When my petite friend who attends my creative writing classes wished me “Happy Teacher’s Day”, I responded by saying “Thank you and same to you”. She was perplexed and wanted to know why I was wishing her because I am her teacher and not vice versa. I smiled and wanted to tell her how much we can learn and discover from children and how they are the best teachers. I did try explaining this to her by using explicit examples but she did not think much of it and was just amused by the idea of her being my teacher.

I absolutely love interacting with kids and imparting whatever knowledge I possess in any field to them. For me, it is always enlightening to listen to their views and opinions on myriad subjects. Many a times, their innocent and rational minds show us a perspective which our conditioned and superficial minds fail to see or perceive. If we pay heed to their voice, they can actually provide us with some fodder for thought always. Their energy levels and fervor always keeps the child in me alive and motivates me to give my best to whatever I do with zeal and vigor. So, it was only natural that I began thinking about ways to involve children in creative writing and provide them a platform to express themselves freely without being judged for their thoughts and imagination. This desire is what gave birth to the “Children’s Corner” section on my website which is for the kids, by the kids and of the kids. This space is for those who are looking at avenues to help their children explore their creativity in literary art form or those who wish to unleash the writer in their children through informed guidance and constructive feedback. Writing is a great way to give an outlet to the imaginative streaks in your child. I am sure most writers will concur with me when I say that becoming a good writer is a continuous process and it takes years of practice to be able to write effectively. So, why not start early?

When I announced the first Children’s Corner contest, the little wonders amazed me with their creativity and flair for writing. That’s when I truly realized that the imagination of children starts where our imagination ends, and my experience propelled me to commence with regular creative writing workshops and classes for children. The aim of the classes is not just to help kids to improve their writing abilities but also to encourage them to read, think and act independently.  The objective is to make them more sensitive, positive and confident individuals too. I rack my brain every week to come up with novel ways of engaging kids and making the classes interesting for them. So we have a different topic with a new activity or exercise in every class, and I am glad we all have been enjoying these sessions so far.

One particular activity was a huge hit with the kids – it was when they had to weave a story around some fascinating and intriguing visual prompts I had provided them with. Since this was something they thoroughly took pleasure in, I asked all the kids to bring a visual prompt in the following class. Children were quite animated about this and I received some wonderful prompts for story writing from them. I remember one child had forgotten to get a prompt and even though I assured her that it was fine, she insisted on getting one right then. Her eyes fell on the HP printer at my home and she requested me for my mobile phone. I had the HP smart app installed and she quickly located her prompt on Google and fired a print. I was bowled over by her rapidity and felt immensely pleased to see her handle the whole thing autonomously and effortlessly. She mentioned that she has the same printer at her home and uses it all by herself for her school assignments. She chuckled and told me how she keeps forgetting about her homework assignments and then at the last minute, the HP app on her mother’s mobile comes to her rescue. The wireless technology makes it convenient for her to print files from anywhere and the process is also exciting for her.

If children are self-sufficient and learning is fun for them, we can be sure that they would pave a path by themselves for their future. At the end of the day, this is what we all wish for when it comes to our kids, isn’t it?

// This article has been sponsored by HP and was first published on Momspresso and is available at the following link.