They have a dream
ROHINI RAMAKRISHNAN
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The children from Kanavu staged a dance performance that showcased their talent and the tradition of their tribes.
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They have no classrooms but that does not stop them from learning...
Volunteer teachers teach them, taking them outdoors and later showing pictures and slides.
Dance dream : Kanavu.
The song of the forest welcomed me as I step into Spaces on Eliot’s Beach Road. The swinging movements of the children as they dance has me mesmerised.
The group of 20 Adivasi kids with a few seniors had come from the Cheengode hills of Wayanad, North Kerala. “Kanavu”, a six-acre campus is their school — a familiar environment.
Skill training
In the past the Adivasis have been exploited and kept in bondage. Leela says that in Kanavu that she learnt to deal with these issues and to be proud of her rich traditional heritage and to hold her head high. The training makes these students self supporting.
Leela also related how there were many volunteers at Kanavu, from all over India and the world. The songs and dances performed were influenced by the culture of Africa, the Caribbean, France and Tamil Nadu. The children are multilingual and so can switch from language to language.
The children were full of their school which does not have classrooms or a syllabus. They are highly skilled in music, painting, dance, theatre and martial arts like Kalaripayattu.
They do sit for competitive exams and this is to boost their self confidence and make them believe in themselves. Volunteer teachers teach them, taking them outdoors and later show them pictures and slides to supplement the outdoor lessons.
The children are also involved in organic farming in the school campus. Rice and vegetables are cultivated. What they cultivate makes them self sufficient.
The children are divided into groups and they have their daily chores to earmarked. And cooking is one of them. The kids hail from different groups like the Paniya, Mullukuruma and Naicker tribes. Each group, is taught to rise above hostilities and look at themselves as one big family.
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