10 Skills by Age 10: How the Dasha Prabodha Program Prepares Children for Real Life
Best Schools in Bangalore 10 Skills by Age 10: How the Dasha Prabodha Program Prepares Children for Real Life If you ask a child to solve a math problem, they are likely to be able to do it with ease. But if you ask them to prepare something simple in the kitchen, speak confidently up front a gathering or take responsibility for a task without being reminded, the answer is likely to be much different. It is not that children cannot do these things. It is often because they have not had enough opportunities to practice. We spend a lot of time making sure that children learn their lessons, complete their homework and prepare for examinations. All of this is important, however there are plenty of things that they will need to learn to be able to tackle as they grow up that cannot be learned from a textbook alone. How do you work with someone who thinks differently than you? What do you do when something does not go to plan? How do you take responsibility for a mistake instead of waiting for someone else to correct it? These are all skills that are everyday skills and children need to learn them over time. At Vishwa Vidyapeeth, the philosophy of Dasha Prabodha, a programme launched to encourage children to develop ten essential life skills till the age of ten, is taking shape. The school believes that education should be a blend of knowledge and practical skills and provide children with an opportunity to be more independent and confident in their daily lives. The message they are sending out is that children should not have to wait to be an adult before they learn how to navigate real life situations. Why Should Life Skills Start So Early? Think about the first time a child attempts to do something for himself. He may be fumbling with his shirt while trying to do up the buttons, spilling water everywhere as he fills a glass or having to attempt several times before finally managing to get a task done. An adult would step in and complete the task in seconds, but with children, it is better to leave them to it. They will learn something valuable through their struggle by learning how to do it themselves. Independence builds up in stages, and hence it is vital to offer children opportunities to practise, experiment, overcome difficulties and finally complete a task on their own. They need to be exposed to the opportunities to practice decision making, teamwork, responsibility and accountability. Vishwa Vidyapeeth launched Dasha Prabodha as a part of its celebrations for the 10th academic year in 2021-22. As per information published by the school, the programme was designed to address the need for experiential learning bridging the gap between classroom learning and practical application. Furthermore, it focused on nurturing a sense of accountability and achievement as well as building communication, collaborative problem solving, negotiating skills and cooperative work ethic. None of these skills can be acquired through a lesson or two – children need to be offered multiple opportunities to practice and gain confidence. The earlier they start, the more proficient they will be in exhibiting these skills when the time comes. What Is Dasha Prabodha? Dasha Prabodha signifies the teaching of ten essential life skills by the age of ten. The school incorporates all of these vital skills within the core academic curriculum as opposed to teaching it as an add-on only after the core classes have been completed. The ten items that make up Vishwa Vidyapeeth’s curriculum include organic farming, clay modelling, woodwork, Taekwondo, public speaking, art education, music, cooking, theatre, and learning from the Bhagavad Gita, Vedas and Upanishads. At a glance the activities on the curriculum appear to have very little to do with each other. Farming has nothing to do with performing on the stage, nor does it even relate to learning how to cook. However, each activity gives children a variety of opportunities to develop life skills which can then be applied to their everyday lives. Some activities provide them with manual tasks while others demand that children put their creative abilities on display or learn to work as a team, to build discipline or even to think about their duties and responsibilities. The activities together offer a broader scope of life skills than what children would get if they were simply forced to complete a school project. Let’s look at what each of the ten items on the curriculum can teach us. 1. Organic Farming: Understanding Where Our Food Comes From Children may observe food on their plate every day, but how often do they contemplate the effort that is required for food to be there? Organic farming gives them a chance to learn the concept that food isn’t something that randomly appears in the kitchen or the grocery shop, but rather something that needs hard and time consuming effort to be made. The Vishwa Vidyapeeth included organic farming into their Dasha Prabodha programme with an emphasis on education on plants, food, nutrition, and on the efforts and work of the farmers. Working with plants teaches the children patience, as seeds take weeks and months to become something edible (or something that can be used in some way), and can’t be rushed in order to be harvested quicker. It teaches them mindfulness about the food that they eat, as they now know how much effort and time it takes to make food, and can be more careful about not throwing food away that they don’t want to eat. These are just a few reasons why the children would benefit from learning about farming in the schools. It will teach them very valuable lessons on the environment, and on the people that help feed them. 2. Clay Modelling: Learning That Mistakes Are Part of the Process Give a child a lump of clay to play with. They are much more likely to have fun trying to






