KidSpirit

Welcome, Dear Guests!

The Adventurous SpiritGlobal Beat

On the banks of the Sabarmati River in Ahmedabad, India, is a school called Riverside. The educators here believe in challenging their students so that they can inculcate the "I CAN" spirit in every child. I’m one of the fifth graders in this school who simply loves challenges, and I would love to share the latest one with you.

Our challenge was that we had to make three Chinese guests comfortable, introduce them to Ahmedabad, and most importantly ensure that they enjoyed learning about the rich culture of our city. These three guests were Roy, a 12-year-old boy, Mrs. Rainbow, his mom, and Angela ma’am, his teacher. We were assigned this task as Roy would be studying in our homeroom as part of an exchange program, and it was up to us to make him feel comfortable. As it was his first time in our city, we thought of doing something special for him, his mom, and teacher collectively as a class.

The first thing we did was to come together as a class and brainstorm ideas for our agenda and plan of action. Everybody had different ideas, but after a lot of deliberation we came to a conclusion. We collectively decided that we would take our guests on a tour so that they could get to know our city. We also decided to perform a traditional Gujarati dance called garba, prepare some gifts, and serve a meal so the guests could experience typical Gujarati cuisine – thali. As part of the plan, our class researched and visited three of the most famous historical places in the city. At the end of this exercise, we finally had a list of things we wanted to showcase to our guests.

Later, the roles and responsibilities were decided, and we started working on different tasks, like preparing and practicing speeches, making goodie bags,and creating gifts. On the final day we all gave 100% and our guests were delighted with our little tour. They enjoyed savoring the food and receiving the fancy goodie bags.

It was a wonderful project because, in the process of designing the experience for our guests, we inadvertently learned many stories about the historical past of our very own city. I feel like I belong more to my space now. This experience taught me to never dampen my spirit in unfamiliar surroundings or around new people like Roy, Mrs Rainbow, and Angela ma’am. They taught me what it is to accept a challenge and embrace it, to appreciate the efforts put in by others, and to grab offered opportunities wholeheartedly.

Ayana Jhala is 10 years old and lives in Ahmedabad, India. She is passionate about reading and enjoys wave boarding and playing football. She aspires to be an author someday.

Like what you're reading?

Check out KidSpirit newsletters, and get more great content in your inbox!

Which newsletters would you like to receive?

Art by Jaden Flach, Brooklyn

Like what you're reading?

Check out KidSpirit newsletters, and get more great content in your inbox!

Which newsletters would you like to receive?

Art by Jaden Flach, Brooklyn