Saturday mornings, for the majority, are generally reserved for fun and would scarcely be associated with any sort of learning. Hence, when we were approached to conduct a leadership and goal setting session for the students of Bombay Scottish School in Powai, Mumbai on a saturday morning at 9 am, we were a little skeptical. Then we heard there would be kids from grade 6-10 and it got us quite worried.
Don't get us wrong. We love having sessions with students of all ages, they ask some of the best questions and often think at a level that would put top intellectuals to shame! But, saturday mornings are really when they want to just curl up in bed and look forward to a gigantic brunch comprising pancakes, syrup and tons of chocolate! And here we wanted them to sit through 2 hours of interaction, discussion and brain picking. Uh oh!
Now, in retrospect, we cannot reiterate how wrong we were! Of course, all our sessions are fun-filled, practical and full of activities but this one turned out to be something special. From the offset we realized that we were dealing with smart, enthusiastic and ambitious students. They almost certainly are going to end up right at the top in any career of their choice. Their questions were detailed, thoughtful and insightful. Their comments were crisp, accurate and thought provoking. Their enthusiasm and energy unparalleled.
Our initial concern was waved off and their confident and pin point reply to our skepticism resonated around the room- 'What Saturday morning blues? We're always ready to learn!' And then it struck us- these kids have two things which we, individually and as a society, really need - (a) Curiosity and, (b) the Will to Succeed. You almost certainly cannot teach that! It almost felt that by the end of the session we learnt as much, if not more, than this bunch of exemplary, future leaders!
Thank you to all the students who were present for an absolutely wonderful time and an even bigger thanks to the management, principal, teachers and staff of Bombay Scottish School (Powai) for giving us this opportunity. Can't think of a better way to spend a saturday morning :D
Here are some pics:
Don't get us wrong. We love having sessions with students of all ages, they ask some of the best questions and often think at a level that would put top intellectuals to shame! But, saturday mornings are really when they want to just curl up in bed and look forward to a gigantic brunch comprising pancakes, syrup and tons of chocolate! And here we wanted them to sit through 2 hours of interaction, discussion and brain picking. Uh oh!
Now, in retrospect, we cannot reiterate how wrong we were! Of course, all our sessions are fun-filled, practical and full of activities but this one turned out to be something special. From the offset we realized that we were dealing with smart, enthusiastic and ambitious students. They almost certainly are going to end up right at the top in any career of their choice. Their questions were detailed, thoughtful and insightful. Their comments were crisp, accurate and thought provoking. Their enthusiasm and energy unparalleled.
Our initial concern was waved off and their confident and pin point reply to our skepticism resonated around the room- 'What Saturday morning blues? We're always ready to learn!' And then it struck us- these kids have two things which we, individually and as a society, really need - (a) Curiosity and, (b) the Will to Succeed. You almost certainly cannot teach that! It almost felt that by the end of the session we learnt as much, if not more, than this bunch of exemplary, future leaders!
Thank you to all the students who were present for an absolutely wonderful time and an even bigger thanks to the management, principal, teachers and staff of Bombay Scottish School (Powai) for giving us this opportunity. Can't think of a better way to spend a saturday morning :D
Here are some pics:
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