Grandpas and a library of stories 

A call from the principal always meant a sound scolding for the “naughtiest student”, Amiya Bhattacharya. Only this time it was different. The now 83-year-old grandfather to Class IX student Aishiki Bhattacharya entered the sprawling library of Swarnim International School as a storyteller or “human library” for Class IV.

“But I still found myself quaking in my shoes. The memory of my school days kept coming back,” said Bhattacharya, who regaled his young audiences with stories of his village school, back-bench pranks and the trouble that he would get into for playing truant.

To give children an experience of listening to real-life stories, Swarnim International School organised a “human library” or “living library” session with the grandparents of three of its students.

The “human books” kept the children hooked with tales from their lives, giving them an insight into a past generation and some living legacies.

The children were divided into three groups and each group had a grandpa interacting with them at different zones in the school.

“I told the kids how living in a large family meant I could sneak out of home any time without being noticed. How my much-smaller classrooms overlooked greenery, rather than a concrete jungle. I also remember reading Dicken’s David Copperfield from the school library though it was just a cupboard and not a room full of books,” he said.

Another storyteller Haradhan Dey, grandfather to Class VI student Debarghya Dey, had spent 20 years in the Indian Air Force. “What better way to hold the children’s interest but to spare some of my personal war experiences,” he said.

From tales of MIG 21 to “chicken guns”, Dey had the children learn new things from his stories. “In my times, guns were used to fire chickens at the plane engines to check for bird hits,” he explained.

Harshi Patel of Class IV, Swarnim International School, is looking forward to many more storytelling sessions. “It was a very different experience. Hearing tales of back-bench mischief from a generation, conceived as mature and wise, was surreal. The stories seemed from a different world, yet similar at the same time,” she said.

Seventy-five years old Saroj Basu spoke of how he would have to travel 6km by foot to school, something his audience found surprising.

“I can’t imagine walking so far to school. We were also told the benefits of walking and staying fit. I used to enjoy detective tales in the past but human books are as interesting,” said Maneet Chakraborty of Class IV.

His classmate Ahitagni Upadhyay felt like reliving a wonderful memory. “I have listened to lots of stories from my grandparents. Hearing tales of war was new but the session made me very nostalgic,” she said.

“The human library is a unique concept that transforms people into “books” full of life stories. I had seen such events happening abroad. So, I decided to invite the grandparents of our students to be the first “living books” here. We hope to make this a regular affair and involve senior citizens of old age homes as well,” said principal Rumjhumi Biswas.

Though not "human libraries", many schools in the city are encouraging storytelling as a tool to promote reading habits in kids. Some also have storytelling clubs. In Mahadevi Birla World Academy, storytelling is an important part of school activity.

“Storytelling is a pedagogical tool here. Children have been so inspired by it, that we have budding in-house storytellers who often give up their lunch breaks to narrate stories to their juniors. A Class IV student, Shanaya Singh, has taken it to the next level by hosting a storytelling club of her own,” said Nupur Ghosh, its vice-principal.

Last year, Julien Day School, Ganganagar, had conducted a storytelling competition for Classes III to VIII. An initiative of principal Bobby Baxter, the talent hunt saw many students coming up with original tales and using handmade props.