These are the parliaments of Mumbai Smiles

We like explaining why the preschools of Mumbai Smiles have great value.

On the one hand, they have it because for many boys and girls they are a safe space, which protects them from child labor, from begging or from falling into the hands of human trafficking networks.

and on the other hand, in many cases they mean the only opportunity a day to access a healthy and balanced diet. As well as being able to monitor their growth and health status. There is no doubt that they are important because they are a learning space that helps to acquire basic knowledge; to access compulsory education and to do so with a certain level and guarantees. They are also important because of the opportunity for development and autonomy that they represent for the teachers and assistants in each center. As well as by the networks that are generated in the educational community and with families and the learning that takes place beyond academics about the environment and its care.

These are already many reasons that highlight the value of these nursery schools, without forgetting how much fun the boys and girls have. Today, we want to look at another aspect: children’s parliaments.

This activity is a real laboratory for citizens, who already are, but who will be even stronger in the future. These days we have organized the third sessions in the different nursery schools, and their objective is to create a safe and trusting space in which the boys and girls know that they can express those incidents they have had or what worries them or their proposals. They are spaces for debate with their classmates and teachers in which speaking, listening and participating is essential. The issues that arise are often related to classes, classmates, but also families, so the role of teachers is a key factor to see that everything is resolved and taking its place.

We always love listening to the students, but seeing how such young children have made this space their own does not only make us proud but makes us have a lot of hope for the future.