Chembakolli - a village in India

We used drama, sense impressions, art, creative writing & data handling to help year 3 & 4 children to gain a sense of what it might be like to live in ` A Village in India'. Originally taught in 2002, this geography unit set out to embrace citizenship, art & drama and speaking & listening which fit very well with the broader approach to developing a `creative curriculum'. I created a website to share resources (though some of the pictures that I sourced from the internet are now looking very dated). The activity plan for the unit can be downloaded from the website.

I've now provided an update for this unit by creating a chart to show where the learning acitivities fit into the >>>> (click on the red text) New Primary Curriculum (NC 2011).

You can download this from here.

A new photo pack for Chembakolli

Action Aid recently published a new photo-pack for Chembakolli: Life in an Indian Village.

This is definitely the best photo-pack of the village to date. I really like the way that the writers of the pack have chosen to combine a full sized photograph on one side of a card with information and photographs on the reverse as this really helps us to see `the story' behind the picture. Something that I feel is crucial element of any resource on distant place.

I usually look at the photographs in a pack with a fairly critical eye, even more so since my recent visit to Southern India. The photographs in this pack are of good quality and show very positive images of the people who live in the area. These photocards also raise a number of issues about the lives of people in the village which could usefully be explored using a 'Philosophy for Children' approach. If you are still using the original pack and want to continue to teach about village life in India, then this pack is very worth considering.

You can find out more about this resource on the Action Aid website.

Further details can be found on the Action Aid website. If you order by the end of May you will get £10 off the catalogue price by placing a telephone order on 01460 23 8000 and quoting "Gudalur".

Commemorate 20 years of Chembakolli with an interactive online march and new story book

Christopher Rushbrook Schools Marketing and Promotions Manager ActionAid UK has sent me the following information which I thought I would share here:

For UK primary schools, Chembakolli is probably the most famous village in India and December 08 sees the start of celebrations to mark 20 years of village life.

26 September 2008: Chembakolli, a village in southern India, was reclaimed following an unprecedented march in December 1988 by 10,000 Adivasi (indigenous people) from the Nilgiri Hills. Coming together to reclaim their tribal rights to live in the forests near the town of Gudalur, the march was a huge success, winning the respect of the government and local people. The Adivasi were able to settle in many villages on the land, including Chembakolli, as well as establish their own school and hospital.

To celebrate this anniversary, ActionAid is launching an online march, enabling teachers and pupils to create their own character and personalised placard before joining the virtual march.

Starting in Gudalur, the virtual route follows the footsteps of the real march, twenty years ago. In the town, the marchers can click on local landmarks, including market stalls, the hospital and school, and meet real life people and read their stories. As more people join the march, the route will extend into Chembakolli where visitors can learn about life in the village by clicking on parts of the village, local people, and an elephant.

As part of the celebrations, ActionAid has also produced The Chembakolli story, a beautifully narrated audio CD accompanied by a story/activity book and poster. The CD covers the events of the past 20 years in six parts, each with descriptive sound and music clips recorded in the village. It is ideal for classroom listening and interpretive learning and is available for £20 (inc p&p).

To take part go to the Adivasi Lands Right March website