Summer break fun: Haryana rolls out home task to make primary kids NIPUN

After summer break tiny-tots to rattle off Aadhaar and phone numbers, names of MP, MLA, CM and governor; students advised to massage feet of dada-dadi, nana-nani and in return the grandparents to regale them with stories

What’s your Aadhaar number? When this question is posed, often the majority of well-educated people have to unlock their swanky cell phones to find the answer.

When Class 3 to 5 students of Haryana government schools will return to their classrooms on July 1, a month after the summer break that began on Tuesday, they may rattle off not only their own 12-digit Aadhaar number but also of the members of their family. (Courtesy: Haryana Government)

But when Class 3 to 5 students of Haryana government schools will return to their classrooms on July 1, a month after the summer break that began on Tuesday, they may rattle off not only their own 12-digit Aadhaar number but also of the members of their family.

According to Dr Pramod Kumar, state programme officer of National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy (NIPUN), the objective of this summer homework is to help children learn skills from everyday experiences.

“The task has been prepared to ensure active involvement of parents and grandparents. We have included math, history, EVS, Hindi, English in this homework very smartly,” said Dr Kumar.

Not just this, the students have been tasked to memorise foodgrains of rabi and kharif crops and names as well as mobile phone numbers of at least 10 family members and relatives.

And Class 5 students will be sanctioned two books from the school library to read and write 100- words book review. Sending a video of this activity to the schoolteacher as evidence is compulsory. Based on a visit during summer break, students will have to write, in their own words, a short travelogue also.

These are a few key points the school education department mandarins have introduced in the creatively prepared summer home task for the tiny tots, at the core of which is “experience-based learning” and reconnect with the roots.

Top government officials say this is a move aimed at curbing the alarming over-dependence on gadgets of the younger generation.

“The activities have been planned in such a manner that it will keep students away from mobile phone, computer, television and connect children with elders in the family,” Haryana School Shiksha Pariyojna Parishad said in a May 21 letter to education officials in the districts.

Under this out of textbook homework, the task given to nursery students is to spend maximum time with their grandparents; watch movies/serials of their (grandparents) choice and gather information about their childhood; food they used to eat; games they played, and the types of sweets or dishes served during the weddings in old days.

Before going to bed at night, the students are expected to massage the feet of grandparents (dada-dadi, nana-nani) and in return the grandparents will regale their grandchildren with stories. They will have to get up early, make bed and go for a morning walk with elders, memorise one poem and any religious prayer.

In the last week of June, a test will be conducted based on work given to students. The parents will be involved in the evaluation of the tests and the result will be the topic of discussion during the parent-teacher meeting after summer break.

Another task for Class 3-5 students is to know names of the President of India, Prime Minister, Haryana chief minister and governor. They should know who is their MLA, MP and the name of assembly segment and Lok Sabha seat in which their home is located.

After the Lok Sabha poll result is out, the students have been advised to understand from their parents the procedure followed in forming Union government.

The summer task is in line with the NIPUN Bharat, Union ministry of education had launched in July 2021. The objective of NIPUN, a national mission, is to enable all children at the end of Class 3 to attain foundational skills. As a crucial step towards strengthening efforts for Foundational Literacy and Numeracy, a large-scale Foundational Learning Study has been undertaken by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) in March 2022.

Officials said that Haryana has taken a slew of steps to achieve the objectives of the NIPUN Bharat Mission for foundational literacy (Hindi and English) and numeracy. Accordingly, Haryana launched the NIPUN Haryana Mission on July 30, 2021, and launched various academic and governance initiatives to make certain that under the NIPUN Haryana Mission, each child achieves grade-level competencies required under foundational literacy and numeracy and play our part in making the NIPUN Bharat Mission a success.

Summer task at a glance

Observe complete digital fast once a week

Draw a family tree

Help parents in household chores, washing clothes, watering plants

Keeping water for birds in the courtyard

Switch off lights before leaving the room and use water judiciously

Memorising five jokes, five riddles, five poems

Visit post-office, bank, bus stand, railway station, shopping mall, and vegetable market along with parents.

Understanding online payments mechanism

On June 5, International Environment Day, plant five saplings, take a selfie and send it to class teacher