Schools have a major role in children’s life. It is not only necessary for academics but also for psychological and physical well beings of children. Due to the ongoing pandemic schools are shut since March 2020 and will remain so majorly during the next academic year as well. 

When we at Eklavya Foundation realized that our children will not be able to go to schools for major part of the year, we had to do something immediately. Learning Activity Centres (LACs) are a result of this. 

Due to Covid-19, gatherings and group activities aren’t allowed, so we have decentralized the whole idea of community schooling. Children will meet in groups of 5-6 in each neighborhood and have an activity center near their house facilitated by someone from their community (preferably an elder sibling or youth from the community). The activity centers focus on ‘learning by doing’, ‘learning from the environment’ and ‘learning from each others’.  Eklavya Foundation provides all the necessary support like stationary and training for the facilitators to keep these LACs functioning. 

LACs are trying to mitigate the academic gap created due to the pandemic and also tries to focus on the psychological well being of the children by conducting activities like story telling, engaging in conversations about their day, listening to what the children have to say about the pandemic etc.

Currently around 300 LACs  are active while following all the precautions for covid-19 like wearing masks, regularly washing hands, physical distancing. These LACs are in interior and tribal areas of Madhya pradesh where majority of the children are first or second generation school goers.

Eklavya Foundation requires all the support it can get to keep these LACs running for these children.