With schools closed, vacation classes of all kinds cancelled, cinemas shut down, weddings postponed, government functions on hold and entertainment programmes called off, residents of Thiruvananthapuram are gearing up for a long summer to battle and contain the spread of the Coronavirus.
“Since my son Siddarth’s school had closed in February, I knew he would be home during March. But now that all schools have closed for a long three-month vacation, he was a little worried whether he would have to write his examinations once the school reopens,” says entrepreneur Archana Gopinath, founder of The Reading Room in Thiruvananthapuram, which conducts activities for children, and workshops and open-mic sessions for grown-ups.
She adds that what is more worrying for start-ups like hers is the fact that the government has directed that all activities like camps and classes be stopped till March 31. “It is a question of livelihood. My story-telling sessions have been postponed and all programmes at The Reading Room have been cancelled or postponed until we hear from the government. But in the meantime, we have to pay rent and salaries of the staff in my space. We will have to find ways to survive this phase,” she adds.
While Archana is a work-at-home mother, parents who work long hours are worried since many crèches and day care centres have also closed to maintain social distancing. A mother working in a call centre in Technopark says that many employees are frantically turning to parents and in-laws for help as children would be home alone. “Many of those working in firms in Technopark hail from outside the state and they have been affected by the sudden closure of schools and creches. We understand why the government has done this. But now, we have to find ways to cope with this situation because there are mothers with babies and infants. We understand that many MNCs might offer such parents the opportunity to work from home,” says Reshmi*.
In the meantime, Prashanth Gangadharan, who runs Learning Alternatives for children, feels that this is an ideal time for parents to let their children choose the activity they would like to do and give them the space and help to come up with projects.
“Usually, most children are forced to go for the class their parents choose for them. Seldom do they have a say in what they would like to follow. Now, parents can sit with the child to help him choose a project and with supervised time on the Internet, help them come up with projects for the vacation. Moreover, there are so many options available on the net. They can learn the piano or the guitar, learn art or craft...,” says Prashanth. He adds that he is thinking of online sessions for the participants who come to his place.
- Cineaste and film editor Appu Bhattathiri says he has turned to Netflix for his dose of cinema but is anxious about the trade as many biggies were waiting in the wings to release during the summer holidays. “All the postponements will throw the release date of films into disarray. In addition, small films, like Kappela, were doing well and the unexpected closure will be hard for the film and its team. In the same way, Jeo Baby’s Kilometers and Kilometers, which was supposed to release on Thursday, had to be postponed. I know how long he has been nursing this project. Like other technicians, I am also worried about the lack of work. However, this is something we have to face together. While, it is true that the industry will take time to recover, I hope we overcome this crisis without causalties,” he says.
Yoga instructor and dietician Uma Pillai of Yoga Plus has turned to WhatsApp for her group of young students. Since they are cooped up at home, Uma shot a video of her 10-year-old son Karthik exercising with a hula hoop and sent it to her students and told them to send her videos of them playing with it.
“I am planning to add videos of skipping, kick-boxing and yoga to send it in the group to get the children on their toes,” she says.
Safe vacationing!
Here are some suggestions from teachers and those working with children to keep your kids engaged at home...
Since museums, cinemas, playgrounds and sports centres have been closed and vacation classes called off, this is the best time to get them reading. Depending on age, help them discover books and authors.
Board games are an ideal pastime for the entire family. Since family outings would have to be curtailed, get that carrom board or chess board out and teach your children to conquer the board. Don’t know how to play those? No issue. There are several good teaching videos on YouTube.
Gather your child or children around for story-telling sessions. Retell the stories that grandma told you or come up with new ones for a new generation of children.
Play games, Antaakshari and plug into the new songs that your children listen to.
Get them gardening and let them enjoy the pleasure of watching a plant grow. And they can even grow veggies that they can harvest later. For starters, begin with Amaranthus, chilli, coriander leaves, ginger... If flowers are what fascinate them, start them off with balsam, which is easily available.
Get cooking with the children. Right from making lemonade and fruit juice there is a range of simple recipes to get them into the kitchen.
*name changed on request
