De-stressing the child by incorporating fun activities as part of learning

Updated on: Saturday, March 02, 2013

Children are her passion. Her contribution in the field of child care and education has been nothing less than incredible. For the last 25 years, Swati Popat Vats, president of Early Childhood Association and director of Podar Jumbo Kids, has been a name to reckon with in the field of preschool education and child care. She has, over the years, pioneered several innovative methods of teaching, interactive programmes that enhance child development, etc.

“Children aged below six are neglected by parents as well as society. There isn’t much done to ensure they are in a safe, protected and reliable environment. There is a lot of lacunae in the area of child care. This is where I step in. With the rising incidents of child abuse, it has become important to ensure that they are protected and made aware of their surroundings,” said Swati.

Play-based education has been one of her important initiatives where she has laid emphasis on de-stressing the child by incorporating fun activities as part of learning. She calls it Kiducation. “Reading and writing stresses out a child. We have designed in-house books that are colourful and interactive which the child won’t put down.”

She has also authored storybooks that create awareness on safety and security of children. “We have storybooks that talk about road, bus and body safety. We have incorporated fairy tales and nursery rhymes to suit the present day needs of children. These are in the form of storybooks with interesting characters talking to each other. So, it’s easy for a child to read and understand.”

She also introduced a unique workshop called Good Touch, Bad Touch in 2010 in all schools.“Children between the ages of one and six suffer from attention deficit disorder and are mostly out of touch with their external environment. So, I introduced a day called Mud Day on June 17,” she added.

De-stressing the child by incorporating fun activities as part of learning

More Education news