Grade XII – Work Experience Workshops

Club activities proved out to be a mix of great enthusiasm and hardwork to bring out the hidden talents inside children, to realise the innovative ideas they presented and finally to prove and present oneself on a given platform. The activities unleashed the talent of young Dipsites in different fields of art, skill, scientific applications, practical implementation of ideas and attractive presentations. Woodwork, paperwork and kitchen ideas were some among the various innovative and exciting clubs meant to shape the capabilities and the ideas shared by these children into something useful and productive. The three daylong session meant to check out the work experience and teamwork of class XII students started on 22nd October and was concluded on a grand note with an immensely innovative and organised exhibition held on 24th October, 2013.

The event which was held with great fervour was welcomed by the students and the teachers with equal enthusiasm and commitment who opted for their respective clubs of interest. The usual green ground was decorated by the hardworking hands of Dipsites with paper bits, wood pulp and mud pots and vases. The students could be seen sincerely engaged in their activities held at different venues. Besides serving as a test for their teamwork and presentation of ideas, the activities also provided a respite from the routine hectic schedule.  It was a pleasant surprise to watch Dipsites come out of their routine uniforms and present themselves in excitingly different forms; as chefs, as innovative carpenters, electricians, environmentalists and amazing designers. The mesmerising objects and the tasty dishes which were prepared by the students took everyone by surprise and proved that these children had everything within themselves; the potential, the talent and the will required and all that they needed was a touch of guidance and motivation.

The clubs provided a variety to bring out the talent present within each child ranging from woodwork, paper machie, pottery and gardening to cooking, music and electrics. Each club was guided by a resource person along with a couple of teachers who guided and motivated the students.

Woodwork attracted majority of the students who made wonderful furniture items and presented them beautifully to attract a number of visitors. The students made tree houses, recliners, beautiful chairs, tables of different shapes and sizes, benches, beds, airplane and other construction models of great accuracy and precision. The experience was altogether thrilling with the resource person guiding the young carpenters with all the tools and techniques which were so new to them.

Paper Machie students who gathered around the water world represented an amazing skill to reuse waste paper and recreate it into things of beauty. The resource person could be seen sincerely guiding the students and helping them with the paper pulp. The soaked pulp was then shaped into mesmerising objects such as human and animal faces, wall plates, soap boxes, candles, tea pots, flower vases, cartoon characters, key chains, bangles and other artistic objects which captured many eyes. The activity also conveyed an important message which has a great significance in the backdrop of current environmental issues. The activity made use of waste paper to create beautiful decorative items and toys hence discouraging plastic and wooden decorations. It thus provided a means of environmental conservation and protection. It also, however represented a dying culture which defines Kashmir in its own unique sense.

Pottery was yet another activity conducted in the basement area where many students could be found working out with mud to create beautiful, perfectly finished and finely carved objects. Holding onto the wheel with utmost caution and sensitivity, these students learnt that to give any vague item a definite shape and independent characterisation, love and affection are the primary ingredients. The activity also taught the students the meaning of patience and perseverance; of how these two virtues could turn mud into gold.

Moving along with lawn mowers, scissors and muddy hands, the students associated with gardening as an activity could be found toiling hard in the gardening area of the school. These children were taught about sowing, weeds and weeding, cutting, grafting, flowers, productivity enhancers, pesticides and other important aspects of this activity. It was a pleasant surprise for the visitors to watch these delicate hands put themselves into effort to clean and decorate their school.

A pleasant fragrance welcomed oneself in to the cooking room which provided room for cooking lovers. The resource person along with the students were all dressed in spotless white coats with white chef caps. The students lined along the counter beautifully presented the dishes. The students specially prepared Achari Murg, Banana bread, Chowmin and various other mouthwatering dishes. The very fragrance of the dishes defined the delicious recipes prepared.

Music lovers could be heard chanting in the music room the lines of a touching Kashmiri song. The dedicated students along with their teacher prepared a mesmerising song and a Tarana in a short span of two days.

Physics lab provided room to electricians and of course the future engineers of this country who were engaged with physical instruments, various electric and electronic gadgets, switches and switch boards, fuses and various other devices. The resource person taught the students about the electric connections in houses, big companies and factories. The students conducted various experiments such as gold leaf experiment, working of galvanometer, discharging of a capacitor, household circuit board and many others to learn about the working of these instruments. The students also operated different devices to study and understand wire systems and internal connections.

The event was finally concluded on a grand note with an exhibition which was held in the indoor stadium on 24th October, 2013. All the students of XII grade neatly lined themselves along the counters and presented the beautifully designed and immensely hardworked objects, the tasty dishes and shared their innovative ideas. The exhibition was visited by the chairman of the school- Mr. Vijay Dhar, Mrs. Kiran Dhar and all the students and staff members. The visitors appreciated the idea behind each concept and encouraged the students to dream high and achieve big for they had all the potential needed.

Apart from excelling in academics; the event brought forward the talents of young Dipsites in other fields, the teamwork and leadership qualities and the innovative ideas which occupy their raw minds. The aim of the session was to develop work experience, virtues of patience and perseverance and to make realise the significance of hardwork for any reward in life. The event succeeded in its motive when the students gathered at the exhibition exhibited their hardworked ideas at the end of a hardworking session of three days.

Delhi Public School, Srinagar believes that every child has a talent hidden inside him in one form or the other; all that is needed is an opportunity to reveal the concealed.