JOYFUL STUDY WITH SWEET MELODY. srr way ar--, JOYFUL STUDY WITH SWEET MELODY seat We we tet TT ¢ yen) Kz NTRODUCTION ¢ YY Language occupies a pivotal place in school qa eS, ‘curriculum. Language Awareness in the Curriculum >a offers a unique introduction to culturally significant ws issues affecting the nature of language learning in a SS FP wwuticuttural classroom & ) rd It is commonly said how the rich culture and heritage of our country is slowly dying because of a pe western influence and western style of education India is a land of so many beautiful languages, like a rainbow of different colour and yet we are dissolving this rainbow by not preserving and passing on to our generation—the richness of our languages and literature. Some people in urban cities of the country look down on people who cannot communicate in English. One of the languages which has so beautifully emerged from the rich language Sanskrit is Hindi and this language went on to become the national language of India, Today, Hindi is spoken by more than 600 million people and when spoken it almost makes you feel as if one is flowering pearls on to you! Hindi language is being taught in all the School run by Central Government Education syllabus.JOYFUL STUDY WITH SWEET MELODY sae oI ret tt, Use of word cards and picture cards Model reading and reading in pairs/groups Song papers used for reading and comprehension Active participation by the enti As a Hindi teacher serving Kendriya Vidyalaya, | have been able to de velop a new and innovative technique of teaching Hindi to primary students. The teacher took up this challe and_ JOYFUL STUDY WITH SWEET MELODY hearted participation in class room. This paved the way for the innova- tive experiment JOYFUL STUDY WITH SWEET MELODY. PROCESS OF IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROJECT of motivati aoe a, er 2 the students ing. in whole Enh sment Use of Reading for self- Actions and Role Play with Rhythm Lessons viewed on Power Point PresentationJOYFUL STUDY WITH SWEET MELODY sae oI ret tt, Students learn when 1) they are motivated and 2) their anxiety is diminished. During the implementation period, | find that applying principles of stress, rhythm and intonation derived from music greatly improves my students’ speech. Meaning becomes clear, speech sounds more natural, and we understand what our students say. Many scientists interested in the origins of language believe that language and music evolved together. Here, for instance, Charles Darwin stated: We must suppose that the rhythm and cadences of oratory are derived from previously developed this, and ... believe that musical sounds afforded one of the bases for the development of language ... (from ‘The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex’) (CHARLES DARWIN Claire Kramsch rightly said in Context and Culture in Language Teaching {Oxford University Press, 1993. (p.2)] as follows and the teacher fully subscribes to her views. "Through leaming language, we learn about culture. Through learning about culture, we lear respect for others. Through learning respect for others, we can hope for peact Song, which combines both music and language, can be very helpful in teaching students how to express emotion in the new language — and how to speak with a comprehensible accent. A good song highlights the rhythm, the melodic shape and the important words. When the words are memorized they deeply influence the way we speak the new language, making it more natural, more charged with emotion — and easier for others to understand. Once absorbed into the long-term memory, songs help to give our speech colour, emotion and imagination, JOYFUL STUDY WITH SWEET MELODY sree amt at zm is an outcome of the inspiration drawn from above mentioned pronounciations. “Education is the manifestation of the per- fection already in man” — Swami VivekanandaJOYFUL STUDY WITH SWEET MELODY. starr way ar--, Fo @as «4 5 as RATIONALE Writing a rationale for language development is critical if one has to teach Hindi language, motivate children to study the language more generally as a part of curriculum. The foundation of all education is laid during the first few years of a child’s life. In order to make this foundation strong and long lasting, the young learner should be receptive and interested to learn. It is a challenging task for the teacher to attract and retain a sustained interest, but young learners are usually prepared to enjoy the activities the teacher has prepared for them Hence, it is easy to maintain a high degree of motivation and to make the Hindi class an enjoyable one for the children provided (a) activities are simple, achievable and helps to attain the language competencies; (b) _ there is variety and fun to maintain the interest level; ) There is a free and fearless atmosphere and every child’s need is catered to. Abilities and Competencies of Students in learning Hindi Self Evaluation of Students’ Learning Skills Strengths Weaknesses Actions to be carried out by the Teacher Term Tests and Opportunities Examinations eae ‘Threats ice De nC eared ecereon toneJOYFUL STUDY WITH SWEET MELODY srr way ar Fo eas 860 aed DESIGN, IMPLEMENTATION & SUCCESS 1. Success of any activity depends on careful and effective planning. Every story/lesson (prose) was converted into simple rhythmic song keeping into account all the characters, words, phrases, story sequences and its message or moral values. 2. Along with the usual teaching-learning methods in class room, the songs became an instant hit with the children. 3. Along with the song came the word flash cards, pictures, masks, character pictures, required materials for simple action and role play. 4. At the end of every lesson the power point presentations were kept ready for better understanding and reinforcement. 5. Songs and role play were implemented during morning assembly, Hindi Diwas Celebration, Grand Parents Day etc. 6. This instilled a sense of confidence and lead to sustained interest in the subject. . Answering worksheets became a joyful activity and writing was never a boredom. It helped to develop their basic language competencies. . The overall method led to explore the creativity among little children. This led to collection of simple poems and creating their own poems on simple topic and enhanced their original thinking and creative skills.JOYFUL STUDY WITH SWEET MELODY. seaaq oy sa ate a, \@ TEACHING AND LEARNING PROCESS CHART x Creation of environment with rhythmic and rhyming melodies Learning reinforced STU Coon eya mere Ponca voniaen Ue Cor oR ATION Ce DU MTU eae Ce) Leads to sustained Motivation and interest Enjoy doing the work- sheets based on songs and technology presen- tation with a blend of Learning is joyful and permanent other subjects.JOYFUL STUDY WITH SWEET MELODY 3eaert a ret tt om, Understanding Language Acquisition has profound implications for evaluating hidden meta-theoretical assumptions, as well as for empirical research and methods for teaching language. The innovative project JOYFUL STUDY WITH SWEET MELODY—2t4a4 ane wa fia aT is a step forward to innovative experiment introduced by the author.The blend of classroom teaching with technology and power point presentation of Hindi Lessons in Class V won a NCERT award for the Teacher in 2004. In this experiment, | have tried to make the learning more comprehensive, joyful, effective and transcend student beyond text and classroom. This method of “Resonating Melodies” was for every lesson, almost every day and the students eagerly awaited for the next lesson. The lessons can also be viewed on computer with pictures, words, songs and has a message/ value. The PPTs prepared can be viewed anytime, also by other sections and can be shared with other Kendriya Vidyalayas through E-mail uploading. The CDs can be preserved and viewed in the coming years. During the course of implementation of this experiment, following observations were made; (a) it could engage and discipline the bright students; (b) It also encouraged and motivated the slow learners to take part; (c) It sustained the child’s interest throughout the year; (d) Entire class got the opportunity to come on stage, which was usually dominated by only a few bright ones; (e) It helped even the teacher to keep ready some of these programmes on various school occasions.