In the classroom, ​‘early years’ are the time between pre-school to elementary education (at around eight years of age). Children’s literature plays a significant role in the lives of children, parents and educators during this time. The role of children’s literature, however, is often misunderstood and undervalued. 

In this course, we see as literature as expanding the imagination and lifeworld of children, a mirror and window into the world in which they live. Children’s literature in India traverses oral traditions of folklore and mythology and a genre of literature in the written form in English and regional languages. The Right to Education Act of 2009 and the MHRD’s Padhe Bharat Badhe Bharat of 2014 both encourage the use of children’s literature in the classroom. Practitioners require a critical, historical and theoretical understanding of children’s literature that is suitable for curricular building and an appraisal of ​‘quality’ in making informed selections. 

In this course, you will not only understand the field theoretically, but you will also explore the genres of folklore, picture books, fiction, and elementary literary and visual critique. You will compile annotated booklists of literature in all languages you know, and interact with children, authors, illustrators and publishers during the course. You are encouraged to develop your own autobiographical narrative about your relationship with books. This course includes book talks, discussion-based literature circles and theoretical readings.