My Republica

Usha Pokharel

Usha Pokharel is an educationist and author of several children’s books.
usha@pokharel.net

Growing pains

Published On: April 8, 2017 12:08 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

Growing pains are not a disease and you will not have to take your child to doctor. They occur in up to 40 percent of children

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Curious children

Published On: March 25, 2017 12:15 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

Do you realize that as your children investigate, their experiences fuel their development?

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Raising them right

Published On: March 11, 2017 12:15 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

Do not try to stifle their curiosity, like our parents did, with a standard answer to every question

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Getting old

Published On: February 25, 2017 08:18 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

Some thoughts are so strong they literally refuse to go away. With age such thoughts become even stronger. Yes, you have one too. The thought of aging, a beautiful and graceful process initially, but with each passing year, progressively ugly, if you do not keep changing your perception of aging.

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Wonders of fire

Published On: February 11, 2017 12:15 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

Every winter when the temperature starts to dip, I start thinking of fireplaces. Reading books by the fireplaces is an amazing experience

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Our own Pandoras

Published On: January 28, 2017 12:15 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

“We had Pandora who brought all the troubles to the world and you have your politicians”

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Name game

Published On: January 14, 2017 12:15 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

Instead of calling their mother by her name Kamal Mani-ji suggested that his children address their mother as ‘Deviji’ and the name stayed

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Play and learn

Published On: December 31, 2016 12:15 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

Play materials should match the developmental stage of the child. They should also be safe and age-appropriate

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Young thinkers

Published On: December 17, 2016 12:35 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

You cannot only blame schools and teachers. Parents are equally guilty for the poor state of our children’s education

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Stuff of dreams

Published On: December 3, 2016 12:15 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

Just by listening to their young ones’ dreams parents can learn a lot about their children

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Embracing boredom

Published On: November 19, 2016 12:15 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

Research suggests being a little bored is good. Those dull periods provide us time to reflect and help solve problems

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Preschool worries

Published On: November 5, 2016 12:35 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

Starting school for the first time is a big step, both for parents and children but there is some level of stress involved with it too

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Post Dashain reflections

Published On: October 22, 2016 12:15 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

I close my eyes and travel back 55 years to the Dashain in my maternal grandparents’ house in Majhgaon, Assam

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Durga and Dashain

Published On: October 8, 2016 12:05 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

Stories of Goddess Durga will be told and heard for generations and generations to come. What might change is with whom Dashain is celebrated

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Durgo Pujo, 1966

Published On: September 24, 2016 12:15 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

Durga Puja in Kolkata is akin to the extravagant frenzy of the Carnival in Rio de Janeiro of Brazil

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Useless homework

Published On: September 10, 2016 12:25 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

For elementary-level students, research suggests, classwork is enough and homework is just burden

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Handling abuse

Published On: August 27, 2016 12:25 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

Most times children are raped in one-on-one settings by a parent, family friend, babysitter or a neighbor

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Bedtime fears

Published On: August 13, 2016 12:25 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

Young children have more anxiety, fears and phobias than adults and their experiences are more intense

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Children and fantasy

Published On: July 30, 2016 12:35 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

Even a small child is capable of distinguishing between reality and fantasy, whether in stories, real life, books or movies

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Rear them right

Published On: July 9, 2016 12:25 AM NPT By: Usha Pokharel

Social gatherings provide me with a useful glimpse of what parents think about their children and what bothers them. Recently, I have noticed more and more parents having a hard time raising their children. At one gathering the other day, I heard two mothers talk about their children. One of them was worried for not being able to handle her strong-willed child. She was complaining and was wondering what she could do to handle her ‘difficult and stubborn’ young child. But what makes a child strong-willed?

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