Sensitivity

 If children are to be sensitized, they should be made close to nature; they should be friends with nature. So I try every time that children and nature should be good friends with each other. This time, I decided to implement that activity. Children were getting good responses about friendship with trees and their care. The remaining question is sensitivity. As tribal children in school, they hunt birds and animals. I wondered if there was any activity that could be done in the actual school. We decided to start petting activities at school. Permission was obtained from the principal. Children are told that they can keep any animal they like, take care of it, or even bring it to class; just make sure they don't neglect their studies. As soon as the instructions were received, there was a flurry of children and a barrage of questions. Answering their questions. But the questions did not end.  The next day, the enthusiasm of the children was overflowing. Everyone chooses animals and birds. Prem came with a small box. I asked curiously, What's in it?" Prem's reply was, "I petted a spider!"!

I can't stop laughing. "Son, what will you feed him? How can he weave a web in such a box?"
Prem's determination was firm. "I like spiders; I will keep them." Of course, I agreed and appreciated him.
Two days later, Akshay's father comes with a complaint that Akshay runs around the village with his friends after pigs, and the pig owners abuse him a lot. But he doesn't listen.
Akshay was a very intelligent and sensible boy. I did not like this behaviour. His father was very angry. "Madam, you must punish him." Seeing his insistence, four sticks were hit on his hand. Akshay has never been punished to date. So he started crying a lot. His father and sister are gone. I took him close, wiped his eyes, and asked, "Akshay, why did you act like this?"?
By then, Akshay had calmed down. "Ma'am, we were going to take care of the piglet." He replied. Now I don't know what to say. It is very difficult to explain it to children without hurting their feelings. Fortunately, the granddaughter of the owners of those pigs was in my class. Nandini is a sweet and smart girl. I called her and asked for information about why the pig was kept. She told everything, and in the end, she did not forget to say, "If a pig dies, we lose a lot." "Ma'am Akshay used to throw stones at the pigs, and so my grandfather was angry with him."
Finally, our activity was successful after a detailed discussion on pets and their uses. Later, Akshay and Kunal adopted a cute puppy together and prepared a nice little house of wet twigs for him at school. That puppy sleeps soundly in his house during class. All the students were doing their studies quietly. But during the lunch hour, the whole class gathered around the puppy. One day, Akshay came crying. His puppy was forcibly taken away by someone who said it was his own puppy. "I used to take good care of him; I raised him," Akshay was saying, crying. Taking him close and explaining. It's good that children quickly forget the essence. The children were taking care of the animals. Many had given up killing and eating birds. My purpose was successful. At the farewell function of the fourth standard, Kunal told this story with tears in his eyes. And he told, me how much they loved me. "When we grow up, we will buy a washing machine and gift it to our madam. Because then madam's hands won't hurt when washing clothes.". Kunal and Akshay promised. At that time, tears came to my eyes. Both children are from poor tribal families; how much were they thinking of me?
What's a better example of sensitivity? To share in each other's joys and sorrows and to know their pains is a sign of being human. Anil was going to grow up to be an IPS officer, take care of the poor people living on the streets in their sickness, and spend money on them. Aarti and Lakshmi were going to be madams and teach all the children a lot. Reena was going to be a madam, just like me. Lakshman was not going to pass fourth and go to fifth; he wanted to stay with me at this school. Nandini was going to be a collector. Anil and her fight every day on the same issue—the collector is the most powerful, or IPS officer. And I get tired of resolving their fight.
All these children were from tribal, poor families. Poverty at home was accompanied by parental addiction. Seeing their parents fighting at home every day, they used to come to school without fail and dream of their future lives.