With summer season upon us, children are preparing for some fun times. Now is the time to come out of the classrooms and get acquainted with cultural institutions.
Here are four options in the Capital where kids can be taken this summer. Set up to harness creativity of kids, supplement their knowledge and make them perform well in extracurricular activities in schools, these institutions indirectly prepare them for their next class.
Shankar’s International Doll Museum
Dressed elegantly, they watch you from various directions; their preening eyes have been searching for you all this while. Not human, yet exquisitely made dolls in various shapes and sizes look life-like. Of the thousands of handmade dolls exhibits, some are over a Century-old yet do not look out of place as they compete with newer ones.
For children there is no better place to get acquainted with the culture and history of a country. Rare elaborate embroidery work done on out of date garments, hats have been attracting kids for generations. Looks of each male and female figurine are distinct and reflect features of their countrymen.
For children this is like introduction to a new world. They can soak in the experience of staring at Japanese dolls dressed in kimono, English dolls in costumes of the Shakespearean era and dolls in ten incarnations of Vishnu from India. Antique dolls have been presented by heads of State like First lady of Mexico and leaders like Tito but not all are exhibited.
Children are attracted to the old dolls as they are dressed in traditional handmade outfits which are non existent. As Shankar, the country’s first political cartoonist, was friendly with Ambassadors, they would present him dolls from their countries. “This is his collection. He accompanied Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru during his foreign junkets. As dolls are fragile and get broken easily, his collection started dwindling. So he started this,” says Shanta Srinivasan, curator of the museum.
New Indonesian, Korean and Iranian dolls have come. A guided tour of the venue is recommended for the children who can spend sufficient time to observe the design and know the background of each doll. Tickets are Rs. 6 for children and admission is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
National Rail Museum
Preserving the railway heritage of the nation, this a special place for the little ones. Not only is it a joyride in terms of travelling in an old steam monorail which enables them to experience a rail journey which has almost become outdated. It is also a hub of knowledge as it houses memorabilia, well preserved from the days of the Raj. Reams of information catalogued in lucid language and electronic voices which function when the switch is pressed creates interest in kids. After a well guided trip they can understand how the Indian Railways has progressed over the years.
Keeping in mind the heat, a huge fountain has started operating with children frolicking around it. Kids can jump around in the adjoining park which has swings, merry go round, making them stretch their over enthusiastic muscles on the bar.
While filling their memory bank with names of erstwhile trains which are the pride of place here, kids would also come across a large pachyderm’s skull. The wild elephant was accidentally crushed by the UP Mail at Saranda jungle near Goilkera, which too had to bear the brunt as its engine, seven coaches were annihilated.
Fairy Queen, built in 1855 and considered to be one of the best preserved steam locomotive engines of her age, is the star attraction. Ticket is Rs.10 for kids and commensurate amount for the ride in the toy train. Open from 9-30 a.m. to 5-30 p.m.
Nehru Memorial Museum and Library
With its sprawling space NMML is a manna from heaven for children who can do what they usually like to do – walk on the garden once treaded by country’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, know unknown trees and enjoy the delicate dance of peacocks. Most importantly, NMML also houses Planetarium which was set up to inculcate scientific temper among children.
Children are encouraged to participate in astronomical activities and familiarise themselves with the good old telescope. Enjoy stars shimmering in the sky, Moon at the crescent stage, watch visually appealing films and grasp information in the museum. The planetarium has a sky theatre, which has been making available to children exciting full dome programmes on locally relevant topics like the Chandrayaan, Mangalyaan and Nobel laureate Subrahmanyam Chandrasekhar.
Monthly workshops are also conducted. “These workshops are conducted in a hands on manner, with participants learning some basic skygazing and subsequently carrying out simple star count observations to measure light pollution from their home and other accessible locations,” says Planetarium Director N. Rathnasree. Children can undertake astronomical activities at Planetarium for free. All they need is to register. Planetarium is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
National Bal Bhawan
Billed as an institution to fill in the gap for formal education, this is an ideal place for children who want to excel in performing arts, creative writing, computers and what not. Kids from the age of five to 16 simply need to register and undertake a summer course where they learn cookery, clay art and integrated art. Not only in-house teachers it also outsource experts from other fields.
The basic foundation of this institution is that it would nurture curiosity and imagination of children and to groom them in such a manner that their overall personality is developed. It was set up on the premise that formal education does not make children understand their strength. Children can take up two activities of their choice. First they would attend two to three workshops. But if the teacher conducting the workshop feels that a particular child would be able to do better in another performing art then they would be automatically transferred. Open from 9 a.m. to 5-30 p.m., kids need to bring two passport sized pictures and age proof from schools.
