First Day of Class
A new student walks into Gaia and looks slightly unsure, a little uncomfortable. There are scores of children all around. Some his age, some younger and older. He notices one child walk up to a trainer, and call him by his first name. He sits quietly on a bench waiting impatiently for his class to start. He clenches his fists tightly, shakes his legs vigorously, and behind his shoes, he curls his toes. His trainer opens up the classroom and a flood of children come rushing out. Some of them rush out the door, finding their parents, others get books and take the puzzles to solve together. Just when you’d hear the whirring of the air-conditioner, a new batch of learners enter and walk into class and the buzz is back. The boy sits quietly and waits until his trainer asks him to join the new group.
He joins his Communication class for the first time, and is soon introduced to the other students gathered around. All students are busy informing their trainer about the insanely fun, and exciting things that they were up to the previous weekend. The class is energetic and eager to start the session. The new student, still a little nervous, listens to all his classmates, with limited information to share so far. Our trainer smiles and gives the learners time to get to know their new companion, and the students take their time asking question after question. The chatter, the curiosity, the willingness to make a new friend is infectious and has everyone smiling. The boy answers some questions as best he can. He looks around to see the paintings on the wall and around the room, taking the Gaia vibe in.
He has un-clenched his fists now and his body is more relaxed. The trainer and students dive into the day’s activities. Students take turns standing up practice their presentation skills by talking in loud, clear voices, except for one. Our new student is understandably a little quiet. Its his turn now. He stands up and all eyes are on him. He is given a topic to talk on but is very soft. He tries again but is still too soft to be heard clearly. The trainer stops him and asks that he take a long deep breath. He does so. Then again, and again, and one last time… the whole class joins in to take a deep breath with him. Its a treat to see the entire class positively encourage their new friend to pick on a vocal technique. The trainer explains that you need to breathe to be louder. You need air to increase volume. The new student takes one final breath and begins to speak. In the same moment as he starts, he stops, almost as though he was shocked by the volume of his own voice. The class once again starts to laugh, as does the new student and the trainer, who then diverts everyone’s attention back to the newcomer. “One more time. All eyes on you”, says the trainer. And our newcomer, he goes on, and on, and on, and he spoke loud and clear… he was practically unstoppable.
After a range of games and training activities, class comes to an end and our new student is starting to catch on to everyone else’s names. All students now have some time to themselves. They play board games and make-believe while they wait for their parents to come pick them up. The new learner, now more comfortable the easy, safe & friendly atmosphere than when he arrived, joins in on the fun.
His parents soon arrive, and it’s time to go home. The trainers and his friends say bye. His parents now in the corridor, waiting for him to come. Before leaving, he asks his trainer, “Can I stay here for five more minutes?”.
This leaves us all smiling.