The Race to the Tree - A Lesson for Indian Parents on Education
🐘🐠🐱 The Race to the Tree: A Lesson for Indian Parents on Education 🐎🐒
Why our kids are struggling — and what we need to do differently.
Scene 1: A Jungle School.
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The bell rings. A group of animals — a monkey, a horse, a cat, an elephant, and a small fish in a glass bowl — sit nervously in front of the Principal.
The Principal clears his throat and says,
“Today’s exam is simple: Climb that tree.”
The monkey smirks, already halfway up the trunk.
The cat gives it a shot, claws out.
The horse stares in confusion — “How do I climb with hooves?”
The elephant doesn’t move — “I’ll break the tree!”
And the fish? She just looks around, gasping silently.
Now pause.
Imagine your child sitting in that classroom.
Imagine them being told to do something they were never built for — and then judged on it.
That’s the story of our education system.
And sadly, it’s the mindset many of us parents have inherited.
📚 One Report Card, Many Misunderstandings
Your child brings home a report card.
Math: A+
English: B
Hindi: C+
Art: A
Science: B+
What do most parents say?
“C+ in Hindi? Why? You’re not paying attention!
From tomorrow, tuitions start.”
We forget the A+ in Math.
We ignore the love for Art.
We skip the happiness in learning.
Instead, we zoom into the flaw.
The whole conversation becomes about what’s “weak.”
We turn learning into punishment, curiosity into comparison, and schools into pressure cookers.
👶🏼 But Every Child Is Born Different
Some children want to build.
Some want to dance.
Some love numbers.
Some dream in colors.
Some are quiet thinkers.
Some are stormy questioners.
And some? Some are just discovering who they are.
We expect them to be good at everything, all the time.
Why?
Do we parents excel at every task at work?
Do we enjoy every job we do?
So why this obsession with every subject and every class?
🧠 What We’re Doing Wrong — Silently
When we push our children too early into structured classes...
When we treat every slip-up as failure...
When we compare siblings, neighbors, cousins...
When we make studies the only measure of worth...
We slowly, quietly...
Kill their love for learning.
Mute their natural curiosity.
Teach them to perform — not to explore.
Force them to be someone they’re not.
🧒🏽 What Should Childhood Look Like (0–6 Years)?
A 3-year-old drawing on walls is not “naughty” — she’s expressing.
A 5-year-old who wants to play with pots instead of puzzles is not “distracted” — he’s experimenting.
Children learn best when they’re left to explore freely.
Between 0 to 6 years, their brain is still wiring itself.
Their attention span is 10–12 minutes.
Their likes change every week.
And yet, we ask them to sit still for 2 hours in a tuition class?
This isn’t learning. This is control.
✋ So What Can We Do?
Here’s what every parent can reflect on:
✅ Let them explore, even if it gets messy.
A muddy child is a learning child.
✅ Celebrate their strengths.
If they shine in drawing, clap louder than you scold for spellings.
✅ Don’t label. Don’t compare.
“Uska beta toh top karta hai” — Is that your parenting benchmark? Or your ego talking?
✅ If you choose early schooling, choose teachers who allow free expression.
No child should be scolded for coloring outside the lines.
✅ Most importantly, slow down.
Don’t rush to enroll them in everything. Let them breathe. Let them be.
🌱 A Gentle Reminder
That fish in the jungle?
She wasn’t failing.
She just wasn’t in her pond.
Your child is not failing.
They just need the right environment to swim.
Give them that.
Give them time.
Give them you.
Because childhood is not a race to the top of a tree.
It’s a slow, beautiful swim through wonder, mess, and magic.
🌟 So dear parents, change your mindset before you try to change your child.
Let them fall. Let them fail. Let them fly.
Because when you finally stop forcing the climb…
You might just see them soar in a way you never imagined.
#LetThemBe
#EveryChildIsUnique
#FreedomToExplore
#ParvarishWithLove
#ChildhoodIsNotACompetition
#MindsetShiftMatters
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