Shelly enjoys learning

Shelly D’Souza is 9 years old and lives with her parents, two siblings and a pet cat in one small room in a Mumbai slum community. Her father is a bus driver and her mother looks after the household.

Shelly is a student at one of Pratham’s summer learning camps that takes place in an open area, just outside the Pratham urban learning center in the suburb of Santa Cruz in Mumbai. The informal and friendly setting of the Pratham camp is conducive to learning through games and activities, and is in no way a reminder of her school classroom. The students in attendance are all girls, ages nine or ten, who live in the low-income locality nearby. They are taught to read and write English words and sentences. Every so often, the sound of an airplane flying overhead can be heard due to the proximity to the airport. Shelly is able to spell “airplane” when asked by her teacher and likes being called out so she can show what she has learned.

Shelly’s favorite subjects are Math and Languages. She did not enjoy studying Science in her school where she had to memorize the lessons and did not understand the subject matter. Instead, she prefers learning Science at the Pratham Learning center where the students are encouraged to engage in hands-on activities and are taught how science makes a difference in daily life.

Thanks to this method of instruction, Shelly is now explaining the benefits of electricity to her father! Her parents are impressed with the knowledge Shelly has gained from attending Pratham’s summer learning camp.

Thank you for your support, which makes it possible for someone like Shelly to learn and grow.