Last week, Miss E and the kids started off by exploring maps of India and the globe. They felt the Himalayas on the globe. They noted how many cities they saw in India and talked about how many people must live there. They studied Sri Lanka and recalled what they knew about Sita's kidnapping - that Ravanna stole her away to an island.
The kids recalled how, during her abduction, the clever Sita dropped her jewels to leave a trail for Rama.
Miss E asked them about how Rama got to the island to save Sita. Among other speculation, some remembered that Rama and Lakshman, with the help of the an army of monkeys and bears, built a bridge to the island by dropping stones into the water. The kids pointed out where they thought the bridge to Lanka would have been.
Then Miss E read the story of Sita's abduction and the beginning of the quest to find her. She read about Ravanna's trick golden deer and the death of the trusted eagle, Jatayu. Followed by the the meeting of Hanuman and the king of the monkeys.
Like in many great narratives, the unexpected happens. The smallest monkey, who does not seem fit to be a great warrior, grows and grows into the superhero Hanuman. The rescue team is joined by Hanuman's army. Together they enlist a clan of bears and set off on their journey to find and rescue Sita.
The kids did a few quick performances of the story. Then they stretched a sun salutation before getting into the art project.
Miss E brought out some pictures of shadow puppets and without much delay, the kids went to town. R and J used hole punches and fancy scissors to cut decorative shapes. L and B worked diligently on versions of the 10 headed demon, Ravanna. C wielded her scissors very carefully. O used a skewer to poke small holes in the puppet.
They hung a sheet, turned out the lights and took turns working the lightbulb and puppets. They played with distances between the puppets and sheet and bulb to find the clearest balance. The results were mesmerizing. Well done!
