editorial
For the Parent in you To know, to understand, to connect
T
oday, more and more women are entering the workforce, either for financial reasons or because of their passion and interest, or in order to forge a career for themselves. Yet, they continue to bear the major responsibilities on the home front – taking care of children and elderly parents, meal preparation and other household chores. The resulting stress and anxiety can easily take their toll on these women as they strive to strike a work-life balance. These women hold the key to our future by nurturing our children to take on the reins of the world. Therefore, their well-being is essential to the well-being of our world. It is time that we acknowledge and respect these women for all the work they do – both inside and outside the home. Corporates and government should adopt policies and support services to help women achieve a positive work-life balance.
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In our cover story ‘Family-Friendly Workplaces: Options for the Working Woman’, we have talked to several working women as well as corporates that are leading the way in establishing family-friendly policies at work. These policies have not only helped improve employee retention rates, they have also helped boost the spirits and morale of the employees. Children too need a place to call their own, a place where they can do their own thing – from quiet reading to playful pranks to creative arts. Our special, ‘A Room of their Own’, gives ideas and tips on how to go about planning this special place for your child. Often, the questions children ask, particularly with regard to their bodies and how babies are born, can make you blush and want to brush the question away. But in today’s world, where information is freely available at the touch of a button, isn’t it better that your child gets his answers directly from you rather than from an unreliable source that inappropriately glamorizes or derogates sex and one’s body? Read our article ‘Educating Your Child about Sex’ to see how you can approach this sensitive topic with your child in a matter-of-fact way. I leave you to explore this issue with a thought: “Do not ask that your kids live up to your expectations. Let your kids be who they are, and your expectations will be in breathless pursuit.” ~Robert Brault
NALINA RAMALAKSHMI PUBLISHER & EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Nalina Ramalakshmi MANAGING EDITOR Nitya Varadarajan ASSISTANT EDITOR Chitra Satyavasan SENIOR EDITOR - COPY DESK Shashwathi Sandeep CONTENT COORDINATOR Asita Haq
CREATIVE HEAD Rangashree Srinivas SENIOR DESIGNER G Swarupa GRAPHIC DESIGNER M Ravisankar PRODUCTION CONSULTANT S Venkataraaman ADMINISTRATION Sheeja Sasindran
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Parent Circle is published by Nalina Ramalakshmi, Director, Shri Harini Media Pvt. Ltd. All editorial material including editorial comments, opinions and statement of facts appearing in this publication, represent the views of its respective authors and does not necessarily carry the endorsement of the publishers. Information carried in Parent Circle is gathered from sources considered to be reliable, but the accuracy of all information cannot be guaranteed. The publication of any advertisements or listings is not to be construed as an endorsement of the product or service offered.
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contents
RESOURCES 52
PARENT CHEF Chocolate Special
54
CHECK IT OUT World Cinema
FORUM 6
COVER STORY
26
Family-Friendly Workplaces OPTIONS FOR THE WORKING WOMAN
YOUR WORD
56
YOUR IDEAS Every Trick in the Book
58
VIEWPOINT Little Ways to Cut Your
60
DISCUSSION POINT How Responsive are
REGULARS 8
LEARNING Bookmaking: A Cognitive and
Creative Process
11
LEARNING Everyday Experiments!
12
MINDSET Educating Your Child about Sex
18
TEEN CIRCLE 10 Ways to Focus Your
Teen’s Wandering Mind
24
CAREERS A Career in Interior Designing
34
FEATURE The Great Indian Holiday
40
NUTRITION Diet and Digestion
42
HEALTH CIRCLE Care for Your Child’s Hair
48
MONEY WISE Make your child learn
50
about money
ROOTS Of Gods, Goblins and Gopurams
ON THE COVER VINITHRA SEKHAR WITH TAMIRA PHOTOGRAPH BY ALPESH VEKARIA
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Parent Circle / July 2012
Carbon Footprint
SPECIAL
Schools to Parents?
20
A Room of their Own DESIGNING SPACES FOR YOUR CHILD
learning
A CREATIVE AND COGNITIVE PROCESS BY SRIVI KALYAN
There are several artistic and cognitive processes that are activated when children create a book. Often, we are led to believe that cognitive processes belong to the realm of the sciences and math, while artistic processes belong to the realm of the arts. But there is considerable interdependence between these two processes. Bookmaking is an expression of this interdependence. 8
Parent Circle / July 2012
“Imagination is more important than knowledge.” Albert Einstein
F
ive hundred years ago, Leonardo Da Vinci painted the Mona Lisa; he also drew blueprints for the world’s first submarine and the world’s first helicopter. He built the world’s first hydraulic jack, a rotating stage, a waterpowered alarm clock and an extendable ladder - the design of which is still being used by fire departments today. Did he have an artistic mind, a scientific one or a mathematical one? Did he have a macro-focus, or a micro-focus? He made no distinctions – he had a unified mind and his brilliance showed through. Let us look back at the children of our generation and the young ones today. As children, our parents would take us out for walks. Then with great delight my sister and I would discover a flower, a blade of grass, a stone, a shell or a tree. Our parents were right there with us, rediscovering each of these
things. We would get into extensive discussions on the colour, form, beauty, and the wonder and surprise of how each of these is a part of our world. Each of our little walks was a lesson in the aesthetics of our world, the science of its existence, the spirituality, mystery and mysticism of the universe we inhabit, and the empathy of being connected in such a remarkable world. There was no separatism in our attitude to science or arts or geography. We grew up well-rounded. Today we seem to take great pleasure in putting labels on our children. If a child shows an artistic inclination, he is creative; if he is into sciences, he is studious; if he likes history, he is a little weird, if he is good at mathematics, he is brilliant. We should step back and ask ourselves whether such labels make sense. And once we are convinced about how crazy we are to perpetuate these labels, we can start by asking a different set of questions.
special
DESIGNING SPACES FOR YOUR CHILD BY SUKADHA PARTHASARATHY
20 Parent Circle / July 2012
This is a two-part article. In this issue, we will offer general tips related to safety, buying furniture, choosing beds and arranging storage spaces in children’s rooms. We also have experts offering their ideas on what you should consider while designing your child’s room. Our next issue will carry the second part of this article, focusing on age-appropriate design tips.
careers
Interior Design A career in
BY SHASHWATHI SANDEEP
I
nterior design has existed from times immemorial. The kings and princes of yore - particularly the Mughal kings - built large palaces and had lavish, decorous interiors. Extraordinary structures like the Taj Mahal and Khajuraho are equally known for their exemplary and intricately done interiors. “Owing to a lack of exposure to the possibilities and transforming effects of interior design, it was not given importance by the emerging middle class or corporate offices, until two decades ago. The subject was relegated to being a minor one under architecture. Today, it is a vast field,” says Kunnakudi Srinivasan, Chairman, Institute of Indian Interior Designers, Chennai chapter. Traditionally, functionality was the main criteria. “The interior design of an average home would often consist of stone or mosaic flooring, painted walls, colonial furniture handed down for generations and local arts and crafts adorning the walls,” adds Srinivasan.
24 Parent Circle / July 2012
“People did not worry about the kind of lighting in their dwellings, nor did they worry about floor and wall finishes, nor did they consider different ways of doing their kitchens.” Only when multinationals entered the Indian market and set up offices having interiors on par with their overseas centres did the nation wake up. “People would visit these offices and be amazed by the interiors. They aspired for similar interiors in their homes,”says Srinivasan. Interior designing is now recognized as a distinct profession- quite different from the decorators and architects, who have been dominating the field for historic reasons. Though the subject has gained considerable importance, it is still relatively nascent; hence there is still a dearth of good and innovative designers in our country.
Criteria
To join a course in this field one should have completed her 12th standard. “Passion is the main criteria in this field.
One has to be creative and have a liking for the subject. Success in this field depends on one’s design vocabulary and drawing skills,” says Srinivasan. Design vocabulary would refer to the student’s understanding of space, colour, usage of material and an understanding of various styles – from Victorian, Gothic, Indian (like Chettinad, Rajput or Mughal) to the contemporary. “The candidate should be able to play with the various elements of styling and the technologies available to incorporate them. He should try out new and different things. The materials are all available - how it gets coordinated and assembled, is interior designing,” Srinivasan says. This is one of the few courses that does not have an age limit for entry. “We have students even above 40 years, working for MNCs, who want to learn interior designing out of interest,” says Sharmila KV, counsellor, Dream Zone.
cover story
FamilyFriendly Workplaces Options for the working woman BY NITYA VARADARAJAN
Y
ou are going to have a baby. You are worried about what you will do after the delivery as you do not have the necessary support at home to take care of your child. Should you resign? But you don’t want to. What should you do to ensure that you remain a working mother? In the last 10-15 years, at least 1.2 million women, who are graduates and more, have left the workplace after marriage to start a family. If they were working today, they would be collectively earning `50 billion (courtesy: FLEXI Careers). Still many more mothers are at crossroads today, wondering whether to continue working or not. This dilemma of working mothers is leading to high attrition rates. Many companies are wondering how to address this problem. When Parent Circle spoke to a few mothers working at various companies, they said that they considered resigning either because the commute was too tiring or because of long working hours including working Saturdays. This disturbed their worklife balance, affected their health and eventually, led to very little patience in handling the home and children.
26 Parent Circle / July 2012
They also had a wishlist. They wanted companies to consider posting a mother at an office closer to home or near the preferred crèche/daycare centre (banks, insurance and financial services companies could take a lead), instead of sending them to remote offices and outstations. NonIT companies can deploy technology and adopt flexibility in the workplace. For instance, usage of video-conferencing facilities, BlackBerry, and email approvals instead of signed memos can easily bring a few flexi-work options into the workplace. A few mothers added that companies should change their perception that a woman wanting to work from home is actually opting for a slower
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