Day 5: Listening Is a Superpower – A Classroom Conversation That Teaches the Power of Attention
Speak to Express, Listen to Understand The classroom was unusually noisy that morning. Not angry noise. Not fighting noise. Just… everyone talking at the same time. Rahul was explaining something loudly to Arjun. Sneha was telling Meena about her drawing competition. Two boys in the back were debating about a cricket match. Someone dropped a pencil. Someone laughed too loudly. It felt like a marketplace. Ms. Ananya stood near the door for a few seconds without speaking. She simply watched. Then she walked slowly to the board and wrote in big letters: LISTENING IS A SUPERPOWER She didn’t say anything. One by one, students noticed. Their voices slowly reduced. Rahul stopped mid-sentence. Sneha looked at the board. Within a minute, the room became quiet. Ms. Ananya turned around. “Interesting,” she said softly. “You all became silent just by reading one sentence.” She paused. “So you can listen.” A few students smiled shyly. She walked closer to them. “Tell me honestly. How many of...