Bookosmia, a writing platform for children under 17, saw that they were getting multiple submissions that revolve around sports. “Kids were writing to us about how a match made them feel, their favourite players and so on. We also have a mascot called Sara, a sports-loving story teller,” says co-founder, Archana Mohan.
She adds that sport is not just about the game and it teaches kids about a myriad of values like dedication, determination and team spirit.
This led them to the idea of ‘Howzzat’, a sports journal for kids. “There are stories behind the sport that we wanted to coax out of the children who have taken interest in the activity,” she explains.
Both founders are sports fanatics and they have taken the help of sports journalist K R Guruprasad to come up with the prompts in the book.
The journal poses questions that hope to delve deeper into a child’s passion for the sport. “For instance while watching a match one might say that the captain’s decision was wrong. The book puts the child in the position of the captain and asks them what they would do differently,” she says.
The book hopes to create a bond with sport and also serve as a keepsake for the future.
She adds that the book also hopes to bridge the gap between academics and sport. “We look at them as an either-or choice, which is not true. Every path is parallel to each other. There are multiple avenues in the field of sport that the child can go into that requires an academic background,” she says.
She gives the example of professions like managers, social media communication, physiotherapists, etc.
“With this journal, the child is not just keeping it to themselves. It would open up points of discussion between the parent and the child, strengthening the bond between them,” she adds.
Some of the sports journalists who looked at it wanted to fill in the book themselves, she says. Adding that the book has caught the attention of sports fans both young and old. The book is available for purchase on their website — bookosmia.com
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