Discovering Pathways to Lifelong Learning -1

This series of blogs will suggest ideas for Joyful Investigations for parents and children. I will present one exploration each week. I will describe how this investigation has taken shape for us. I will discuss the value of the exploration and share resources that can help parents and others get started with this investigation.

Our Brighton trip this weekend (October 11, 2024 and 12, 2024 was eye opening.  Ananth seems to enjoy walking around in nature. Ananth was spontaneously smiling a lot. He seems to initiate dance poses more in nature.  He also seems to choose certain kinds of poses (silence!). Then, he saw cows and did ardhapathaka hand gesture to show a cow. I was nudging him to explore some more hand gestures.

What stood out for me is expression.  Ananth is clearly expressing when he is enjoying his experiences in nature. No one seems to mention silence as a possibility to explore for Neurodivergent (ND) individuals like Ananth.  Given the constant flow of information and thinking parents of ND children, inner silence is also an investigation that can benefit parents. 

How it Started

Ananth and I set out on this investigation of silence when Sri Ujwal Jagadeesh of the Ramana Maharshi Center for Learning (RMCL) explored this concept through an adavu song.  Adavus are basic building blocks of Bharatanatyam that are repeated regularly during dance class.  Through this repetition, Ananth became interested in exploring silence.  Over the past two years, he has initiated silence and invited me to explore silence with him!


Joyful Investigations, Family Fun, and Daily Rhythms

Joyful investigations plant seeds for further exploration.  Ananth’s structured investigations in class show up in explorations with me and with other family members such as his nephew.  Some investigations deepen over time and become a part of daily rhythms.  Silence is one such exploration.  If an investigation is sustained over time and affects rhythms, it is an indicator that this is meaningful and of value to the learner,

Joyful Investigations

Ananth has investigated silence in different ways over the last two years. He enjoyed these investigations as they were brough to him as dance and story explorations by his teacher Sri Ujwal Jagadeesh of the Ramana Maharshi Center for Learning (RMCL).  Repetition over multiple classes gave Ananth the opportunity to process the concept in different ways.  He started exploring silence in small ways.

I heard the phrase “From Silence Blossoms Speech” in a summer camp at the Ramana Maharshi Center for Learning. This idea is an important one for us! 

Daily Rhythms
Walking in silence is becoming a part of our daily rhythm. We consciously choose to walk in silence. Walk has been a part of our daily rhythms for a long time. Now, silence is being integrated in these walks!


Family Fun
Family fun builds on daily rhythms. Since silence is one of the Six Ss that are the building blocks of our daily rhythms, silence is also becoming a part of family fun! Ananth has started expressing this interest. He is also inviting me to explore with him.

Our videos and Blog Posts
Learn more about our investigations in these resources:

1. What is silence?
https://youtu.be/I06GwoiNC4Q?si=adKc9i9ANyfvc9eU

2. Discovering the Six Ss
https://youtu.be/tfPp6VRoryI?si=4s5HLwC0Vd9znAzP

3. Exploring silence with Nattadavu
https://youtu.be/8BAz2ZynlTw?si=c9C9Ox1qYAm7R8EL

4. The Power of Silence
https://youtu.be/wlNjaO53XPM?si=TY2ln5MbZOHwHIRT

5. Discovering the Power of Silence
https://specialsaathi.com/2024/09/27/discovering-the-power-of-silence/

6. Tranquil in Tiruvannamalai
https://specialsaathi.com/2024/09/11/tranquil-in-tiruvannamalai/

7. Weaving in Calming Practices in Daily Rhythms
https://specialsaathi.com/2024/09/10/weaving-in-calming-practices-in-daily-rhythms/


Other Resources

1. Encouraging Inner Listening
https://www.christopherushomeschool.com/2009/01/02/encouraging-inner-listening/

2. Reimagining Education: A Conversation with Beth Sutton
https://youtu.be/ovWwZMMo1QM?si=A6rk4jz2cOovJ5Xt

3. The Constellation of Regulation: Part 1 of the Three Rs
https://www.epinsight.com/post/the-constellation-of-regulation-part-1-of-the-3-rs


Explore with Us!

I encourage parents to explore silence for themselves and with their children.  I also encourage parents to share their experiences with us! Join the conversation at:
https://chat.whatsapp.com/Fxk4bs63lM1CmYtSwnFckN

Author Dr.Dasaratha Rama

Dr. Dasaratha Rama is a professor and home educator. She was the editor of a monograph on service-learning published by the American Association of Higher Education. This monograph was a part of a series of monographs on service-learning published by AAHE. She was also an Engaged Scholar with the Campus Compact, an association in the US dedicated to higher education civic and community engagement at colleges and universities. She has served as the Chair of the Teaching and Curriculum Section of the American Accounting Education. She is a certified leader in systems thinking, mapping, and leadership under a program offered by Cabrera Research Lab. She is currently doing a certificate in Theater Arts for Holistic Development (TAHD) from RASA (Ramana Sunritya Aalaya).