I Love to Learn- How wonderful is the feeling? 

Do you know why Krishna chose Arjun to share his wisdom and experiences about Gita and not anyone else? Because he knew that Arjun was the only one willing to learn and ready to accept guidance. 

Now, let’s relate this to the modern-day scenario and apply Bhagavad Gita for Kids. 

Let us begin by listening to a story. Once upon a time, a Maths teacher asked her students to take out their notebooks so that she could make them study geometry. On her request, out of ten, only five students took out their notebooks. Then the teacher repeated firmly, “Take out your notebooks". Listening to this, three more students took out their notebooks. So, the teacher asked the remaining two to stand outside the class because she clearly understood that these two students weren’t willing to receive her knowledge and were not interested in studying the subject.

This simple story gives us a message that if the student is not willing to learn or ready to accept guidance, there is no way that the teacher can share her knowledge with her students. 

Shlok 10.10 of Gita says, “To those whose minds are always united with Me in loving devotion, I give the divine knowledge by which they can attain Me”. This means that those willing to receive knowledge, need to devote their mind.

At this point, we need to understand, -

What stops the child from learning or receiving someone’s words of wisdom?

1. Fear of Failure:

If a child is constantly pressured to excel in every sphere of his life and is criticized for making mistakes, they might develop a fear of failure. This fear can be a significant barrier, preventing them from exploring new concepts or receiving knowledge from new sources.

1. Negative Peer Influence:

Suppose a child is surrounded by peers who dismiss the value of learning anything new. In such an environment, the child may feel social pressure to conform to negative attitudes, hindering their enthusiasm for learning. 

1. The feeling of ‘I Know it All

This is mostly seen in teenagers where the child is always saying NO to learning new things because he has a feeling that he knows it all and doesn’t need any guidance from anyone.

1. Unsupportive Home Environment:

A child may face challenges in learning if their home environment lacks encouragement and support for education. For instance, if parents are always criticising the child or never appreciating his efforts, it can impact the child's overall learning experience. 

1. Lack of patience from the giver’s end

We all know that while explaining the nuances from Gita, Krishna was very patient throughout. Whenever Arjun has any doubts, Krishna never got angry or became irritable. Parents, teachers, and caregivers should also have a similar attitude when kids have any doubts otherwise their curiosity to ask questions and learn new things will die eventually. 

Conclusion

This brings us to the end of this discussion, and we need to think about what we can do as a parent or an educator to keep that light of learning alive in these young souls who are the future of our country. We should-

• Step 1 - Foster a Curious Environment:

Encourage questions and curiosity by creating an environment that values exploration. As a parent or educator, take time to answer children's questions and guide them to discover answers independently. 

• Step 2 - Celebrate Effort, Not Just Results:

Shift the focus from solely celebrating grades or achievements to acknowledging children's effort and dedication to learning. 

• Step 3 - Make Learning Personal and Relevant:

Connect lessons to real-life situations and the child's interests. This can make learning more meaningful and relatable. 

When we do all this, we can encourage a willingness to learn in our child and one day our child can proudly say, ‘I Love to Learn’