December 2025
Greetings,
In today’s discussion session of the Aawaj Child Group, after reviewing our previous meeting, we began a discussion on the topic “Effective Communication.” The session started with the question: “What is communication?” One by one, the participants shared their understanding. Their responses included:
- Listening to others
- Speaking for oneself
- Observing
- Responding
Building on their answers, I explained that communication is the process of exchanging our feelings, thoughts, needs, information, and ideas. Communication happens when we speak, write, use gestures, or express ourselves through facial expressions. In our daily lives—at home, at school, on the playground, and within the community—we are constantly communicating. Therefore, communication is an extremely important part of our lives.
I then moved the discussion forward by asking, “What do we mean by the means of communication?” The participants responded with answers such as mobile phones, television, and radio. Adding to this, I explained that while these are important tools, we ourselves are also a medium of communication. Similarly, school teachers, social media, posters and notices, the village watchman, street dramas, and many other sources are all means of communication.
From there, I introduced the types of communication, explaining that the different methods or ways we use to understand or express ourselves are called types of communication. These include:
Types of Communication
- Verbal Communication – Communication done through speaking. For example, talking with friends or when teachers teach in the classroom.
- Written Communication – Communication done through writing, such as writing in notebooks, letters, or mobile messages.
- Non-verbal (Gestural) Communication – Communication done without words, using gestures or signals. For example, nodding the head to say yes or no, or using hand gestures to call someone.
- Emotional Communication – Communication expressed through facial expressions or actions, such as smiling, showing anger, or crying.
During the discussion, I asked the group, “What is the importance of communication?” Based on their responses, the importance of communication was summarized as follows:
Importance of Communication
- Helps build good relationships – Speaking politely and clearly helps maintain good relationships with friends, family, and teachers.
- Reduces misunderstandings – Clear communication helps prevent conflicts and confusion.
- Builds self-confidence – Being able to express one’s thoughts openly increases self-confidence.
- Helps solve problems – Discussions and open communication make problem-solving easier.
- Promotes cooperation and friendship – Listening to each other fosters teamwork and friendship.
In this way, good communication helps us build easy, friendly, and respectful relationships with others.
To reinforce learning, the participants were engaged in two different games related to communication.
In the first game (focused on verbal communication), all participants stood in a single line. I whispered a sentence into the ear of the person at the back, who then passed it on quietly to the next person. By the time it reached the last participant, the original sentence “An umbrella fell from the roof” changed into “Umbrella stamp,” showing how messages can get distorted.
In the second game (focused on non-verbal communication), I used hand, leg, and head movements to convey certain signals. Participants then followed and passed on those gestures one by one.
When asked what they learned from these two games, participants shared the following insights:
- We should listen carefully before passing information to others.
- To receive correct information, it is essential to observe and listen attentively.
- We learned how small issues in society can turn into big problems.
- We understood that conflicts grow and become serious due to poor communication.
- We learned that we should always share only correct and accurate information.
I acknowledged their learning and encouraged them with appreciation. Finally, I shared some important qualities of good communication, explaining that effective communication includes listening attentively, using polite and kind language, speaking in turns, expressing ideas clearly, being truthful and realistic, and respecting others’ feelings.
I concluded by encouraging everyone to become children who practice good communication, and then shared information about the next meeting before closing today’s session.
Sincerely,
Binod Kumar Ram