The document is an essay by Ishan Bahl about discovering and falling in love with the art of origami as a child after watching his cousin fold paper into different shapes. Fascinated, he asked his cousin to teach him and soon became hooked on his new hobby, learning from books and online to make more complex models. He decided to share his passion by teaching origami to children at several schools in his community, which was a rewarding experience that he hopes the children enjoyed and will remember. The essay then describes his experiences teaching different classes of children, from enthusiastic groups to a challenging class of street children.

1. ORIGAMI & I
A Labor of Love by Ishan Bahl

2. I would watch my cousin sit with a piece of paper and with
a few deft moves he would transform it into a bird…
followed by a rabbit… then a cube! All that was needed
was a square piece of colored paper for the magic to
begin.
Fascinated, I asked him to teach me this amazing Japanese
paper-folding technique and in no time I was hopelessly
hooked to my new hobby. Learning from books and the
Internet, I soon graduated to more complex models. My
favorite shape is the dragon.
The word “ boredom” has been effectively struck out of
my vocabulary.
Photography: Shreya Bahl

3. Straight from the heart
Origami has given me many hours of pleasure. I
decided to share my love for this art by teaching
it to children in schools run by an NGO (NonGovernment Organization) in my community. I
selected 6 such schools - APARNA TRUST, THE
HAPPY SCHOOL, PROJECT WHY, SAMPARN
SCHOOL , KHOJ & THE LEARNING CENTRE.
Teaching Origami was a rewarding and enjoyable
experience. I hope I was able to give my young
pupils some moments of enjoyment that they
will cherish. I know I will cherish this experience
for a long, long time.

4. Today is my first class. I am a
little nervous as I am not sure
if the children will enjoy this
new experience.
I see a smile on each child’s
face and I know that this is
going to be fun for all of us!
I start by teaching them a
jumping frog. They are very
excited. Some even call me
“Sir”, to which I am thrilled to
respond.
I then teach them how to
make a heart and they are
delighted with their work.

5. Now I am much more
at ease . This time I
have a larger group of
kids who show a lot of
enthusiasm, which I
find very encouraging.
They are very eager to
learn how to make a
bird so I teach them
how to make a crane.
Many of them ask me
for extra sheets so they
can practice at home.
This makes me very
happy.

6. Today I meet the most
energetic group of kids.
They are all trying to
catch my attention at
the same time, as they
want to show me each
step of their
construction. I really
enjoy this class, mainly
because I am able to
focus all my energy into
instructing. I am very
proud of the kids - and
of myself once we
complete making the
boat.

7. The school I visit today is
located in a very remote area
and there aren’t too many
children.
However, the size of the
group does not matter as all
the children work with a lot
of patience.
This experience is different
from the others in the way
that the only voice that can
be heard in the room is mine.
The children are quiet and
engrossed in every fold that I
make.

8. Today I teach children
who have never had any
form of education. They
are a group of street
children and it is very
difficult to hold their
attention. Many of them
are restless and not very
keen on learning. Instead,
they run around the
classroom and play
amongst themselves. This
is my most challenging
class. A few are very
interested and I am able
to teach them with ease.