Kids learn best when they are having fun. I have found that my toddler is most excited to learn Gujarati when I associate the letters with fun activities or stories. That’s why each week we feature a Gujarati letter of the week, where we share activities and stories that are based on that letter. This week’s letter is ટ.
Creating Corner:
First up is ટ for ટોપી (hat)
**Celebrate the letter ટ by making a ટોપી and wearing it for the whole day. You make make the ટોપી out of newspaper or recycled paper to help out the environment, but get creative with it.
Next up is ટ for ટપાલ પેટી (mailbox).
Find an old cardboard box. If you go shop at Costco, or frequent Amazon, like me, then you probably have a lot lying around. If not, then you can find 4 thick pieces of cardboard and glue them together to fashion a cardboard box.
Glue pieces of scrap paper to each side of the box.
Cut a hole in the shape of a semi circle (or whichever shape is easiest) on one side. You can use this hole to empty the mail box. Most cardboard boxes already have a rectangular slit on one side of them. If yours does, then use that as your mail slot. If yours doesn't, then make your own!
Write ટપાલ પેટી on the side of the box.
Decorate the box! Use markers, glitter, pom-poms, or whatever you have lying around to jazz up your mailbox. You can also decorate the mailbox with drawings of other words that start with the letter ટ if you are in an extra brainy mood. Here are a few simple objects you can draw:
ટેકરી (tekari, hill) ,ટામેટું (tametu, tomato), ટોપી (topi, hat)
** Throughout the day you can send "mail" to different family members and friends. Make sure to have your kid practice writing ટ (or other Gujarati letters) on each piece of "mail" that you send out. I know my kid can get tired of homework, so this is an easy way to make practicing the alphabet a little more fun.
Activity Corner
Play વિરોધી શબ્દો (Opposites) with your kid. Say 1 word and have the kids guess the opposite word that starts with ટ.
ટેકરી (tekari, hill)--- opposite is ખીણ (kheen, valley)
ટુકડા (tukada, pieces)--- opposite is આખું (aakhu, whole)
ટૂંકું (tuko, Short)--- opposite is લાંબું (laambu, long)
ટાલ (taal, bald)--- opposite is વાળ (vad, hair)
Sing Tametu re tametu (ટામેટું રે ટામેટું) with your kid to help practice saying the letter ટ!
**There are lots of youtube videos with lyrics to this nursery rhyme if you are interested
** Depending on the age of your kid you can also play ટિંગા ટોરી (tingaa tori). This is essentially a rocking game where you place a child in the middle of a blanket. 2 people hold the two sides of the blanket and rock the child back and forth.
Character and Quality Corner:
While learning letters is super important, learning character is even more important. So why not do both simultaneously? Associating letters with characters helps pique my kid’s interest in Indian culture. Who better to learn about this week than the Indian hero who has not 1 but 2 ટs in his name!
Take this week to teach your kid about ટંટ્યા ટોપે (Tatya Tope), a general in the Indian Rebellion of 1857 against the British.
** While there aren't a lot of qualities that start with ટ, there is one really important concept-- the concept of habits or (ટેવ). What habits do you instill in your kid? One thing we do is have some introspection time every evening before bed where we list a few things we were grateful for that day!
Storytime:
My kid LOVES stories. I have found that relating Gujarati letters to specific stories helps her associate the letter with more words and helps her practice saying the letter out loud. Luckily, there are lots of fun stories with the letter ટ. Here are a few of my favorites:
Krishna holds Govardhan mountain on his little finger (ટચલી આંગળી, tachali angadi)
The monkey and the hat seller (ટોપી વેચનાર, topi vechnaar)
Check out these stories (and more) under the “Gujarati stories” tab on our website.
Word Salad
The best way to learn another language is to hear as many words as possible. Here are some extra words that start with the letter ટ!
ટ for ટોળા (tola, herd)
ટ for ટમેટા (tametu, tomato)
ટ for ટીંડોરા (tindora, ivy gourd)
ટ for ટગર (tagar, crepe jasmine flower)
ટ for ટીટોડી (titodi, lapwing bird)
ટ for ટેકરી (tekari, hill)
ટ for ટપાલ (tapaal, mail)
ટ for ટેબલ (table)
ટ for ટેલિફોન (telephone)
ટ for ટચલી આંગળી (tachali angadi, pinky finger)
ટ for ટપક સિંચાઈ સિસ્ટમ (tapak sinchai system, drip irrigation system)
ટ for ટોપી (topi, hat)
Question of the week!
Take a break from learning about ટ and stretch your mind (as well as your legs) with the question of the week.
Q: Why do clouds move across the sky? What are they made of?
A: Clouds move based on the movement of wind. Clouds are made of little pieces of water and ice that stick to tiny particles of dust in the sky. For a more detailed answer you can check out this simple video about clouds: https://ca.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/evscps.sci.life.clouds/clouds-and-weather/
Here is another link to a really cool blogpost that has 3 different experiments that you can do with your kid to help them learn more about clouds: https://www.brighthubeducation.com/preschool-crafts-activities/107909-three-experiments-on-clouds/