9. Arunima Sinha

Time: At least two periods or till the teacher is satisfied

Learning objective: To enable the students to focus on the trust within them and on physical strength and power of mind.

Start the class with mindfulness – ask the students to focus on their breath for 2-3 minutes.

Direction of Discussion (For Teachers): It is often seen that some people lack physical strength yet are able to not only manage all their daily physical needs, but also go on to achieve much higher accomplishments with their mental power. We have examples like Helen Keller, Stephen Hawking and Sudha Chandran. On the contrary, there are many other people who are more physically fit and yet easily get very worried. These people have very low self-confidence.
Through this story and its questions, attention of the students would be drawn to the power of the mind, so that it becomes clear to them that the physical power and power of mind are two different realities. With this, each student would see the possibility of cultivating their power of mind and aiming high in their lives on that basis even if physical strength and capabilities may vary widely among the students.

Story
Arunima Sinha belongs to Ambedkar Nagar in Uttar Pradesh and has been working in the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) since 2012. She’s also been a national-level volleyball player. In April 2011, when she was travelling from Lucknow to Delhi, somewhere near Bareilly some people tried to snatch her bag and gold chain. Arunima gave them a tough fight but she was pushed out of the train and lost a leg.
After this incident, she did not want to live a life of helplessness. She decided to scale the heights of Mount Everest. The television show “To Do Something” fueled her passion. She was also deeply inspired by cricketer Yuvraj Singh who defeated a disease like cancer and was back on the field for his country. Mountaineer Bachendri Pal told her, “Arunima, against all odds you’ve so firmly decided to climb Everest, you’re already there. Now the only thing left is to show it to people.”
Arunima showed exemplary courage despite the physical handicap and tough conditions. On May 21, 2013, she climbed to the top of the highest mountain peak in the world and created history. Arunima’s determination did not let her stop at this feat. She climbed to the top of the highest mountain peaks of all seven continents. The first woman amputee to do so, Arunima is the pride of our country and her record has become an inspiration for everyone.

Day 1

Proposed questions for discussion
1. Do we require just physical strength to complete a task or we also need mental strength ? Discuss.
2. Do we always need another person to increase our mental strength or can we increase our mental strength ourselves too? Discuss.

At home – Observe, Enquire, Understand (for students)
  • Students should discuss the story at home and understand the thoughts and views of their family members.
  • Students should collect information about people with disabilities who have defeated all odds and achieved what most people won’t dare to try. They should share this information in class.
Ask the students to sit quietly for 1-2 minutes and reflect on the essence drawn from the day’s discussion.

Day 2

Start the class with mindfulness – ask the students to focus on their breath for 2-3 minutes.
  • Have some students recall the story. You may adopt various ways for helping the students recall it, like, getting one of them to narrate the story, role-play, pairing the students and letting them tell each other etc.
  • Have them share the feedback received from their homes in small groups. Some students can share their thoughts with the entire class.
  • The first day’s discussion questions can be used again for the remaining students.
Additional questions of discussion
1. Everyone has infinite mental capability to think and understand but despite this, not everyone is able to achieve higher accomplishments. Why ?
2. Despite being strong physically, why are some people unable to achieve higher accomplishments ?
3. What have you thought to achieve with your mental power ? Share in class.
4. Some people get anxious with a slight change in their circumstances while some others achieve success even in very adverse circumstances. What can be the reason for this? Discuss.

Ask the students to sit quietly for 1-2 minutes and reflect on the essence drawn from the day’s discussion.

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