One weekend not so long ago, the gates to the BK Block campus of Sri Aurobindo Institute of Education were thrown open to parents, grandparents and guardians to come admire the art and craft created by their wards around the year.

The BK Block branch of the school houses the pre-primary sections and Class I, and the students’ artwork had been displayed in the corridors, quadrangle, and entrance of the school. There were pictures of festivals like Rathyatra and Christmas, families had been finger-painted, animals had been sculpted out of play-dough, and old sieves had been recycled to make heads of dolls.

“Children love experimenting with colours, and some of them have innate artistic talent that we try to polish,” said the teacher-in-charge Rimpa Nandy.

“We themed some craft around lessons from their textbooks, and the kids took the messages quite seriously,” said Shampa Naha, a teacher of Class I. “After creating artwork about the importance of avoiding sugar, some children actually went home and told their parents to replace sugar with chhatu! I also specifically chose students with poor handwriting and told them their work would be put on display. This motivated them to write beautifully.”

Some students had come dressed as eminent Indians from history and delivered speeches about the contributions of these personalities. Alapan Das proudly told anyone who would listen that he had got his Netaji costume from Flipkart. Adiraha Pathak played Sri Aurobindo, but confessed that his silver beard was somewhat itchy and so kept pulling it under his chin. Together, they walked around the school admiring the artwork and looking for their own creations among them.

“My son Chandril played Khudiram Bose, and I appreciate the school’s effort in acquainting them with our leaders from a young age. He has been practising lines like ‘I had nothing to give my nation except my life’.” Stories of such supreme sacrifice are sure to have a deep impact on them,” said Prasanta Gupta, a parent.

Principal Anthony Das said this exhibition was an occasion that students had been waiting for all year. “It’s the day they get to show parents what they are learning. Plus, art helps concentration and increases attention span. A child busy with art is a child away from a phone.”