Category Archives: Ek Koshish

Ek Koshish, Indian Culture

Celebrating a Traditional Indian Birthday!

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Today, I am celebrating my birthday through the traditions of Indian culture here with “Ek Koshish, One Attempt!” When I woke up, I practiced a sacred Hindu tradition, where young men bend down and touch the feet of the elders for whom he has the utmost respect. Usually, my elders in India, with whom I practice this custom, stop me before I reach their feet, which they practice out of respect for me, saying “Khush raho, beta” (“Stay happy, my child” in Hindi). After a special mug of chai, in the “birthday mug” (an especially large mug for the birthday boy, as my host family described), the family has been showering me with little gifts and treats. Everybody, even including our students from our school, has been wishing me a “Happy Birthday,” or “Janam Din Mubarak,” as we say in Hindi!

The family I have been staying with has made many preparations for this special day for me: Apart from the surprises unbeknownst to me, today we will be going to a Hindu temple, for “Darshan,” which translates to “Visit/View” in Hindi, specifically for visiting a temple, God’s home, in this case. During the day, I will go with my “bhaiya” (Hindi word for “brother,” but used among friends as well) to the markets in India, where we will buy some food and a cake for the evening. When our students can arrive to the “davat” (the word for “party” in Hindi) at dusk, we will host a special meal for all of our students, in honor of my birthday. In India, charitable acts, especially involving feeding the hungry, are highly venerated, which is why the host family with Ek Koshish would like to celebrate my birthday by giving back to the community! Otherwise, I have posted this picture above, which was taken during my favorite Indian holiday, “Holi,” in Mathura (a city a couple of hours south of Faridabad by car). This is another example of a “davat!” I am excited and looking forward to these unique birthday festivities!

Ek Koshish, Example of Poverty in India

Donating Clothes to the Needy in India

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Yesterday, the team at “Ek Koshish, One Attempt” donated various clothes, toys, and other contributions to a very needy family in a nearby slum in Delhi NCR. Four days ago, a baby boy in the slum was born: His aunt, Nancy, one of our students that we have been educating at our school for teaching the poor and illiterate to read and write (see picture above), told us about her sister’s birth, so the Ek Koshish team decided to purchase all of the items that we donated to him and his family. This newborn has not been named yet, but his mother was elated to see that, from the beginning of her son’s life, he is surrounded by people who care about him. The family is so poor, that they did not have any clothes for the child. About the size of an adult hand, the baby was very cute, but very thin, fragile, and weak. We are optimistic that this child, like his aunt and neighbors, will be able to come out of a life of living in the slums, once they obtain proper education and support from our NGO. It was a very happy Father’s Day for everyone here at Ek Koshish, One Attempt!
Ek Koshish, English Teaching in India, Indian Children from Slum Areas, Teaching to the Illiterate in India

Children from Slums in India Memorize English Counting!

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Two days ago, Ek Koshish continued with its classes for children from slum areas in Delhi NCR! The classes went very well, as we noticed that the children, mostly, remembered how to count from one to five in English! Watch the video to see Badal, the youngest child, practicing his numbers! We are very happy to see that our work has had sticking power with even the youngest of the children, as they are still a bit too young to memorize and differentiate the symbols for “1,” “2,” etc. Vicky, the eldest of the boys, can now write the symbols for one, two, and three, from memory, always producing the correct symbol upon request! Badal is unable to write any of the numbers besides one, and he still struggles while holding the chalk for his chalkboard. Ajay is a bit stubborn, and when he has had enough of the work we give him, we have to find other ways to interest him in his studies: For example, we had all of the children count their numbers in English aloud, which encouraged Ajay to join in the group as well. With the younger children, we have to stick to a very slow pace, as they are not accustomed to reading or processing information from written symbols. Nancy’s work is very inspiring for the Ek Koshish team to witness, as she has memorized counting, one through ten, along with the corresponding symbols, in just three short lessons. We also began teaching her some English vocabulary, along with the first four letters in the alphabet, which she practiced well on her first few attempts. Her progress, aptitude, and attitude have all been very promising. Mohini had some work to do for her family, so she was unable to come with the other new students. Also, we purchased more equipment for the children, including books to help the children practice stenciling their numbers and English and Hindi letters! Finally, at the end of the class, we treated the children to a classic Bugs Bunny episode, to which they roared with laughter! Sharing these pictures of the children enjoying the cartoon is our way of thanking you for reading our blog!

Ek Koshish, English Teaching in India, Indian Children from Slum Areas, Teaching to the Illiterate in India

Illiterate Children Write for the First Time!

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Yesterday evening we had our second day of classes for the women and children from slum areas in Faridabad! The children arrived a little late, but they got to work right away. First, our teacher distributed some personal-sized chalkboards to each of our students, which they enjoyed very much! The smaller children practiced counting English numbers and writing the number “1” on their boards. Vicky was a natural with his chalk, and he even moved on to drawing the number “2.” I have never seen a child take more interest in drawing the same number, repeatedly, at any angle, as I have seen Vicky! Badal was just getting the hang of how to hold the chalk and write properly, so we could only have him practice the number “1.” Ajay was pretty good at drawing, like Vicky, but he has less patience, so we moved on to listening exercises with him, while the rest continued practicing writing with chalk. Nancy was very good at learning numbers, as she practiced writing each number for the first time, while saying each number’s English translation while she wrote. Mohini already knew how to write numbers, but she did not know any symbols from the English or Hindi alphabets: so, we taught her ten symbols, and practiced each of them one by one with her. After mixing up each of the symbols, she was still able to distinguish the correct characters and their appropriate pronunciation.

Otherwise, most of the children came dressed in better clothing, which was a nice surprise to see that they have some emotional support from their family to acquire education. When the children first arrived, I took some pictures of them with my camera, and then showed them the photos: Ajay erupted in laughter, his only reaction to seeing a photo of himself for the first time! Every photo we showed the children resulted in Ajay’s bursts of laughter, which rang like music to Mohini’s (his mother’s) ears. At the end of the day, we played for them a Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner cartoon, which they relished! They had never once seen a cartoon or computer in their lives, and it was a special moment for the Ek Koshish team and I to witness their bliss. I wish we could do more to give these children, and all children living in shambles, back their childhood, which too many of us take for granted!

Ek Koshish, English Teaching in India, Example of Poverty in India, Indian Children from Slum Areas, Teaching to the Illiterate in India

Indian Children from Slum Areas Enjoy Ek Koshish’s Orientation Program!

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Yesterday evening, “Ek Koshish, One Attempt” commenced its newest project: tutoring a group of women and children from slum areas of Faridabad, Delhi NCR! We began our classes with five students, whose names are Mohini (about 22 years old), Nancy (about 11 years old), Badal (about 3+ years old), Vicky (about 4+ years old), and Ajay (about 4+ years old). They come from such poor backgrounds, such that nobody keeps track of their birthdays or ages, which is why we have to approximate their ages. The eldest, Mohini, wanting to escape from her miserable lifestyle, would never like her son, Ajay to be illiterate at any cost either, which is why she came with her son to our orientation program. The others, Nancy, Badal, and Vicky, whose parents, like Mohini, remain busy throughout the day, unable to keep track of their children because of their work. Even Nancy, at such a young age (about 11), forcibly had to adopt a maid’s job in Faridabad, by visiting different homes to sweep houses, mop floors, and wash dishes. Because of her work, we have to arrange the classes in the evening, so that she can continue to support her family. It is heartbreaking for us to witness such a young child with the responsibilities of an adult; but we are working towards teaching her not only to read and write in Hindi and English, but also some to teach her professional skills geared towards her interests, so that she may one day respectfully earn and support herself and her family independently. Mohini and Nancy shamefully admitted that they had never learned how to read or write, not even the first Hindi character in our “prathmik gyan” (a phrase that roughly translates to “alphabet” in English), which inspired them to seek help from us. As we conversed with them, we learned that they wholeheartedly want to come out of their cursed lives and gain respect via education and sharpened professional skills. We feel that they will pick up the subjects quickly, because of this immense interest in learning, to better themselves along with society. To give more background about the other students, the boys, for the most part, spend their days wandering aimlessly and even playing in dangerous, sometimes life-threatening areas, where nobody pays attention to safety or hygienic needs. The three boys don’t take baths regularly and are unaware about how to use toothbrushes for cleaning their teeth: we observed that their teeth were in poor conditions, having bad odor and yellow to even some black teeth. With their hygiene as a top priority, we decided to provide them with necessities, i.e. toothbrushes, toothpaste, soaps, clothes, shoes, toys, and even sports equipment, which would be required for their all around development in the future. During our long chat with them, we found them to be quite interested in these ideas, should such amenities and facilities be provided to them. We have purchased study material for the children to use to practice their alphabets (English and Hindi), drawing and stenciling exercise books, initial textbooks, and school bags for each of the students. We have purchased sports equipments like badminton and table tennis (or what people call “Ping pong” in the US), and we shall introduce them to various games for their recreation and physical fitness. We believe that games always play an important role in building one’s character and personality.
Otherwise, once we introduced ourselves and explained that we wanted to work with them as often as possible, offering chocolates, candies, and biscuits to the children during our classes, the elder children understood that our interest was in preparing them for their own successful futures. We began our lessons with Hindi and English counting: In the beginning they showed no interest, but later on, when we introduced the element of sweets as positive reinforcement, they took an interest in practicing counting. It was amazing to see that they started pronouncing English and Hindi numbers clearly and promised us to come regularly to our classes. At the end of the lesson, we taught days of the week in Hindi and English. We could easily detect their joy in hearing themselves pronouncing these foreign, English words. Hesitant and a little shy in the beginning, the children soon opened up and enjoyed the lesson, especially as they savored the sweets with which we rewarded them. When we asked them about their ambitions in the future, it was surprising to us to hear that Badal wanted to become a pilot, and others too wanted to operate trains and drive big cars. Their dreams emotionalized us to a greater extent. We wish that all of our students grow into great, honorable people in the future. We anticipate that we will have a class of eight or more students from tomorrow onward, as we expect other students from similar backgrounds. We will give more updates about our progress in the mission as we continue with our “Ek Koshish, One Attempt.”