CHILDREN

There they go again!!! – UNITED CIVIC CLUB OF ST. MARKS PUBLIC SCHOOL – this is the new batch of Civic Club Members who have started their activities for the current academic year, 2012-13, as a part of CMCA – Childrens’ Movement for Civic Awareness. United Civic Club student pulling out pamphlet nailed to a tree. Pic courtesy: Ravikala Baliga. Understanding at a very young age that we need to save our trees and respect them individually – the children noticed that the trees are always treated like ‘advertising space!’  It is important for each human being to acknowledge that…

Dreamscope Theatres’ play ‘The Forest’  was presented at JSS Auditorium in Jayanagar on August 5th. The play was written and directed by Puja Goel; she also is the founder of the group. She wrote the play 15 years ago. The Forest presents a play for children but sends a message to adults making them aware about the depleting forest. This play engages a child’s psychology and her decision to save the forest. The foresters. Pic: Abhishek Angad At the centre, the play is from the last remains of the earth-forest. The foresters, the flowers, trees, animals and butterflies, believe that…

He had seen the paper and started reading the headline before I had a chance to hide it. "M-O-L-E-S-T" he read, pronouncing it as ‘molet' before inevitably asking me the meaning. My six and half year old has developed a new love for reading and I had forgotten how trauma and disaster laden our news was, when I encouraged his attempt to read the newspaper.What do you do when all the media that confronts your child, the TV, newspapers and magazine, not to mention the internet, has nothing but bad news. Do you tell her as it is or do…

The morning started early for some students of  BGS NPS, Hulimavu on Saturday, 14th July 2012. Twenty seven children of Std VIII, accompanied by three teachers, attended a nature walk at Puttenahalli Lake. Bird watcher Jaishree Govind joined Usha, Nupur, Prasanna and Sapana to take the children on a guided tour of the lake that lasted for almost two hours (7:15 - 9:00 a.m.).  Photo: Harish Mahendrakar The water level has reduced due to evaporation and the delayed monsoon but many more birds have shifted residence to our lake. A Grey Heron has joined the resident bird community and the Purple Herons have increased…

You know how it goes. You’re sitting in a movie hall, watching Kahaani and Vidya Balan is almost being pushed in the path of a speeding train when woaaaa, goes the toddler sitting behind you with his parents. And all you can think is, why do parents need to get kids along for movies.  You do have a thought there, but hold on for a second, especially if children aren't part of the picture in your life at this moment. Once they are around, you may often have to eat words spoken in the pre-child era. Here are my top…

Nishka recently turned six and to celebrate her birthday, she and her dozen friends, spent the evening at Puttenahalli Lake. Yes! It was an excited all-girls group, accompanied by Nishka's parents. The lake tour was a part of the birthday party schedule and the little girls were thrilled at being outdoors during a party.When asked why she decided to take the children to the lake, Nishka's mom, Nupur said that she wanted to do something different. "In the house we entertain them with art and craft or a video. Nishka's friends had not been to the lake and I felt the…

I am a mom. I don’t do me time. Except when I am reading Good Housekeeping or Femina  or one of those million women’s magazines that go blue in the face extolling the virtues of leaving the children behind in the able care of your husband/mother/mother in law/maid and snatching a cup of coffee in the cafe or a massage in the spa. It all sounds quite delicious, having the children out of your hair at least for a while and having some divine smelling promises-to-make-hair-great concoction in it instead.Sounds good? Certainly! Sounds doable? Well it depends on how well…

Good morning and welcome to the Mummy Pick Up & Drop Off service. I'm the chief operating officer cum chief pick up girl here. The job description fits me to the tee as I am always picking up things -- clothes from the laundry, toys from the floor, soap from the bathroom basin, child from swimming class, bus stop, playdate, skating class and so on. Mother and kid on bike. file pic: Raghavan Kandala We welcome all sorts of applicants as long as they have spawned at least one offspring, possess a reasonable ability to be on their toes for…

"I brought my younger daughter to the park as she has her summer holidays and was keen to find out what this event is all about. My older girl is in doing well in high school", beamed Rafiq Ahmed (name changed) who visits Bangalore regularly from Tumkur. He was one of the eager members of the audience that swelled after the annual Global Walk for India's Missing Girls that started outside the Haji Ismail Sait mosque in Frazer Town reached Coles Park around 4 pm on Saturday, May-5, 2012. The motivation behind the Global Walk (which has been conducted in over…

Early Sunday morning on April 8th, when most of the 'namma bangaloreans' were looking forward to savour their morning cuppa or catch up with their weekend sleep, a group of young IT professionals hit the city roads to cycle 25 km. All for a cause. Cycle rally. Pic courtesy: volunteers of Utthaan project This group of enthusiasts joined hands in an exercise named Project Utthaan - All India Music Album launch, a CARTMAN initiative which aims to fund the education of underprivileged children. CARTMAN, an NGO was founded in 1989, by the visionary Padma Bhushan Professor N S Ramaswamy, founding…