Experiential learning exercise – Procedure

The Experiential Learning exercise consists of 6 steps. Each of these 6 steps is explained in detail below. Clear guidelines have been mentioned so that the Balvikas gurus can conduct each step effectively, giving sufficient time to the children to understand and execute her instructions for the smooth transition from one step to the next.

• Step 1 – Prayer and Silent sitting
• Step 2 – One-Word Theme
• Step 3 – Radiant Thinking
• Step 4a – Mind-Mapping
• Step 4b – Web Chart
• Step 5 – Preparation
• Step 6 – Presentation by Teams

Step 1

Silent sitting

The Balvikas guru begins the Experiential Learning exercise with a prayer followed by Silent Sitting or Guided Visualisation. This helps to calm the children and open their hearts and get them oriented towards the ongoing creative and intuitive activities. It prepares them mentally for a brainstorming session.

Step 2

Selection of theme

It involves selecting the theme on which the Experiential Learning exercise is to be done. The guru initiates a class discussion, inviting words from the children and writing them on the board, in order to arrive at a One-Word Theme, from the various words suggested by the children.

Points to be kept in mind while selecting the theme

1. The theme must be interesting, familiar and related to the immediate socio-cultural environment of the children. Rural children will not be much familiar with subjects like aeroplane, car etc. Children of some religious communities will not be comfortable with themes like say, Diwali, temple etc.
2. The age-group of the children must be considered while selecting the theme.
3. Vague and abstract words need to be avoided. For example-love, honesty, unity, joy, space etc. as there is not much scope to develop them further in the Experiential Learning exercise.

In short, the selected theme should be such that it has a wide scope to be developed into Radiant Thinking, Mind-Mapping and Web Chart, followed by Presentation by the children, which is the concluding but most important segment of the Experiential Learning exercise.

Next, the guru keeps writing on the board all the words that are being suggested by the children. Finally, it is she who has to select the Word/Theme keeping the above points in mind.

Now only the selected One-Word Theme is to be written at the centre of the board and the rest of the suggested words are to be erased.(Examples – Birds, hand, elephant, mountains, garden, trees, water, sun, mother, colours, festivals, rivers etc.)

Let us take ‘Trees’ as our One-Word Theme for further discussion and write it at the centre of the board.

Step 3

Radiant Thinking

What is Radiant thinking?

Our brain works in a radiant and creative fashion, that is,in all directions without following any logical pattern. A single thought triggers off many more thoughts, closely or remotely associated with it. For example, when you hear the word ‘school’, several thoughts related to your school days flash in your mind endlessly- the school-building, teachers, classroom, classmates, assembly, playground, books, annual day celebrations, examinations, so on and so forth. This is what is known as Radiant Thinking.

After the selected theme ‘TREES’ is written at the centre of the board, the guru asks the children to suggest words related to trees, as they pop up in their mind randomly.

Points to be noted by the Guru

1. Encourage every child and make sure that only a few do not dominate.
2. No negative words (cut, decay, blood, destroy, gun, etc).
3. If an irrelevant word is suggested, it may be written so as to not discourage the child. However, it may be tactfully omitted in the subsequent stages.
4. At times, the children get stuck up after suggesting a few words and are unable to proceed further. Then, it is advisable to introduce Silent Sitting for a while after which they are likely to come up with more related words.
5. Again, in case of slow progress, Guided Visualisation may help ease the situation. For instance, if no value words have been suggested by the children so far, a vivid Guided Visualisation on say ‘Nature’ in general can be initiated, which will guide them towards important value words like sharing, caring, giving, loving etc associated with the trees

Points to note while writing the words on the board

1. Do not organise the words in a logical fashion say, parts- on one side, benefits- on another side. See Figure (i)
2. Do not number the words sequentially. Instead, write the words horizontally, vertically, diagonally here and there, as you hear from the children. See Figure (i)
3. Do not limit the number of words being suggested by the children.
4. If you feel some word is unrelated, do not say ‘no’ but ask for the reason. The child may have some reason to associate it; however it can be omitted at the Mind-Mapping stage.
5. If you feel that some crucial words have not yet been given by the children, you may suggest indirectly.
6. Continue to get the words until a satisfying number has been obtained, say, around 60 or so.
7. At the end of the Radiant Thinking exercise, we find that around a central theme ‘Trees’ we have many related words radiating from it as shown in Figure (i).

In short, the Radiant Thinking exercise promotes intuitive and creative thinking while ensuring a sense of participation by the entire class. Once the Radiant Thinking is done, the guru briefs the children regarding the next step, Mind-Mapping.

Step 4(a)

Mind-Mapping – Analytical and organised thinking

What is Mind-Mapping

Mind-Mapping mirrors how our brain actually processes and recalls information.It involves processing the information obtained through Radiant Thinking.

While Radiant Thinking encourages intuitive and creative thinking, MindMapping calls for logical and analytical thinking. Mind-Mapping is, thus, more organised and structured in comparison to Radiant Thinking.

Before beginning the mind-mapping exerciese, the Guru:

1. Divides the class into teams (minimum 4), though the number of teams depends on the size of the class. In case of 20 children, 5 teams may be formed. If the class consists of just 3 or 4 children, then only one team is possible.
2. Makes them sit as separate groups. It is better for the children to be seated in a circle as interaction and sharing of ideas is easier when seated face-to-face.
3. Asks them to carefully study the Radiant Thinking words, displayed on the board and select the words that have some common characteristics or features. For example: leaves, flowers, fruits, branches; greenery, air, rain, shade, nests
4. They may leave out the words that do not fit into any category or are irrelevant in their opinion and do not have scope for Presentation.

(NOTE – The number of categories correspond to the number of teams and not vice versa.)

5 teams ——> 5 categories

3 teams ——> 3 categories and so on.

Next, the guru engages the 4 teams in the Mind-Mapping exercise, i.e., grouping the Radiant Thinking words into 4 categories, keeping in mind their common features.

Points to be noted by the Guru:

1. The same word might have been placed under different categories by different teams.
2. If none of the teams come up with ‘lessons to be learnt from trees’ like sharing, caring, shelter, tolerance etc., the guru may suggest indirectly through Guided Visualisation.
3. After discussing amongst its members, the 4 teams come up with 4 categories each. A sample of the 4 categories made by one of the teams is shown in Figure (ii).

What follows next is preparation of individual Web Charts.

Step 4(b)

Web Chart

A Web Chart is formed with the tool of Mind-Mapping. Earlier, in the Mind-Mapping stage, each team had grouped the Radiant Thinking words into 4 categories.

Now, at the Web Chart stage, suitable headings have to be assigned to these 4 categories. Discussions are held within the teams regarding the selection of headings.

Next, each team will have to represent the 4 headings in the form of a Web Chart as shown in Figure-iii

Sufficient time is to be given to the teams to prepare their Web Charts.

4 Teams —> 4 Categories —> 4 Web Charts

Let us suppose that each team comes out with the following headings.

1. Team A- Uses, Values, Religion, Nature
2. Team B- Benefits, Lessons, Religion, Parts
3. Team C- Uses, Message, Puja, Nature
4. Team D- Worship, Values, Environment, Advantages

Next, the four Web Charts prepared by the 4 teams are to be displayed on the board by the guru, leaving space at the centre for the final Web chart.

How is the final web chart derived?

Once the 4 Web Charts are displayed on the board, the guru initiates a class discussion to derive the final Web Chart to work upon further.

The discussion will focus on selecting the 4 most appropriate headings for the final Web Chart.

This is to be done only after carefully going through the various headings depicted in those 4 Web Charts.

The 4 headings must be such that it is possible to create group activities from the point of view of Presentation which is the final stage of the Experiential Learning exercise

Points to be noted while deriving the final web chart

1. Unimportant headings to be left out. Example, Parts.
2. Similar headings might have been given by the teams for the same categories, For example, Uses/Advantage/Benefits. Yet they are to be considered.
3. Keeping the above points in mind, the guru finalises the headings – Worship, Benefits, Environment and Message for the final Web Chart.
4. They are to be depicted in the final Web Chart that is to be displayed at the central space allotted for it.
5. The remaining 4 Web Charts are to be erased from the board.
6. This final Web Chart alone will be considered for the final Presentation and hence has to remain on the board throughout the Presentation stage.

IT MAY BE NOTED THAT

At the Radiant Thinking stage, the entire class is involved, suggesting words on the selected Theme to the guru.

In the Mind-Mapping stage, the four teams are involved in categorising the Radiant Thinking words.

In the Web Chart stage, the four teams assign headings to the categories thus formed.

Step 5

Preparation by the teams

The Preparation stage is very crucial. Teams discuss amongst themselves to put up a good show. Here, group dynamics play a significant role. Leadership qualities, sharing and accepting ideas, team spirit, cooperation etc. are exhibited by the children.

At the individual level, it calls for freedom of expression, alertness, presence of mind, thoughtfulness, creativity and spirit of inquiry on the part of each child. It may be surprising that even shy children may come up with novel ideas.

Guidelines for preparing the 5 activities for presentation

1. The guru asks each team to choose one of the 4 headings shown in the final Web Chart displayed on the board.
2. She explains to the teams that 5 activities based on the 5 Teaching Techniques are to be prepared by them for Presentation.
3. Now, she instructs the teams that while preparing the activities, they ought to focus only on the respective headings chosen by them – Worship/Benefits/Message/Environment.
4. Next, each team has to prepare activities related to the heading it has chosen.

Five Teaching techniques to be used for presentation

1. Prayer– Shlokas, Quotes, Proverbs, Suvichar
2. Group song– Bhajans, Poems, Value Songs, Patriotic Songs
3. Silent sitting– Guided Visualisation and Meditation
4. Story telling
   • Mythology
   • Life of Saints
   • Moral Stories
   • Chinna Katha
   • Uncle Lion’s Tales
   • Great Personalities
   • Achievers
5. Group Activitiy
   • Role Play
   • Quiz
   • Rangoli
   • Mimes
   • Art & Craft/Collage
   • Greeting Card
   • Posters
   • Seva
   • Interviews
   • Panel Discussions
   • Reporting
   • Exhibitions
   • Scrap books
   • Project work
   • Tree Plantation
   • Bulletin Board

Step 6

Presentation

The children discuss and plan enthusiastically and get ready for their Presentation. This stage provides ample scope for self expression and opportunities to showcase their combined efforts through various activities. It enables unfolding of hidden talents of every child and their understanding of the subject in an integrated manner.

It also helps them discover their latent skills, be it in art and craft or in music or in dramatics or poetry, giving them a sense of participation and achievement.

Once the teams are ready with their items, the guru invites Team A to present its 5 activities on Trees, say Worship.

Given below is a sample of suggested activities using the Five Techniques.

At this stage, the guru will have to provide guidance to the children wherever required. She has to be innovative and supportive in helping them put up a good show.

This is the final stage of Experiential Learning, demonstrating the creativity, skill and unity of the children.

Suggested Activities (Worship)

1. Prayer/Good Thoughts/Shlokas/Sayings/Quotes
   • Patram pushpam (Bhagavad Gita – IX/26)
   • Yaakundendu (kunda, Padma)
   • Om Sri Sai Vatavriksha pratishtaapakaraya Namah
   • Tulsi shloka
   • Shantakaram (padmanabham)
   • Sadaa nimba vrikshasya (Shloka)
   • Paropakaaraya phalanti vrikshah
   • Save trees- Save earth
   • Tirukkural etc.
2. Guided visualisation/Meditation
   • Guided Visualisation on worship of Tulsi plant.
3. Story Telling
   • The Three Trees- by Angela Hunt
   • Vali- Lord Rama piercing 7 trees
   • Origin of Kalpavriksha and Parijat Trees
   • Pandavas hiding their weapons under Shami tree
   • Baby Krishna- Kubera’s sons as trees- shaap vimochan
   • Krishna Tulabaaram- Rukmini- Tulsi leaf
   • Bhakta Shabari- offering fruits to Sri Ram
   • Sri Andal’s birth
4. Group singing/ Value songs/Patriotic songs/ Bhajans /Poems
   • Mandaara maladhara (Sai Bhajan )
   • Nalinee dalagata (Bhaja Govindam)
5. Group Activities
   • QUIZ
     1. The Lord’s Eyes, Face, Feet etc. are compared to which flower? (Lotus)
     2. Hanuman met Maa Sita in this Van. (Ashok Van)
     3. The Buddha got illumination under which tree? (Bodhi Tree)
     4. Shirdi Baba used to sit under this tree (Neem Tree)
     5. Lord Jagannath’s idol at Puri is made of this wood. (Neem)
     6. What does Brindavan refers to? (Tulsi van)
     7. Hanuman brought the mountain for which herb? (Sanjeevini herb)
6. Art & Craft
   • Making floral kolams/torans/garlands

Any ONE of the Group Activities can be presented by the team from the list mentioned above.

The four teams present their activities one after the other in the Balvikas class.

Evaluation is to be done by a team of gurus, simultaneously.

Prizes are to be awarded to the participants and the winners, taking into account the various aspects of their performance-creativity, originality, content, uniqueness, variety, performance, skills exhibited etc.

A very significant aspect to be judged is- how far the 5 activities reflect the heading and at the same time, represent the 5 Techniques.

Role of Balvikas Guru

1. Guide and facilitator
2. Ensures active and enthusiastic participation of all the children.
3. Keeps encouraging the children from time to time.
4. Provides a free and democratic atmosphere.
5. Easily accessible to the children.
6. With her presence, influence, hints and suggestions, she should enable children to discover values inherent within themselves and in all learning processes.
7. The guru has to be creative, resourceful and tactful without directly suggesting to the children. Presence of mind and friendly dispositionare equally important.
8. On the whole, she is responsible for making the Experiential Learning session enjoyable and memorable to the children.

Benefits of Experiential learning

1. Multi-dimensional and not confined to water-tight compartments.
2. Enables the children to think globally.
3. Promotes freedom of expression.
4. Encourages both intuitive thinking (Radiant Thinking) and organised thinking (Mind-Mapping).
5. Absorption level around 70% when children are actively involved, hence long-lasting learning outcome.
6. Assists inter-personal skills- caring, sharing of ideas, team spirit, leadership qualities, organisational skills, cooperation etc.
7. During Presentation, the children get to explore an extensive range of interests and skills. It boosts their self-confidence by providing a platform to execute their talents.
8. In short, the brainstorming Experiential Learning sessions are thoroughly enjoyed by the children, as they provide a pleasant diversion from their normal routine.

Practical tips to the Gurus

1. Duration- The entire exercise of Experiential Learning may require 6 hours or six Balvikas classes approximately. The gurus have to plan as to how to divide the available time for the various stages of Experiential Learning.
2. Number of children- What if the class consists of just 4 or 5 children? In such a case, the procedure will go on as mentioned above but when it comes to stage of Mind-Mapping and Web Chart, only one team can be formed and hence only one Web Chart. The single team has to prepare the five activities but even then, Experiential Learning exercise can be done. They will enjoy it thoroughly.
3. Besides, the guru can make Radiant Thinking an integral part of her Balvikas class activity especially when she starts new shloka or a topic.
   For instance, when the guru plans to teach ‘Vakratunda’ shloka, instead of introducing shloka straight away, she can write ‘elephant’ on the board and engage the students in the Radiant Thinking exercise. The children are likely to give out answers like- circus, temple, forest, Ganesh etc. The guru can then take up the shloka related to Ganesh.
   More examples –
   1. Radiant Thinking exercise on- Mountains for ‘Kailash rana’ shloka
   2. Lotus for ‘Shantakaaram’ shloka
   3. Water for ‘Samudra vasane’ shloka
4. Ideal for Balvikas camps at district and state levels.
5. Can be conducted in Gurus’ Training Camps.
6. Suitable for inter-house competitions in school Balvikas, the advantage being a larger number of students. More the teams – the merrier.

Conclusion

On the whole, the Experiential Learning exercise prepares the children for the global demands of the coming era, apart from ingraining a stable value system in them.

[By:Mrs. Nalini Padmanabhan, Balvikas Guru, Delhi – NCR]
(Source: Balvikas Master Trainers Training Programmes, Prashanti Nilayam &
Rishikesh, 2009)