I remember the time when my mom would be really upset with us when we played instead of studying. She, like many other mothers, thought playing only distracted us further and helped us while away time. But mothers cannot be right always right? One can’t blame them entirely. It is the society that has coloured our perception in this way.
Not until recently, young parents and old alike have started to realise to how important playing is. And today, there are games that help us enhance our knowledge and add to our learning experiences. And one of the best examples I can state is from the time I worked with an NGO called Children Toy Foundation.
Like its name, the founder of this organisation, Devendra Desai, is very fond of toys. Coming from an affluent family, he never had to ask for toys as his parents got them every now and then. It was his love for toys that prompted him to take up this initiative. Desai tied up with 26 BMC schools across Mumbai where his toy library and volunteers would work with the municipal children. Each of the 26 schools here had a special room dedicated to toys of all kinds. Each toy library consists of soft toys, games related to mathematics, science, geography and language etc.
Working with this organisation, I realised that the children studying in these schools who came from the lower strata of the society, enjoyed themselves thoroughly. They took care of each of the toys they played with. It helped to mingle with other children and work in a team. The toy library’s volunteers also acted as counsellors whom the children came to for issues of all sorts. Their attendance in school improved as they never wanted to miss a toy library period. The school teachers, who did not think much of this initiative initially, were very impressed.
In many ways, the Children Toy foundation gave the children a new perspective of education. It had the perfect blend of play and learning.
Education is very important but it cannot just be studying from book. It has to be a combination of books and games.
Children Toy Foundation
