This week I’ve been diving deeper into Indian culture. I continued to chat with Jerin to get some more insights into the Punjabi and Sikh culture. It has been great to learn from someone familiar but not an expert; it makes things less intimidating than talking with someone who is polished and experienced at speaking Punjabi. As well, I’ve been keeping up with my solo study sessions to learn about bits and pieces of Punjabi at my speed. In doing so, I’ve used a combination of voice notes, Google Translate, and jotting down questions to ask Jerin or his family members when I am not with them. Although Google Translate isn’t perfect, it’s been super helpful in getting the gist of words, terms, and phrases.
I did try using the language learning app Ling for a while but stopped because of the subscription fees. I’ve been finding more interesting YouTube videos, music, and recorded prayers to keep me engaged too. I’ve also been checking out images and monuments from India, which has been a cool way to get a visual sense of the country’s history and architecture.
A new venture I tried this week was the exploration of children’s books about Indian culture and celebrations. They’ve been a fun and easy way to grasp the basics of traditions, festivals, and customs, and have led me to think more critically about incorporating cultural diversity into my teaching. Here are some great stories I found: Let’s Celebrate Vaisakhi, Hair Twins, The Many Colours of Harpreet Singh, My Name is Saajin Singh.
My journey of getting to know Indian culture better has been a mix of chats, tech tools, visuals, and reading. It’s been a blast so far, and I’m looking forward to learning more in the last few weeks of this inquiry.
