Kids Grow Up (Another Story from Ummeed)
Look at them! Anshi and Eesha, two of the old hands at Ummeed’s EIC – Then and Now. I met both these little girls over a year ago on my last visit to the centre. I was amazed by how much they have grown and how far they have come. But this picture is the […]
Early Intervention, Ummeed Style!
For a taste of sheer joy, head on over to the Early Intervention Centre at Ummeed in Mumbai. I spent a morning there yesterday and it set me up for the week. I literally couldn’t stop smiling. Every child was cuter than the next – and the mothers! Such an amazing group of devoted, happy […]
The Best Part of Mumbai
One of the most wonderful things about traveling for work is the chance it affords to reconnect with old friends. Two of my very favorite people in Mumbai are Kabir and Karun, Vibha Krishnamurthy’s two boys. They wake up ready to roll, full of energy, insight and wit, and they meet me at the door […]
Concessions Mela: The Real Story
The Concessions Mela was a success at one level. Just about everyone got their certificates. The clerks who came along with the doctors were busy from the moment they arrived, and it was hard work. They barely got a chance to breathe, let alone look up from their papers, stretch their legs or sip a […]
Concessions Mela: Backstage
First off, WELL DONE Awareness Team! What a fabulous performance. The Concessions Mela was an unbelievable show of organization, dedication, festivity and accomplishment. Nearly ninety children and adults came, with their parents and brothers and sisters, to apply for their disability certificates in another “One Stop Shop” approach to what is normally a painful and […]
Inclusion in Mussoorie
Brother Dominic Jacob is the headmaster of St George’s School in Mussoorie. But before that, he had the same job at St Joseph’s Academy here in Dehradun. It was at his request that we started the Early Intervention Centre there and with he has been an invaluable advocate and friend ever since. Concerned about some […]
Children Want to Learn
I spent the last few days editing a book which Paula has written for us (watch this space for the release date!). It’s about teaching maths. It’s a wonderful and practical manual, full of simple ways to teach very difficult concepts, but its real beauty is the attitude which pervades it: an attitude which was […]
Getting Serious About Play
Here’s a boy I admire. Every time I see him, he’s got a new game going. The last one involved a marble in a little hole he had made in the ground and a ball which he aimed carefully at it for reasons known best to himself. He has a brother and two sisters and […]
Day Care for Cute Kids
Fridays are workshop days at KV School. The staff enjoy the new ideas and discussions, but the kids could think of better ways to spend an afternoon. So we’ve started a creche for staff kids in which some of the kids are as helpful as staff themselves. Here’s Miss Diya entertaining the little ones, and […]
Lessons from Vina’s Garden
I went to visit my friend Vina’s garden because she is away in Dubai and everything is coming into bloom and I didn’t want her flowers to be lonely and unappreciated. She has an amazing array of things happening there – a camellia tree which is dazzling and heavy with beautiful, rose-like flowers, pansies […]