Language by Experience

Language by Experience

My Punjabi experiential classes have been quite a hit amongst the youngsters in my very small class of 6 students. Since the ending of the last segment of 6 classes, they have been asking their parents when the next Punjabi classes will start. Unusual indeed compared to the feedback I normally get from parents about kids simply not being interested in learning Punjabi.

This was reason for trying this new method for better engagement. In one class we reserved a room at a local coffee shop and practiced drinking tea and juice while having a conversation in Punjabi around the table. We practiced simple phrases like – mai hor juice lana or mai hor cake khana or mera juice tandha hai.

The mission here was not to speak perfect Punjabi but to gain confidence in speaking the best they could and have loads of fun doing it. I believe that is the strongest foundation we can set for our children to learn and be confident in trying their best.

In the second class we went to a beach. Kids were instructed to collect rocks for the number of family members they had. They then decorated each rock to resemble a family member. This was followed with a show and tell segment where students talked about each rock they decorated. This was our pathar parivaar project – rock family project. Another fun day.
Looking forward to our upcoming Punjabi party where our kids will be making victory boards and vision boards. Parents will be invited to partake as audience members while children present their boards in their personal best Punjabi speaking skills.