International Day of Education 2023: This Mumbai-based platform is adding a splash of colour to the city's municipal school walls

Volunteers paint an astronaut mural of a Coimbatore school corridor

Remember the days spent staring outside the windows of your school, planning an escape to new adventures? Perhaps a vibrantly painted wall telling a fascinating story might have held your attention better. A Mumbai-based digital volunteering platform, ConnectFor, seeks to do just that. This Sunday, they will take a trip to the Kanenagar Municipal School in Antop Hill as part of the ConnectFor Artshala programme, to usher in some colour into the lives of children.

"We realised that there is much work to be done among children from underprivileged communities," says Sneha Suryawanshi, senior associate, operations, who will be part of the weekend project. "These children face various issues at home and within their community, which in turn affect their mental health," she points out. The projects are often chosen to serve the needs of children in marginalised or under-served neighbourhoods.

A classroom corridor being painted at Antop Hill

Art, in more ways than one, offers a healing touch. It brightens up dour municipal school spaces in need of maintenance, Suryawanshi says. "Many municipal classrooms across the country are in bad condition. They are often not painted for years," Arati Kale, senior associate, business development, adds. Kale notes that the idea is to brighten up the space with educational artworks.

To do this, the organisation teams up with NGOs across the country which help them pick schools in need of a facelift. "We then have our volunteer artists come in and sketch artworks on the walls. This is then coloured in by our volunteers," Kale explains. She describes that in addition to the aesthetic appeal, the artworks also function as tools for visual learning. "In the classrooms, we have artworks pertaining to their curriculum, while the corridors will have educational artwork that enable visual learning in addition to the curriculum and classroom-based learning," she says.

The interiors of a classroom. Pics Courtesy/ConnectFor

The volunteers for Artshala often range from the age of five (accompanied by guardians) to 80-year-olds. Since 2017, the organisation has managed to add colour to the walls of over 35 to 40 schools around the country. "In the last year alone, we have painted schools in Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Coimbatore and more," informs Suryawanshi.

The result is an improvement in retention rates. "The attendance is often poor among children at these schools. But since it is a more vibrant atmosphere, children feel happy to come to school," Suryawanshi notes.

Sneha Suryawanshi and Arati Kale

Participation is open to everyone. The team often provides brushes and paints to volunteers who can find their own inner child while participating in this social project.

On December 4; 10 am to 1 pm
At Kanenagar Municipal Marathi School, Dosti Acres, Antop Hill.
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Free

A season to give

. Sign up and learn to make door mats from old T-shirts with the Seva Charitable Trust, and help the adivasi community in SGNP gain valuable life skills and sustainable livelihoods.
On December 11; 10 am to 12 pm at Sanjay Gandhi National Park, Borivali East. Cost Rs 77 (Entry fee)

. Spread some Christmas cheer among children from marginalised communities through fun and interactive games like storytelling, singing carols, quizzes,
and more.
On December 17; 10 am to 12 pm At Online Log on to insider.in/connectfor.org