations of children, parents, and teachers, we in Pratham feel it is time for learning to begin again – and importantly, in a fun and engaging way!
The campaign began in the first week of August and is likely to continue till the first week of October.
The campaign will have two focus areas:
“Catch up” campaign for children currently in Grade III to VI
A local volunteer conducts simple instructional activities and games with small groups of children in the immediate neighbourhood. This learning camp lasts for an hour and to an hour and a half daily. Currently, the plan is to focus one month on math and one month on reading and associated activities. This effort is aimed at building/re-building foundational reading and math skills for children who have now been out of school for close to a year and a half.
Learning readiness for young children currently enrolled in Grade I and II
This campaign is primarily being carried out by mothers.
Math Mohalla Camps
In order to equip volunteers to carry out the Mohalla Math Learning Camps with children, a package has been prepared. The package contains basic assessment, guidelines for conducting activities and games (text materials and videos). The package in Hindi is detailed below and can be used to organize activities with children. 10 other languages are available as well.
I. Manual: This short manual guides volunteers / facilitators on the camp process and provides an overview of activities to be carried out with children. The manual also describes the materials that will be needed to carry out simple activities & games with children.
II. Assessment: Pratham camps begin with a simple, one on one, oral assessment conducted with every child. The math assessment and recording formats can be found here. The assessment is used to understand the level of each child, to track progress of children, and of the group as a whole.
III. Activities & Games: Engaging, fun, hands-on activities are at the core of teaching-learning in Pratham camps. These activities help children acquire foundational math skills quickly, and ensure all children make progress, while having fun! Here are some games that can be played with children during camps. And here are some videos to guide volunteers / facilitators on how to conduct activities with children: Math camp videos (Hindi)
IV. SMS-based activities: In addition to camp activities, children can also be engaged through daily SMS content that are shared directly with parents via phone. These home activities support the mohalla camps. A package of daily SMS messages for 4 weeks can be found here.
V. FAQ: While the activities are simple and easy to follow, there might still be some questions! Here is a list of Frequently Asked Questions to help those who may need clarifications.
More questions? Would like to access the package for another language?
Write to us at info@pratham.org
