Pitaara UnSkool
Studios
Develop a pocketful of skills, explore interests and find your passion
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Studios are facilitator-led short courses designed to expose children to different topics.
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7-8 studios are introduced each month.
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Children can choose as many of these studios as they are interested in, thus designing a learning program that suits them.
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Each studio will have 1 session per week. Each session will be one hour long.
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Studios follow a project-based and hands-on learning approach.
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The duration of each studio is 1-month, with a few exceptions of some studios of 2 months.
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All sessions are live and interactive.
What makes Studios important?
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Studios enable children to develop skills, explore interests, and identify their likes and dislikes.
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Exploring a wide variety of topics helps children narrow down their interests and potentially find a passion.
The studios are chosen after extensive research on different topics and unexplored areas. The aim is to bring a mix of courses that are exciting, expose children to new skills, and uncover niche skills. We have zeroed down on 8 broad themes. Each studio is part of one theme to ensure that children with different interests and inclinations are catered to.
Mentors
Get an adult friend, and a safety net to fall back on!
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If Pitaara UnSkool is a rocket, then mentorship is the fuel.
The role of a mentor is to create a support system for a child- stepping in and out as needed. Here is how:
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Each student is allotted a mentor who works with them to create their timetables and learning journeys.
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2 mentor meetings are scheduled for each month with the option for more if required.
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Each meeting is 30 - 45 mins.
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Mentors assist children in setting up goals, reviewing their progress, and clearing any roadblocks hindering a child’s learning.
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Children also get different mentors every few months to experience different flavours of mentorship.
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Mentors help children take up new challenges and become their accountability partners.
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Mentors also act as a bridge between parents and children.
Why mentors at such young age?
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Mentors are crucial at every age because:
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Children feel important and responsible when treated as equals by an adult who is not their immediate family.
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They hone the skill of effective communication and learn to build relationships. They may also develop life-long connections with their mentors.
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By discussing their plan, achievements, and failures, they develop skills to analyse their work and learn constructive criticism.
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It helps them understand the meaning of mentorship and their need for it. They identify the areas in which they need mentors and where they are self-sufficient.
Learning Journeys
Craft your learning program, and pick up resources from the Pitaara Open Library!
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Learning Journeys enable a child to learn things outside the studios offered at Pitaara UnSkool.
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After a thorough discussion with the mentor about time, interests, and curiosities; children make a list of topics they would like to explore independently.
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Mentors help them find resources such as videos, books, pre-designed courses, etc., around the topic they have chosen.
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Mentors also help them make learning goals and allocate time for self-learning in their timetable.
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The Pitaara library is another resource available to the children. It contains videos, books, lesson plans, projects, and much more, on different topics.
What makes Learning Journey so important?
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Learning journeys are the secret sauce of Pitaara UnSkool. Here is how:
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Designing a learning program puts children in the shoes of a facilitator. They learn how to create a learning program from start to finish - including - finding resources, setting up milestones and creating a learning plan.
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They learn how to learn, thus becoming capable of learning anything they want to.
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They realise that they can learn on their own. This reduces dependance on facilitators to explore new things.
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They identify their learning styles, their capacity, strengths and short-comings.
Timetable
Design your days and weeks, the way you’d like!
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Timetables bring in autonomy and accountability. Here is how they are made:
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At the beginning of each month, children choose the studios to join and decide on the learning journeys they are taking up, along with their mentor.
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Using excel, Kanban boards, and Notion, children create their weekly and monthly timetables.
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Children look at their timetables every morning, make edits if needed and continue on with their day.
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At the end of the day, children strike off things they have completed, from their timetable.
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During mentor meetings, children review their timetables, add/remove tasks, reflect on the past week, and make required adjustments to their timetable.
Why Timetables?
Timetables are the most loved element of Pitaara UnSkool. Here is why:
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Children enjoy having the power to plan their day. This makes them self-regulated.
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Children love customising their timetable and decorating it in their own unique style. It becomes an avenue to express their creativity.
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Children learn to plan more realistically and become better at estimating the effort and time required in a particular task.
Announcements
Listen to the daily announcement and plan your day!
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The daily announcement acts as an agenda-setting mechanism. This helps to get the day started. Here is how:
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The daily announcement is sent every morning via Whatsapp.
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Children will receive a 1-minute video or audio with details about the studios of the day and other activities scheduled for the day.
Why?
Daily announcements act as a reminder, helping a child get geared up for the day. In the long term, it serves the same purpose as a timetable, which is, to help a child become more organised.
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Sets the tone for the day - Notifies the brain about the happenings of the day and helps children organise their day!
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Brings in Discipline - In the long term it develops the habit of planning.
Check-ins
Have fun, Get inspired, and Decide Together!
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Check-ins are another fun and important element of Pitaara UnSkool. These are an opportunity for children to come together and connect, outside the studios.
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Each Check-in has 7-8 children and a mentor.
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Check-ins are held twice a week via Zoom. Each check-in is 30 minutes.
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During the check-in, children look at their timetables together. Each child shows their timetable to the group and shares one interesting thing they did.
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Check-ins are also a space for children to play and hangout together. This is a space for self-organisation, with children choosing how they want to spend their time.
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Check-ins are a space for important announcements and decisions needed to be made as a group.
Why Check-ins?
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Check-ins are deeply loved by children because it gives them the freedom to choose how to spend their time. Though check-ins are loosely structured, there is ample opportunity for children to self-organise. It creates a sense of ownership and responsibility in children.
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It is a space where children come to wind down and relax. Check-ins are also a space where new friendships are born.
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The practice of looking at each others' timetables and knowing what one's peers are up to, acts as a stimulant and source of inspiration.
Portfolios
If Pitaara UnSkool were a queen, then portfolios are the Crown!
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Portfolios are the documentation of the child’s learning journeys. How is it done?
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Each child has an individual portfolio in their student dashboard.
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Every time a child completes something, they add it to their portfolio.
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A portfolio allows a child to record all their accomplishments, however big or small. Whether it’s a book they finished reading, or milestones they achieved in their studios.
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Mentors and facilitators can also add the child's accomplishments into the portfolio.
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The portfolio becomes a beautiful compilation of the child’s learning journey.
Why is Portfolio important?
Portfolios are important for two reasons:
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They become a document of the child’s learning. In the future, this can be used as a report card or evidence of their skills and capabilities. It can also help when they look for jobs or apply to colleges.
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Portfolios help parents see and celebrate their child’s learning.
Exhibitions
Take the stage and share what you learned over the week with the group.
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Exhibitions are a space for children to share their learnings with the rest of the group.
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Exhibitions are held once a week.
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Each child gets a stage to present one thing they learned during the week.
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Groups can present updates on their peer learning journeys.
What makes Exhibitions so important?
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Getting on a stage is exciting for some children. For other children, it can help them overcome their shyness. They gain confidence, develop public speaking skills, and learn to present effectively.
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Showcasing their learnings makes children accountable, and makes them feel celebrated.
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Exhibitions expose children to what others are up to and becomes a space for them to exchange their learnings.
Advanced Programs
Enjoyed an introductory studio? Go deeper through advanced programs!
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Advanced Programs are for children who have completed introductory courses and are interested in pursuing a specific topic further. This can happen in three ways:
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If a group of children asks for an advanced course, it can be designed and led by a facilitator.
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Children also have an option of creating Clubs (student-led sessions) - in which a group of children, with common interests, come together and pursue that interest.
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A child can also independently work with a facilitator. The facilitator and child can mutually decide the terms of working together. Individual sessions are not part of Pitaara UnSkool- we help facilitate them.
Why?
Advanced programs enable children to dive deeper into a topic. They can go on an independent learning journey, do it with a group or choose to go for one-on-one sessions with a facilitator. They can learn the way that works best for them.
Each of the above choices has its benefits:
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Clubs become a space for children to self-organise. Though it looks chaotic from outside, there is beauty in the chaos. They identify their own personality and role in a group without adult authority. They learn problem-solving, self-organisation and learn to take initiative. Their natural skills such as leadership, relationship-building, connection making, etc., become visible and useful.
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In one-on-one sessions, children experience structured learning designed by an expert in that area. They also get personalised support on this learning journey.