Delhi Education Minister Manish Sisodia celebrated Children’s Day in a special way by attending a happiness curriculum class with the students of Delhi Government schools. The Deputy Chief Minister also interacted with the students, and discussed the impact of these happiness classes on the students’ emotional wellbeing during the lockdown. It was a virtual class conducted on zoom, and entirely student-led.
Sisodia said Childrens’ Day is celebrated so the guardians, parents, and teachers can reflect on how they can make this world a better place for our children.
“It is especially noteworthy that these happiness classes, which have been happening for two years now, are being conducted in the midst of the Covid crisis, an extremely difficult situation for the students. I am happy to know that our students have now become teachers of the happiness curriculum, by engaging their family members, and even their friends, spreading the message of the class in their own unique way,” he said.
The class kicked off with students interacting with Sisodia. The students shared their experiences of the classes creating a positive impact on their everyday lives, which has been spent at home with schools being shut since March.
Harshita Rawat, a student of Sarvoday Kanya Vidyalay (SKV), West Vinod Nagar, has taken to meditation daily for three minutes with her sister, and her mother. She said, “The online classes were a huge source of motivation for me during the lockdown at home. It taught me that this phase (of staying at home) is transient, and that I will eventually reunite with my friends.” She also added that it taught her to value relationships over materialistic things, especially after seeing a lot of relatives who’ve lost their jobs during the crisis.
Piyush Gururani, another student, said, “The mindfulness classes helped me to relax my mind. It took away my boredom,” he said.
Similarly, for student Gurmeet Dhanjal from BPS KV, the lockdown helped her embrace mindfulness. She said, “We slowly learnt how to let go of any stress, or anxiety we were holding in. The stories that we engage within our classes teach us how to develop a more positive outlook in life.” Dhanjal also said that though she misses going to school, through these classes, she’s able to connect with her teachers and fellow students and remember the memories from their physical classes.