NBT Nagar High School

A week had passed since my summer vacation commenced and I had done nothing productive. I wanted to do something interesting and fun. So, I asked my aunt if she knew about any upcoming internships, I could take part in. My aunt contacted her good friend Ms. Sreelata Chebrol, a trustee of Kriti, an NGO. She asked her if she knew about any internships to which she replied yes and sent us a form asking us to volunteer for a summer camp held at a government school. The coincidental part about this incident is the fact that that particular day was the last day for registration. Me and my aunt were pleased to hear about the slots and registered within no time.

 KRITI

 Kriti is an organization which was started in the year 2009 by a group of corporate professionals who were passionate about the betterment of the urban poor. Their mission and vision is to empower women and ensure better education to students.

 ORIENTATION

 The first 3 days we had an orientation. On the first day we had robotics and got to learn about different parts of a circuit and how it functions. It was interesting to learn a few robotics basics. On the second day the main orientation was organized, and the volunteers got to practice a few science demos and watch a ppt on the ground rules that had to be followed during the summer camp. On the third day we just learnt some easy arts and crafts to teach the students at the summer camp. 

Let me be completely honest, I was not amused by the orientation and instantly wanted to give up. I wasn’t ready for this and the excitement I had before vanished. I was sitting inside the car feeling demotivated. I was looking out the window and saw a quote that caught my eye. It read: DO WHAT IS RIGHT, NOT WHAT IS EASY. That quote quite literally boosted my spirit. I felt this sudden motivation in myself. I just wanted to share this key moment as it played a very important role during this wonderful journey.

NBT NAGAR HIGH SCHOOL

 It was the first day and I was very excited. Me and my aunt reached the school and saw a few students excited to participate and attend the summer camp. It was my first time going to a government school. I was very observant as I looked around. Everything there was different from the school I went to. The classrooms, the desks, the cupboards, etc. seemed very new to me. Even the teacher – student relationship was different from the ones I had with my teachers. They were all so free with each other. We started off the day with a few games which helped us build a rapport with the students. We did arts and crafts, coloring and a few small sitting games. The students left at 1pm. The volunteers had formed a circle and shared their first day with everyone. The next day we started using the English and math books provided by Kriti and ended the day off with a fun movie. 

 SCIENCE-DEMOS

 Every day we would show a science demo to the students from grade 6 to grade 9 to give them some ideas for what kind of experiments we expect from them at the science fair. They all seemed to be very excited to learn a new thing related to science with an example. Here is a picture of me and my new best friend Anuradha explaining a science demo😊:

 We asked them to bring a few ideas of their own to which they responded. The one student that I noticed, who was very interested in doing everything, was Faizan. He was in the 7th grade and was very enthusiastic. Me and Radha, a volunteer, took mehndi classes for the students and he was so excited to show off his talent that he started to draw designs of his own. Another student who I really liked was Khusboo. She was in the 9th grade (the same grade as me) and was interested in everything. She made a beautiful model of the jungle with her friend, and she also makes websites from her computer class. She was a real inspiration. Here are a few pictures from the mehndi classes:

 A VISIT TO IKEA

 On 16th may we visited Ikea. Me, my aunt and my sister went early to help the Ikea team with the decoration. The buses had started to arrive, and the students were warmly welcomed by the Ikea team. They had provided the students, volunteers and teachers with juice and potato wedges. Then they made them play some fun games and spread a sheet on the table and gave them some colors for drawing on the paper. They got to take the colors and a pencil pouch home. My favorite part about the Ikea visit was watching the students experience something new. I would like to thank Ms. Deeksha for organizing the whole visit.

 SCIENCE FAIR

 On 17th may, all the volunteers and students were preparing for the science fair. Me and Anuradha were managing all the projects and were assigning posters for them. We made the entrance poster. We did all the final preparations and were all set for the science fair.

 On 18th May was the science fair. But as soon as me and my aunt walked in, we were in shock. All the decorations were ripped off and were thrown in the trash. We were so upset but we dug out the posters and put them back on the railings and started to assign tables for all the projects. The Science Fair was inaugurated by Ms. Sreelata’s uncle, Scientist Rao garu. All the students got to perform, and it was a very fun day for all. I was so relieved that the science fair was a huge success. Dr. Rao garu giving his words of wisdom and a few pictures of the science fair and the day before:

A VISIT FROM TELSTRA

 A company called Telstra visited the school and provided the students with rocks and coasters and a few paints to paint them with. I got to do a mandala piece for them. All the students had fun and showed all their artistic talents through their mandalas. Thank you, Telstra team, for this wonderful experience.

 SOCIO EMOTIONAL LEARNING

A team called Pravah organized SEL classes for the students and volunteers in which they taught us about:

 • Decision Making 

• Goal Setting 

• Good Touch, Bad Touch 

• Communication skills and active listening 

• Behavior management 

• Strengths and weaknesses 

• About the environment 

• Personality development

 And a lot more. They did a few ice – breaker activities and skits to make the students and volunteers more comfortable. The volunteers got to make posters for Environment Day.. Here is my poster:

 They even organized a skit for the closing ceremony, which I was a part of. Overall, the whole experience was very informative and interesting. Thank you, Ms. Ankitha, Ms. Ismail and Pravah team for the most wonderful and informative experience. 

THE CLOSING CEREMONY

The last two weeks the volunteers who were good at dance and music taught the students dance and music. All the students and volunteers were working hard on perfecting the performances. The 10th graders were preparing a skit. Me, Anuradha and Manasa were working on the decorations for the event. Here are the posters we made: On 1st June was the closing ceremony. Kushboo, Zamaan and Pratyusha were the Anchors. All the students had performed so well. That day I expressed so many emotions. I was so happy that I achieved this goal, but I was so sad that I wouldn’t be coming back again. I had created such a good bond with all the volunteers, students and teachers that I didn’t want to leave. Everyone was so happy that day. The atmosphere was so chaotic and full of joy. I got to give a speech. 

MY OVERALL EXPERIENCE

 I created a good bond with Ismail, Zamaan, Zam Zam, Faizan, Khushboo, Prakash, Lalitha, Pratyusha, Madhu, Aman, Abdul Sameer and Chaitanya. They became my friends during the summer camp. I created a very close bond with Anuradha Akka, Charanya Akka, Spoorthi Akka, Manasa Akka, Shruthi Akka and Divya Akka. I had so much fun during the summer camp. I am so grateful that I got to experience this. I also realized how fortunate I am for experiencing such wonderful things in my life. I am also very happy that I got to do this in the 9th grade. I forgot to mention that I was the youngest volunteer here. I might have faced a few ups and downs during this journey but I am very happy that my aunt was there to guide and motivate me. 

VOTE OF THANKS

 Thank you dear Aliya mam, Laxmi kala mam, Bhagya Mam , My aunt Madhuri , Sreelata mam, volunteers and students to make this experience a memorable one for me.