Event Date: 25-04-2025
Dates: 25th and 26th April 2025
Venue: Frank Anthony Public School
Attended by: Preeti Bhatia and Annah Valen Devraj
A two-day refresher training program was conducted at Frank Anthony Public School on 25th and 26th April 2025.
The facilitators were Ms. Neela Ghosh, Ms. Pamella Ryan, Ms. Saba Islam, and Ms. Sultana Auddy.
The central theme of the workshop was "Refresh the Known", "Teaching from Known to Unknown" and "Concrete to Picture to Abstract."
The topic of ‘Friendship’ was used by Preeti's group and the topic garden was used by Annah’s group as the base to show how different activities can be planned to integrate fun and learning by doing with subjects such as Number Work, Language, Art, Value Education and E.V.S. Emphasis was placed on developing multiple intelligences in students through engaging and child-friendly methods.
Ms. Pamella Ryan conducted an important session titled "The Right Way to Write." to make the child in love with Creative Writing. Reading from Kindergarten should be made an integral part of learning. She also shared techniques such as:
Later, guide students in brainstorming about plot, characters, settings (Introduction, body and conclusion.)
The children can also be encouraged to work in groups where they can do an activity based on the topic and later write about their experience which can be a part of their creative writing.
The training also emphasized integrating dance into lessons to create a dynamic and engaging learning environment.
For teaching Arithmetic, teachers were encouraged to use storytelling, concrete objects, abacus and traditional games like Fire on the Mountain to make Math enjoyable and easier to understand. Drilling and repetition are the two main methods of teaching that must be followed in the preprimary and primary classes to understand the concept clearly.
The program included a session about Emotional Intelligence where the importance of self-awareness and self-regulations were discussed. Being aware of one's emotions is emotional intelligence. In this context the practice of “inter relationship" and “infra relationship” is something we as educators must encourage among the students in the higher classes. In the lower classes the greatest tool for classroom management is to build relationships or connections with the students.
Overall, the refresher course focused on holistic, interactive and experiential learning approaches, aiming to make teaching more child-centered, creative and effective.
At the end of the two days’ workshop Mr. Myers, the President of the Teacher’s Centre awarded certificates to all the participants for completion of the 20 hours’ workshop.
