SHILLONG, Jan 22: As part of its 20th Annual Winter Workshop, participants of this programme joined in with Sohrarim Nook, a community learning space at Sohrarim (Old Sohra) under the Khatarshnong Laitkroh block of East Khasi Hills, to celebrate Meghalaya’s 51st Statehood Day on Saturday.
During the community visit by the Winter Workshop participants, they had the opportunity to immerse in an interactive learning-while-doing experience with the learners from the nook, and also engaged in various activities with other children from the community.
A brief programme to commemorate Meghalaya Day was also held.
More than 30 young girls and boys in the age group 6-15 years have enrolled for the 15-day Winter Workshop on self-awareness, communication skills, confidence building, values, leadership, STEM and Talent & Aspirations, through interactive two-hour daily sessions that include games and activities.
The workshop started on January 6.
Sohrarim Nook was established in 2021 under the ‘Salesforce Trailblazer Community Lab’ initiative, through the support of the state government, as a pilot open learning space which aims to provide rural youth with easily accessible community-based education, tailor-made to the needs and interests of the local population.
The main objective of the nook is to facilitate open learning for all citizens of the local community who are interested in any form of skill exploration and development.
A key component of the Avenues Winter Workshop curriculum is to instil in young minds a sense of community, cultural pride and ownership in terms of meaningful contribution towards the growth of society.
Saturday’s get-together of children at the nook brought many walls, formed by social and economic diversities, down to make room for a space that inspired trust, mutual respect and harmony.
From socialising with one another, sharing food, communicating with each other in limited Khasi and English, emerged human potential at its best.
Avenues is a personal excellence training social enterprise founded in 2003. Its interventions address the gap between formal education and life readiness in young boys and girls through programmes that build confidence, clarity of thought, communication skills, aspirations and wellbeing.
Over the course of its 20-year journey as a social enterprise, AVENUES’s personal development programmes have impacted more than 100,000 youths across North East India.