Entrepreneur sets up free alternative school in Bengaluru

A city-based entrepreneur is setting up a small space in Nelamangala for an alternative school for homeschooled children. The space will be free of cost and accessible to a few families. It is expected to be ready by August.

Homeschooling came naturally to Hari Prasad Nadig and his wife, Suma Addoor. Soon after the birth of their daughter Samana, now 11, the couple realised it “would save her time and let her explore things” they couldn’t as children. Both Samana and their younger daughter, nine-year-old Sarayu, are homeschooled.

They also wanted to involve more like-minded families in the learning process. “The social aspect is always a concern with homeschooling. We try to address it by travelling, introducing the children to different people, and visiting friends on weekends. But I felt that bringing families together to share our homeschooling experiences and exchange insights would be valuable,” he explains. The couple encourages unschooling and self-learning, without imposing ideologies, schedules, or textbooks. “Recently, they were learning about the slender loris, which led me to learn more about it too,” he adds.

Learning opportunities are endless now, Nadig says. Samana speaks German in addition to English, Kannada, and Hindi, and is currently learning Spanish. Sarayu is picking up Japanese. With tablets and access to platforms like Khan Academy and other learning apps, resources are limitless.

The space, named Shallaki (a medicinal herb), will house around 9,000 books, including encyclopaedias, and Kannada works by literary greats like Kuvempu, as well as numerous DIY science and STEM-related titles.

Children will learn about farming, gardening, robotics, knitting, and other crafts. “The facility also includes a kitchen with a woodstove and a well, where children can learn about traditional cooking,” he adds. Other activities will include clay modelling, making natural dyes, and crafting with seeds. Nadig says the space will be open to homeschooling families on weekdays and to regular schoolchildren on weekends. “The weekend activities could include origami workshops, STEM activities, and nature-based sessions, among others,” he adds. The space will be open only to the first 4 to 5 families to sign up.

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