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National Curriculum Framework (NCF) is being formulated in line with . The parents, teachers, educators, students or community are invited to take part in 'Digital Survey for National Curriculum' and contribute to the success of this massive public consultation process.

The DiSaNC Survey is available in 23 languages. Take up the survey and share the survey link with all your friends for wider circulation & participation.

To participate, click: https://ncfsurvey.ncert.gov.in/

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http://neeti-trust.blogspot.com/2020/12/coping-with-grief-and-loss-blog-post.html

Coping with Grief and Loss [ Blog Post ] The Website of the National Education & Empowerment Trust of India (NEETI)

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Coping with Grief and loss
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This pandemic has seen grief and loss not only throughout the country but also across the world.
Whilst it is difficult for any individual to bear loss of a loved one, such a loss becomes even more incomprehensible to children.

Grieving can start at an early age; children grieve, but they grieve differently from adults. They may seem to go in and out of grief and they show their grief in less direct ways than most adults - one day they may seem to be more like their normal selves and at other times they seem to become demanding, sad, angry despondent and moody. Children come across many kinds of grief, loss and separation, sometimes it may come very early in their life. This can be due to many reasons :
• Losing a parent/parents
• Losing siblings
• Losing grandparents
• Losing relatives- Cousins, Aunts, Uncles close to them
• Losing their close friend /neighbour
• Facing war and violence
• Experiencing natural calamities like flood, fire, earthquakes.
• Developing disabilities due to illness /accidents
• Enduring long period of separation from parents /grandparents
• Moving away from familiar neighbourhood to places unknown or different from their
experience
• Changing of school/city due to transfer of parents
• Migrating to other countries thereby losing out familiar language, culture, families, friends
etc
• Failing in exams
• Losing a pet
• Witnessing Divorce or separation of parents

Experience of grief and the intensity varies on the type of loss – for example, the grief associated with moving to another city may be mild and transient, the loss of parent/parents threatens the very foundation of a child’s existence. Very young children are unable to express their feelings the way adults do, so their grief manifests itself in several other ways:
• Being destructive
• Acting like a younger child demanding attention
• Suffering from pain and aches...headaches, stomach ache etc
• Not being able to sleep...often waking up with nightmares and bad dreams
• Eating disorders - either eating too little or too much
• Easily getting upset - even at the most trivial things
• Throwing temper tantrums
• Behaving and acting like an adult
• Idolising the person who has gone as being perfect
• Displaying the need to be forever close to an adult- clinging
• Feeling fearful of accidents, death of a loved one and /or self
• Developing problems in school and/or being unable to concentrate on a task for long
• Indulging in angry play often repetitively playing the same game again and again
• Truancy in school
• Drug or alcohol abuse
• Inflicting injury to self

Sudden unexpected loss makes grief more difficult to to bear. Gradual predictable transitions, though painful, make the loss comparatively easier to deal with as there is a level of preparedness involved in this.

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Helping children to cope with grief and loss
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The following may be useful to you if you are a parent, teacher, caregiver or a relative trying to help children with their sorrow and grief:
• Be a good listener. Encourage and give opportunity to the child to talk about his/her grief - to tell their story
• Grieving is a process, there is no end date. Parents and schools need to give time to a child to grieve in the manner that works for him/her. Pressuring children to resume normal activities without dealing with their emotional pain may give rise to negative feelings and emotions
• Give allowance for individual variations. Everyone does not cope with the grief the same way or with same feelings and intensity
• Help children understand loss and death. Give the information at the level they understand but do not lie or tell half truths about the tragic event
• There is no orderly way of coping with grief. Each person grieves in a different way as there is no “correct” way for people moving through the grieving process
• Let the child know that you understand what they are feeling. Children sometimes are too upset to share their feelings. Giving them time, encouragement and unconditional support helps them move out of their sad zone
• The grieving process is complicated; in case of a sudden violent death of a loved one grief can be complicated by the need of justice and vengeance
• Be aware of your own need to grieve, working on children’s need is important, but, do not ignore your own emotional need

Professional help is required if:
o If a child talks of being better off dead than alive
o Seems preoccupied with death
o Is unable to concentrate in school and remains withdrawn for months
o Seems depressed and cries most of the time
o Remains aloof and refuses to play with other children
o Has nightmares and hallucinations
o Displays sleep difficulties
o Is constantly irritable and lacks concentration

Children are not very forthcoming in expressing their grief. Their agony is often judged negatively by adults who do not understand this and sometimes attribute the negative response to ADD or ADHD, slow learners, trouble-makers or even attention seekers

As adults we need to empathize, understand the grief or loss and recognize their plea for help. Support from classmates, teachers, friends and strong family ties is the therapy the child looks for in this time of distress when he/she is feeling abysmally low and distressed

- Yasmin Contractor

Fostering Self Esteem in Children
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"Love me, hate me, but don't ignore me "

Self esteem is about how people feel about themselves - the judgement and opinion of their self.

Self esteem determines the success and failure of every human being and it's importance cannot be overemphasized. As parents we can help develop children's belief in themselves. Each child has the psychological need to be loved and feel worthy - a need that travels through time to adulthood and remains an integral part of his/her existence.

Self esteem is not dependent on family wealth, education, parents occupation, social class or residing in a certain area or locality. Self esteem is intrinsic in an individual and created when a child is born. It comes from the quality of relationships that exists between the child and all those who play a significant role in his/her early life and childhood.

When children grow into adulthood with good self esteem, they are able to work constructively on any problem that they may encounter in their life. They grow up to become innovators and contribute significantly to the society. Low self esteem, on the other hand, acts as a roadblock to personal happiness and growth as it impedes successful social interactions, creativity and self confidence.

Much can be done to foster self esteem in children, and to build a strong foundation without negative qualities of self conceit, false ego and selflessness.

Some suggestions to achieve this is as follows:

1. Accept your child's feelings without being judgemental, these feelings are important to a child and need to be acknowledged.

2. We need to know what the child feels about various matters. Listen to them by paying attention...listening to their stories, their activities - their triumphs and their failures make them feel loved, cared for, wanted and secure .

3. Don't use the term "bad boy" or "bad girl"... rather call it wrong behaviour , wrong conduct wherein the person is not considered "bad " ...... rather the action, the conduct (which can be modified, and changed) is considered wrong. It has rightly been said that "You are not your mistakes: they are what you did, not who you are."

4. Children who don't receive the right balance of discipline with clear consistent boundaries, unconditional love and support, grow up with low self esteem. They tend to become overdependent and less in control of their lives and their world.

5. Tell your children you love them ... no matter what their age. Warmth towards a child can be expressed not only through spoken words but also through your actions and gestures.

6. Make the children your priority in life and let them know that not only by your words but through your actions.

7. Be there for them ...this greatly enhances their self esteem and self worth.

8. Respect their choices -Decision making skills are fostered by this and helps build self esteem.

9. Speak about your child's achievements and good qualities with pride and sincerity.

10. Other things include democratic methods of discipline which are based on mutual respect, realistic expectations, encouragement given to develop independent creative thinking and intellectual growth, including respect for those in authority help build self esteem in a child.

Yasmin Contractor

Fostering Self Esteem in Children

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/fostering-self-esteem-children-yasmin-contractor

Fostering self esteem in children Love me, hate me, but don't ignore me Self esteem is about how people feels about themselves - the judgement and opinion of their self. Self esteem determines the success and failure of every human being and it's importance cannot be overemphasized.

Results of online competition on NEETI trust website .
Heartiest congratulations to all the winners

A teacher affects eternity;he can never tell where his influence stops -Henry Adams

Happy Teachers Day