3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms Niv

Issue #276, 21st October 2025

This holiday season, go ahead and make generosity infectious. In schools, homes and streets. Share acts of kindness you received and show to your peers, children and family how to be generous. For that is one thing common in all religions, cultures and festival. Generosity is being human.

Try being generous to your house staff, your school staff, your peers, your family members. Can you think of ways to be generous with your emotion, creativity and courage? In communication and in deeds?

Happy Diwali!

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Three Images of the Week

Two Thoughts of the Week

“Real generosity toward the future lies in giving all to the present.” Albert Camus

“No one has yet realized the wealth of sympathy, the kindness and generosity hidden in the soul of a child. The effort of every true education should be to unlock that treasure.” Emma Goldman

One Video of the Week

What would happen to humanity if generosity went viral? Sharing transformative stories from around the world, head of TED Chris Anderson outlines why the time has come for the internet to realize its power to supercharge small acts of kindness, changing lives at a scale never experienced before. Learn how to cultivate a generous mindset — with or without giving money — and get inspired with tools to amplify your impact. “Be brave. Give what you can, and then be absolutely amazed at what happens next,” Anderson says.

Reading with Ms. Meenu: Tip of the week

Humans have been reading at least since the late fourth millennium BCE, when pictographic script was first etched into clay tablets with the original stylus, a writing tool sharp enough to leave an impression. An explicit reading instruction in English — directly teaching the links between letters and sounds — has been going on since the sixteenth century. But it’s just been in the last several decades that we’ve had the benefit of rigorous experiments, massive data sets, and parent’s critical role in sustaining them. Perhaps this new knowledge can push us from literacy for the elite to literacy for all. 

Early reading subject areas should be known to all of us to teach kids with love and lightness in daily life. It includes oral language, speech-sound awareness, and letter knowledge skills that research shows are critically important for later reading skills. Plus we’ll cover the simple work of familiarizing kids with books and how print works, as well as the more advanced work of matching letters to sounds.

These abilities more likely tend to show up in preschool and kindergarten screenings, they apply to a much wider age span and that could be from birth to 116, given a remarkable story of a woman named Mary Walker born in 1848.

Walker’s dream of literacy, beautifully told in Rita Lorraine Hubbard’s picture book The Oldest Student: How Mary Walker Learned to Read, was deferred through slavery and sharecropping, through the lives of two husbands and three sons, and the administrations of twenty six presidents of the United States. She learned at last at 116 years old, and read until her death at age 121 on December 1, 1969.

She studied the alphabet until her eyes watered. Hubbard wrote “She memorized the sounds each letter made and practiced writing her name so many times that her fingers cramped.. She studied and studied until books and pages and letters and words swirled in her head while she slept. One fine day Mary’s hard work paid off. She could read!

Literacy is still deferred for too long for too many, for lack of a strong foundation. There are teachers in higher grades who struggle to teach various strategies to teachers to help their teenage students who can’t read to make sense in science, math and social studies. Question arises who will be there to help these students when they struggle after they graduate or drop out.

Would-be readers of any age must master the basics. There are areas of study that just cannot be skipped. There are many strategies learners of any age can visit, revisit and master to become more successful readers, plus ways parents can build and reinforce each.

One should always practice reading until it has been mastered to become a proficient reader.
Happy Reading!

Meenu Gera, Consulting home and school librarian, reading guide

I Think, I Wonder, I Ask

–Dr Shreelakshmi Subbaswami, Alumni and Academic Director, Vijaya School Hassan, Karnataka

The Invisible Stakeholder

As a researcher and an educator, my instinct has always been to question the systems, programs, processes, and norms that we often take for granted in education. One such question that recently struck me deeply was- Whom are we really building schools and colleges for?

We assume the answer is obvious — for students. However, when we look closely, evidence of student agency is remarkably scarce. The irony is that students, the very reason our institutions exist, have the least say in decisions that shape their lives. Adults decide the curriculum, teaching methods, assessment practices, infrastructure, and even how their day looks- much of it inherited and rarely questioned.

Even the much-criticized industrial model of education had one redeeming feature: it understood the consumer! Industries invest heavily in consumer research, constantly redesigning products to suit user needs. Education, however, often skips that step entirely! We design for students, not with them…

Developmental psychology tells us that when learners have voice and choice, they not only engage more deeply but also take ownership of their growth. In contrast, when systems overregulate, learning becomes compliance rather than curiosity. Student agency is not just an appealing concept; it is a vital condition for meaningful learning and growth.

As educators, we must confront an uncomfortable truth: every time we design learning without listening to learners, we risk building institutions that look successful on paper but leave students feeling unseen, unheard, and disempowered within.

Showcase: Thrive Beyond School – A unique STEAM education project for very young learners.

– Pooja Khatter, facilitator, Thrive

During the activity, students understood that clouds are made up of tiny water droplets formed when warm water vapor cools down. They learned that condensation happens when warm air meets a cold surface, changing vapor into liquid droplets. Students also understood that small particles like dust help water vapor come together to form clouds. By relating the experiment to the water cycle, they realized the roles of evaporation, condensation, and precipitation in nature. They used scientific words such as water vapor, condensation, and evaporation correctly while recording their observations and drawing what they saw. Through this experiment, students gained a clear understanding that the sun’s heat causes water to evaporate, and when the air cools, clouds are formed. Neev,Mayra & Tashi 7 years 1 month old Samyuktha & Havishka 7 years 6 months old

Career assessment, guidance, and placement strategies:

Navigating the College Application Journey: 5 Ways Parents Can Empower Their Grade 12 Child

Grade 12 is a whirlwind of emotions, academic pressure, and big decisions, especially regarding college applications. You naturally want to help as a parent, but finding the right balance between support and overstepping can be tricky. This post offers five key tips on empowering your child to navigate this exciting yet sometimes stressful process with confidence and ownership. 

1. Foster Ownership: It’s Their College List 

It’s easy to get caught up in our own aspirations for our children but remember: your child is the one who will be attending college, not you. Encourage them to take the lead in researching institutions and developing their college list. 

2. Guide Towards a Realistic & Balanced List

While fostering ownership is crucial, providing guidance on creating a realistic list is equally important. A well-rounded college list typically includes a mix of ‘reach,’ ‘target,’ and ‘safety’ colleges.

3. Brainstorm Course and Major Choices Together

Encourage your child to think about their passions, strengths, and what subjects genuinely excite them. The goal here is to help them identify areas of study that spark their curiosity. 

4. Navigating the ‘Course vs. College Name’ Conundrum

For some students, the specific course or program they want to study is paramount, while for others, the prestige or reputation of the college holds more weight. This can be a point of discussion and gentle guidance. 

5. Be Present: The Power of Silent, Available, and Mindful Support

The college application process is emotionally charged. Your child will experience moments of excitement, frustration, anxiety, and perhaps even rejection. Your emotional support is invaluable. 

The career counselors at Fermat specialize in Profile Building and College Essays.
Fermata Career Solutions inspires young individuals aged 13 to 30 to unlock their potential through focused and customised career and college counseling. With expertise in University Readiness, CareerGym, and Master Parenting, the experts empower you to pursue your dreams and shape your future with confidence. More about us on http://www.fermata.com

Dear reader,
I work with the school leadership team as an advisor and collaborate with teachers as a pedagogical trainer. I also help parents as a parenting counselor and regularly engage one-on-one with students as a personal guide and mentor. This weekly newsletter shares what I read, learn, and experience.

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