Creative Learning and Expression Program for Primary Education
The Creative Learning and Expression Program uses a child-centered, inquiry-based approach to design activities that encourage children to express their thoughts, aspirations, and ideas through art and storytelling. It is flexible and adaptable, making it suitable for the needs of different schools and community spaces.
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Currently, components of the program are being implemented at Kenzen School, a primary school in Varanasi, and at Kauri, the art and storytelling center I founded in Varanasi. In the coming months, I plan to collaborate with other child development initiatives in Varanasi and Goa, where I reside.
Components of the program
Play-based Learning
The Play-Based Learning component focuses on fostering active, hands-on engagement, creativity, and exploration. The sessions are designed to be interactive and immersive, with each activity often accompanied by a story that aligns with the theme of the session. The objective is to promote learning by integrating imaginative exploration, building meaningful connections with surroundings, self-expression, and problem-solving into the educational experience.
Art Exploration
The Art Exploration component introduces children to a diverse range of art styles, from indigenous forms of India such as Bhil, to global schools like Cubism. Rather than focusing solely on technique, as in traditional drawing classes, this component encourages children to discover their own modes of expression within these distinct styles. Through creative prompts, children are guided to explore the characteristics of each art form, leading to the creation of original, personal works.
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A feature of this component is its emphasis on self-reflection, which includes writing exercises where children contemplate their creative process and the art they produce. The session is designed based on a blend of theoretical understanding of these art forms and tailored responses to how children engage with the material. This approach fosters a deeper connection to both the art itself and their personal creative journey.
Narrative Performances and Creative Writing
The Narrative Performance and Creative Writing component is designed to immerse children in the art of storytelling through performance. This component focuses on both scriptwriting and editing, allowing students to explore and express their creativity in various ways. The program includes:
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1. Creative Writing: Children explore various themes through creative writing, expanding their narrative skills and deepening their engagement with storytelling. This aspect encourages diverse forms of written expression and fosters a love for narrative craft.
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2. Scriptwriting, Skit Creation, and Adaptation of Existing Stories: Children engage in writing their own skits and adapting familiar stories into original performances based on specific themes. These facilitated sessions help students develop and structure their narratives, craft dialogues, and reinterpret classic or contemporary tales. This process encourages imaginative thinking, collaboration, and personal expression, allowing children to explore both original and adapted storytelling.
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3. Open Mic and Theatre Basics: Children engage in open mic sessions and other performance-related activities to share their stories, poetry, and creative work with an audience. These sessions integrate fundamental theatre skills, such as body movement and voice modulation, to enhance their performances. By developing these skills, children are able to convey emotions, characters, and storylines with greater impact, fostering expressive and engaging performances in a supportive, interactive environment.
Collaborative Learner Publishing
The Collaborative Learner Publishing component focuses on sharing children's creativity with a broader audience. This component involves:
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1. Compilation: This involves curating the work produced by children during various activities, including play-based learning sessions, art exploration, narrative performance projects, and creative writing exercises. The aim is to ensure that every child's work is represented, showcasing their unique contributions.
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2. Publication Development: The curated content is assembled into publications, catalogs, activity books, podcasts and online zines. These materials are crafted to be engaging and visually appealing, reflecting the voices and imaginations of the children.
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3. Community Engagement: The publications are circulated within the school, and prompts and activity ideas are shared with other community spaces. This not only celebrates their work but also fosters a culture of collaboration and shared learning.
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This component empowers children by valuing their creative expressions and providing them with a platform to contribute to a larger community. It enhances their sense of accomplishment and encourages ongoing engagement with creative and literary activities.
Learning Showcase
The Learning Showcase component focuses on celebrating and sharing children’s creativity and learning through curated displays and interactive events. This involves organising exhibitions and events that feature children's artistic creations, highlighting their development and personal expression. Additionally, it includes designing elements that reflect the identity and theme of these events, such as mascots and symbolic artifacts. This component offers children the opportunity to showcase their work to peers, facilitators, and families, celebrating their achievements and enriching their learning experience.​
Professional Development
The Professional Development Workshops are designed to foster collective growth and enhance creative teaching methodologies in schools. The program consists of two workshop series aimed at building school values and introducing innovative educational approaches:
1. Building School Collective Values: This series focuses on collaboratively shaping the core values that define a school’s identity and guiding the collective effort towards creating impactful work. Through inclusive and participatory facilitation, the workshops provide a framework that encourages active engagement from facilitators. Together, participants co-create a detailed path that reflects the values of the school community and translates them into practical actions in the classroom. The facilitation adapts to participants' responses, ensuring the values and goals resonate with the unique dynamics of each school.
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2. Art Exploration and Collaborative Publishing with Children: In this series, facilitators are introduced to innovative ways of integrating art into their curriculum, using it as a tool for self-expression and collaborative learning. The workshops explore methods for guiding children through art exploration, encouraging them to engage with various art forms and styles, both indigenous and global. Additionally, facilitators will learn the process of collaborative publishing, where learners' creative projects come together in meaningful publications. This approach cultivates creativity, teamwork, and a deeper connection between learners and facilitators.
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These workshops provide facilitators with the tools to create a more inclusive, values-driven, and creatively engaged learning environment.
Featured Projects
art sessions and showcase
Art Exploration and Fundraising Project
Over a period of three months, I conducted a series of indigenous art sessions for children aged 6-11, introducing them to styles such as Gond, Bhil, Madhubani, and Warli. The sessions encouraged children to create endangered animals by adopting the unique characteristics of these traditional styles. They also explored global art influences, like Frida Kahlo for self-portraits and S.H. Raza for abstract art with hidden messages about nature. Each child was encouraged to create their own unique artwork.​ Accompanying every session was a reflection component, where children expressed their thoughts and emotions about their creations.
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The project culminated in over 300 unique artworks, which were displayed in an art gallery at Kauri's Art Studio. To further engage the community, children participated in fundraising efforts through a customised merchandise ordering webpage, allowing parents to order products featuring their child’s artwork.
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I worked on every aspect of this project, from designing and facilitating the sessions to curating the gallery, cataloging the artworks, and designing the online ordering platform for the customised merchandise. Additionally, I managed the design and production of the merchandise as well.
play-based learning
Slogan Impact
Slogan Impact is a card game born from discussions with children aged 7-9 about key challenges faced by India, such as unemployment, poverty, and pollution. The children brainstormed solutions and expressed them as slogans, which were then turned into mixed-media posters. These posters became part of a card game where players match solution-based slogans with problem scenario cards.
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I designed the session and curated the card game, which is now played by the entire school community across age groups. Slogan Impact is also available as a game set for other child development initiatives and community spaces interested in it.
narrative performance and showcase
Creatures & Colours
The Creatures and Colours fest was a four-day event celebrating folk tales with animal characters from four different regions. The fest involved adapting these tales into diverse performance formats, including skits, musicals, stop-motion films, and puppet shows, all created by children. Each performance explored themes of friendship through the lens of these regional folk tales.
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My role included conceptualising the theme, curating the scripts, facilitating theatre skills with the children, and designing the stage props to bring the performances to life. I also worked with an illustrator to design mascots that reflected the regional themes of the fest.
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The event was attended by approximately 300 people and provided a platform for children to showcase their creativity and collaborative efforts.
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collaborative learner publishing
Finding Me
Finding Me provides a glimpse into the vibrant world of children at Kenzen School in Varanasi. This activity book features creations from play-based learning and creative writing sessions, including foraging, art, and writing activities that encourage a sense of ownership and connection with oneself and the surroundings.
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I designed and facilitated these sessions, as well as curated and published the book, which is printed on handmade paper. Finding Me has been distributed within the school community and is available for distribution at community spaces upon request.
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creative writing and learning display
A Little Girl Named India
A Little Girl Named India is a collection of short stories and poems by children aged 8-11, where they personified India as a girl their age. Through this imaginative exercise, the children explored how India might look, her travels, values, and personality traits, reflecting their aspirations and hopes for their country.
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This collection was shared as an online zine and podcast with the school community and is available to read or listen to upon request. I designed and facilitated the sessions, curated the publication and the podcast.
Collaborate
The Creative Learning and Expression Program is flexible and adaptable, designed to suit the needs of different schools and community spaces. It enriches educational experiences through a focus on creativity and active participation.
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In addition to Kenzen School, components of the program are also implemented at Kauri, a centre for art and storytelling that I founded in Varanasi. In the coming months, I plan to collaborate with other child development initiatives in Varanasi and Goa, my two cities of residence.
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If you're interested in learning more about the program or exploring opportunities to collaborate, please reach out to me at stutisareen1@gmail.com. I would love to hear from you, even if you're based outside Varanasi or Goa!