“Ennaku high five illaya?”

Last year when I was taking class 3-4 at ADW I had quite a few interesting students and one among them really touched my life and showed me how much our work makes a difference in their lives. One hot sweltering afternoon, I reached school bouncing with excitement to have an interesting end to my day after a rather dull day of classes in college. It was going to be my first-time taking class for the third and fourth graders as before that, being a first year I had only taken classes for the first and second grade. I was to take prepositions and teach them the meaning for a few words which seemed quite simple enough, however I had been warned that third graders had ten times the energy of first graders and were far more mischievous than first and second graders combined. As I was entering, a boy walked out of the classroom with a notebook in his hand and flung it outside the classroom door along with a box containing all his pencils and crayons into the playground while all his classmates and the teacher looked on. I immediately understood that what I had received were no empty words of warning. On reaching class I understood that the kids were in no mood to study and it took a lot of cajoling and bribery to get them to start. I promised that the students who finished writing all the words on the board and explained the meaning when pointed to, would get a high five. This technique had worked wonders in class one and two where kids were highly enthusiastic once high fives were promised. It seemed to be working well in class three and four as well with the students getting out their notebooks and starting to write. I had written two or three words on the board when I noticed the same boy sitting in the corner of the classroom making airplanes out of torn notebook papers. I went up to him and asked him to start writing the words so that he could catch up to his class but he straight out refused. After about ten minutes of pleading I realized that the entire class was now lagging and hence decided to come back to him. Again, after a little while I went back to him and tried unfolding his paper planes to get him paper to write however he turned the other way facing the window with his back to the board. By then, I was done with all the writing words and had only a short poem to explain as the class teacher had requested. I turned the entire class in the same direction he was sitting so that he was sitting in front and decided to start teaching. As soon as he realized what was happening, he stood up and tried fleeing. Clutching his arm in one hand and the book in the other I proceeded with the work. This continued till the end of the class. As usual all the students held their palms upwards as I was leaving and we did all the high fives as promised while running around the classroom. However, he remained seated till I left. For the next three weeks, the class turned towards whichever side he was facing and I held his arm or got him to sit right next to me as I taught. Not once was I able to get him to take a pencil and write any of the portions or utter a word. He never participated in any of the class activities. He did stop running around and creating a ruckus however. At the end of the three weeks, school was breaking for the final exams and for their summer vacations after that so as I wished the kids good luck and told them I’ll see them next year. This time many more of the children asked me to sign my name onto their books and draw many more of the smileys and stars I usually draw as reward for neat work. We did our usual round of high fives and monkeying around and I proceeded to leave. I put on my shoes outside the class and joined my group of VITeachers outside when he came leaping and running towards me and with a large goofy grin said “Ennaku high five illaya?” which translates to no high five for me? It was one of the biggest surprises I had ever gotten as this child, who had never spoken to me and barely even looked at me, who I was positive had quite a grudge towards me for restraining him was in front of me grinning from ear to ear like a chesire cat and asking for a high five. I recovered and held my palm upwards which he promptly struck before springing and running back to his class. I returned from school that day never having felt more satisfied, grateful and joyous. That was also the day that I knew that I was in the right club for me.