Drawings

 

Children's Day Celebration

A series of informative and interesting event was planned to celebrate the joy of this day. Madurai Seed celebrated Children's day on Nov 14th evening. Firstly, little masters were welcomed with Children's day wishes and candies. Hands and feet hopscotch, paper plane launcher, and more fun games amused them in the entrance. They enjoyed playing again and again.

The hall was decorated with happy emojis and balloons.

The main program started by telling the importance of celebrating this day and the reasons behind it.

Volunteers gave PPT presentation on famous child prodigies belonging to different field. Children listened to their life stories and achievements. Few clips and videos of the youngest achievers were screened for children.

Children enjoyed happy childhood songs, then one of our volunteers Sathish taught them dance for English songs. All volunteers and children enjoyed this evening. Healthy peanut was provided for them for snacks.

Mesmerizing children's dance was followed by two short animated movies. Laughter filled the hall. How nice to let them be like today. Happy faces with no worries about tomorrow. A day for them is not enough, let us celebrate them everyday and every hour..

Food Festival @ Madurai Seed

Children celebrated the joy of cooking, and sharing food together!

They did magic with different recipes on 29th of Sept. Public.

Children from class 1 to class 12 become chefs to provide the best taste. They took individual roles in team to buy provision, cook, and organize stalls. With healthy competition between teams, they provide healthy recipes for the public to taste.

Each team was given money to buy provisions and they started preparing for food festival. At first, in teams they planned the expenses and profit with volunteers. Then they sketch out roles and responsibilities among themselves. In teams, they chopped vegetables, boiled, fried, stirred, mixed, poured, dipped and finally brought it for sale to the public along the Ea(s)t street of Karumbalai. In 25 stalls, 25 different recipes were arranged on table in front of MS office and centers. The street looked colorful with children and their parents filling their plates. The price of each recipe ranged from Rs. 5 to Rs. 10 and in two hours, all stalls sold.

Teams calculated the money invested and profit gained. The first three teams who won by making good profit were appreciated by the guests. Three guests were much impressed by the team work where in most of the teams, boys prepared food with no girls' help. They not only enjoy eating, now they enjoy cooking.

Here are some recipe for you! Mushroom soup, vegetable soup, Rasagula, spring potato, mojito, chicken momos, are just a few in 25 items in :

Stalls from class 1 to 12 = 12

Stalls of college goers =6

Stalls of Alumni = 2

Stalls of MS coordinators = 2

Stalls of parents = 2

Stall of trustee= 1

Wanna taste the fresh taste at Best price? Join MS...!

Madurai Seed Education Centers

Education centres in Madurai Seed provides a peaceful learning environment for children. Volunteers’ support for helping them finish their homework, preparing them for term exams are possible only with proper study area. There are 3 education centres for children and 1 education centre for young people, and 1 library. Centre functions from 6 to 9 in the weekday evenings. On holidays, library and indoor activities are carried on in there from morning to evenings. With projectors, and audio – visual aids in one centre, movie screenings and meetings are held. Workshops, online classes, seminars are carried on often. Vandugal Arangam – multipurpose hall that holds 80 to 100 children at a time, Kanavugal arangam holds 60-80 children, Thedalgal arangam with library holds around 30-40 children.

Independence Day 2023

Madurai Seed was all set for the 77th Independence Day with beautiful decorations, and colourful presence of children and young people. One by one they arrived and pinned flag on shirts. Volunteer girls dressed in same colour and boy volunteers in white shirts gingered up the event. It was time to welcome our eminent chief guests Prof. Dr. E. Annamalai and his daughter Dr.Melliyal Annamalai from Asha Boston with handmade flower bouquets.

Usually at Madurai Seed, the national flag is hoisted by Children Federation leader.  In that way, Keerthana in 12th std , MSCF leader was welcomed and honoured with parade. She was introduced to the guests and invited to hoist the flag. With mindful of pride, Keerthana hoisted the flag. Salute and claps of students sowed peace and love in hearts.

Keerthana shared the Independence Day message, "On Every Independence Day, we and our country grow a year older. Like as we age, our thoughts, good deeds and character must grow higher. Religion, caste, and gender-based discrimination, are on the rise in the country. It is the children and youth of the future generations that we need to prepare against this. Let us take pledge and stand together." Along with Keerthana, students took pledge to contribute their best to the society they live in.

Our chief guest Dr. E. Annamalai spoke to the students, " I’m 80 years old and have seen a lot of progress and milestones in the country. You should also see better progress. Flag salutation is not flag worship, it is worship of our country’s principles of freedom, peace, equality and secularism." His presence made the day more memorable and special.

Trustees Elavarasi, Mansur Ali, Mariammal teacher, Alumni forum incharge Sathish Babu and MSYF president Pavithra were honoured with shawl and bouquets. Breakfast was provided for children and guests. The morning went so fast, but not the prior preparation. The day before, children and young people had long rehearsals to parade, welcome guests, and organize without disturbing the public. Karthik provided a mind map on it and volunteers brought it up. Lively celebration with Jeeva's commentary, Keerthana's speech and guests' message and wishes.

Scholarships for young people 2022

Scholarship program was held at Vandugal Arangam. We provided  scholarships to all the young people. 

Here are some details of our young people's courses:

Diploma in Hotel Management - First year - 1 Student

Undergraduate (History, Computer Applications, Economics) - First year - 3 

Undergraduate ( Commerce, Maths, Tamil) - Second year - 3

Undergraduate (English, Business Administration, Microbiology, Physical education) - Third year - 4 

 

Bachelor of Teacher Education - First year - 1

Master of Physical Education - First year - 1

 

Post graduate (Maths) - Second year - 1

Post graduate (Geography) - Second year -1

 

Competitive exam coaching - 2

Total number of benefited young people-  17 (Boys 7 + Girls 10) 

Among them, total number of young people going to government college - 10

Total number of young people going to Govt. aided colleges - 7

Total number of benefited families  - 14

Among 17,

Number of students going to college for the first time from their families - 12

All 17 young people come regularly to Madurai Seed to teach children. 

They are socially deprived and financially weak. They seek only education to come out of the poverty line. With all the kind support of Friends of Madurai Seed in Zurich, they received the Cheque for their college studies. 

Dear friends and donors, we convey our  many thanks to each one of you. Your generous support removes financial barriers and makes them shine through education. 

 

VASANTHAM SUMMER CAMP 2022

 

MADURAI SEED

Vasantham Summer Camp

From 16.05.2022 to 31.05.2022

16 days        72 children              12 young people             6 groups

Sessions

S. No	Topic	Speakers
1	Traditional Trees	Mr. Karthikeyan
2	Children Magazines	Arun Kumar
3	Mobile Phone Etiquettes	Mr. Madhavan
4	Snakes – Facts, Dos and Don’ts	Mr. Vishwanath, Mr. Srini, Wish to Help Trust
5	Story Telling – Book Angel	Mrs. Poonkodi

 

Practical Sessions

S. No	Activity	Resource Persons
1	No oil, No boil Cooking	Mrs. Renuka
2	Science Toys	Mr. Sathya Manickam
3	Mobile Phone Short Films	Madurai Seed Volunteers
4	Thermacol Cutting Crafts	YouTube

 

Trainings

S. No	Training	Trainers
1	Theatre Games	Mr. Vadivel
2	Yoga, Meditation	Mrs. Radhika, Ms. Krishma, Ms. Abhaya
3	Illustrations	Mr. Marion
4	Designing	Ms. Ramya

                                     

Field Trips

1	Valaiyapatti Village	Meeting with Farmer Palani
2	Tamukkam Ground	Government Exhibition

 

Screening: The Way Home

 

Physical Work Day: Cleaning Education centres in and around & Library

                                       

 

Healthy Snacks: Every day, children were provided with healthy snacks like mango, banana, jackfruit, watermelon groundnut, cassava, corn, curd rice, biscuits, ice creams, etc.

                                         

Madurai Seed - Margazhi Festival 2022

1. Arumbugal Arangam Inauguration on 29.12.2021

2. Margazhi Kolam - 30.12.2021

3. A Trip to Jain hills - 31.12.2021

4. Guest Speech - 01.01.2022

Children's Day

 Cherish the Childhood...

Madurai Seed children are simple, and joyful. Their happiness circle around being together with friends at Madurai Seed.

On this day, we had some splashing and fun time for them.

Special days are meant for special wishes from special friends of Madurai Seed. Artists Ravi Kumar, and Ravi Palatte, Teachers Suresh Kathan and Thilaga Rajan, Mrs. Indhumathi, Short film maker Rambo Kumar wished children through video and audios. Children were happy seeing them on screen and cheered up loudly.

Artist Ravi sir and Ravi Kumar sir conveyed their wishes through their paintings about childhood.

Suresh Kathan sir sent his wishes in recorded video in which he said that "Children are the opportunity for us, hope for us, refuge for us, comfort for us, and medicine for us! They are the glimmer of hope for family, teachers and the community. They play a big role in measuring our inner self, and pounding our mind through their simple and honest questions".

Teacher Thilaga Rajan sir sent his wishes in his beautiful voice by singing a song for children.

Then a short film about a girl child and her volley ball directed by Rambo Kumar was screened. The film itself was a message and greeting from him for our children.

Some fun games and quizzes speeded up the joy inside the children and young people.

A photo session of each class giving different poses with their friends was the highlight of this day. In their Diwali attire, we could see how fresh and beautiful their childhood is. It doesn't care about the future or the past, but does enjoy the present of being happy together.

At last, everyone was given samosa. Also, a petty shop opened for them where they can take any snack they want. Potato chips, traditional peanut candy, cookies, chocolates, honey candies, banana chips, and many items kept in front of them. They had what they wanted..

Later, we had a meaningful time listening to an article about Chacha Nehru read by Karthik. The write ups showed the challenges faced by Nehru to reconstruct India during and after famine in 1870s through his tireless efforts by ending starvation. The young people in this session read along with Karthik and learned about the role of Nehru during that time.

At the end, snacks and photo session for young people brought their childhood back.

Keep the childhood alive in you always, no matter how old you are. Let's celebrate every child not only on this special day but every day.

Clay - Story trail - Madurai Seed

 Kumarshah and Patricia from Clay Movement talked to the children of the Vandugal, Vergal, and Kanavugal separately on 9^th,10^th, & 11^th of November 2021. Drawing and colouring along with stories made the event very successful. For children of all ages, Kumar has known how to get along with them. Kumar is a traveller, story teller, and an artist.

The first day at the Vandugal Arangam was very lively. The curiosity of the children, the chitchats, mischief, and the excitement of the kids were truly amazing. Smiling, laughing, giggling children looked very beautiful. They talked moved freely with the resource person. Children asked Kumar to tell a ghost story. Kumar started to tell with actions, and ended that the story is a dream during his sleep. A boy in the middle is scared and said "Anna, tell us another story". Another girl added “this is not a scary story there are no ghosts”. The conversations developed very interestingly. Next the children were involved in story making. Kumar created a story along with children which involves a lion, a grandma, a snake, and a washing machine. Then papers, pens, and crayons were distributed among children.  The characters of the story were drawn and painted. The day ended colourfully as the joy and interest in drawing is more important than how neatly one draws.

The second day was for Vergal Arangam. The ghost story told on the first day came in a different form here, and the children enjoyed the climax of the story very much.  Kumar is known to capture the minds of children through stories. Stories bring adults closer to children. They sat in a circle and developed a story involving animals. Each person contributed a line for the story. They split the paper into four parts and drew the four scenes in the story. Kumar and Patricia assisted children in drawing, encouraged those who said we don’t know how to draw. Everyone came with nice drawings. Pictures were taken.

Third day was for Kanavugal Arangam who are adolescents. They also listened to stories but not ghost, animal, or fantasy story. It was the story of people, roads, nature and lands. It was the story of Kumarshah as a traveller. His talk was about what travelling teaches, how travelling fills the mind, how we can travel, and how vast the world around us is. Together with Kumar, Karthik Bharathi added about holistic education, how to look at the community, how to find learning in everything, how to link our studies in practical world, etc. Kumar Shah gave interesting answers to the children's questions. He told about his road trip in bicycle through many states of India which was very motivating. Then they drew a road map, marked important places and coloured them in.

Both stories and drawings both are very enjoyable for children. The resource persons linked the two in a joyful, creative manner. The children’s spirit was highly activated. This event was the first event, after the schools were opened after pandemic lockdown. It marked a special place in all of our hearts. Thanks to Kumarshah and Patricia.

Vizhuthugal Diwali – Alumni Meet 2021

Preparation work started one week earlier to the program. The program date was fixed as 31.10.2021, Sunday. People in charge were appointed to invite former students via phone and WhatsApp, to collect things, to purchase things, the location was fixed, the program agenda evolved gradually.

During the festivities our study centres become clean and beautiful. But, our office gets cluttered during big events. People pick up items, look for stationery, leave things. Diwali gifts, festive items, and children's toys were piled up in the office.

Alumni started arriving around 4 p.m. The reception was wonderful with flowers. The meeting was under a guava tree. Individual photos were taken against the backdrop of an old door frame. The tea party began. Mutual health inquiries and chats made the time pass very quick.

Men, women, and kids were separated at 5 p.m. The children were then separated from their parents for some time. They went to have joyful time with games. They were greeted by the big Mickey Mouse. An exciting hour for the kids with balls, swing, toy tent, colouring, rhymes. At the end, all the children were presented with piggybanks.

In a different area, Karthik Bharathi facilitated a discussion on simple lifestyle, the need to avoid materialistic greediness, saving schemes, medical and life insurance schemes. The alumni added their points to the discussion. After him Arun, Ramki, Surya, O. Mani shared their humorous and memorable incidents while studying here. Participants were given a book written by Nammazhvar, a cloth bag, and Diwali sweets.

In another centre, Renuka, a nutritional enthusiast and a mom shared her insights about nutrition and food habits. She talked about essential nutrition for children from simple, home-made, fresh ingredients. Mothers asked their questions and got clarified. Renuka took the seminar through pictures and experiences. Participants were given a pot and seeds.

The kids were handed over to their parents. We all gathered at Vandugal Arangam, where videos created by Vicky and Arun were screened. The videos comprised of Diwali and Alumni meet photos between the years 2007 to 2020. Everyone floated down memory lane. They were immersed in photos while talking and smiling.

When everyone came out for the Diwali celebration, a large Diwali banner stood blocking the street. The children were separated by class. In front of every class is a desk with Diyas. Each alumnus went to a class and lighted the lamp with them. The light of the lamps adorned the street. A child representing each class came to the stage and we lighted Diwali sparklers. Diwali was born to us on that day itself.

Students from “Priyakalalaya Natyalaya” gave an amazing Bharathanatyam performance. Three children stole the attention of all. The cheers of the people would have been a great inspiration to the little artists. It was the first time in Karumbalai that people were able to witness a classical dance like Bharathanatyam in their street. A dance performance by Madurai Seed Youth was also colourful.

We usually have one senior alumni or volunteer in our Diwali program. Unexpectedly senior member Solomon Raja (1999) attended. He also made a donation to the festival. The program was attended by 20 alumni and 140 children. Four alumni came with their wives and kids. Great fun for everyone. Dinner was provided to alumni and young people, and the children were provided with Diwali special Murukku and Athirasam. With applause and Diwali greetings, everyone said goodbye.

LANGUAGE SESSIONS

Tamil Linguist E.Annamalai took 12 sessions about languages. Prof.E.Annamalai is a visiting professor in many universities across the world. He was once the Director of Central Institute of Indian Languages, wrote many books on Tamil language and grammar. He is the father of our beloved Asha supporter Melliyal. It was the time when In Tamilnadu politics we had discussions about language guidelines in the new education policy of India and Hindi language imposition. His lessons gave our students a scientific approach towards language. He majorly concentrated on Tamil during the sessions, but also differentiated other languages like English when discussing grammar and quoted many world languages across the sessions. At the end of each session, students received homework and it was discussed in the next class. Students also were encouraged to ask questions during and after the sessions.

Date	Title
15.08.2020	Origin of languages
16.08.2020	Grammar is common for all
19.08.2020	What is the purpose of grammar
25.08.2020	What is a grammatical error
28.08.2020	Language is a social agreement
31.08.2020	Regulators of a language
04.09.2020	Regulators of a language II
07.09.2020	Three-layer structure of grammar
09.09.2020	Language as visual character
14.09.2020	Language and culture
17.09.2020	Relationships between languages
20.09.2020	Politics and languages