INTRODUCTION

Socially Useful Productive Work (SUPW) is defined as purposive, meaningful,

manual work resulting in goods or services which is useful to the society.

In addition to developing individual skills, SUPW helps in developing among the

students the habit to work as a community, increase awareness of scientific
advancements and develop a scientific outlook. The training acquired in the
classroom helps students solve the day-to-day problems of the community.

“ Socially Useful Productive Work ”

The term “Social ” refers to the child who has attained a minimum level of
education would be able to work efficiently in his/her community in respect of
social and work skills and also in terms of adjustment to the immediate group.

The term "Useful" refers to the functional nature of the activities and the products
resulting from the activity. This means, the work should lead to something that is
useful to the child and also to the general group in terms of returns.

The term “Productive work ” refers to any learning activity ( acquisition of skills) in
education that result in some product or service that is consumable by society.

Importance of SUPW -
• Prepares pupils to practice and perform manual work individually or in groups.
• Acquaints the children with work and services prevailing in the community.
• Develop sense of respect to manual workers.
• Develop a desire to work and contribute to the society.
• Inculcate positive attitudes of team work.
• Development of values like tolerance , cooperation and helpfulness.
• Belief in dignity of labour and self – reliance.
• Helps in understanding the principles involved in various forms of work.
• Motivates active participation of students in productive work in different stages of
school education and enable them to earn while they learn.
• Helpful in applying classroom learning and knowledge to solve day -to
- day problems of the community
• Participate in Nation building activities
• Realization of goals of the state and national development.
 SUPW –During The Pandemic
“To serve is beautiful ,but only if it is done with joy,
a whole heart and a free mind”.

We at St. Mary’s School have always strived for the betterment of the
community. SUPW has been an integral part our education at St. Mary’s and we
could not let a pandemic stop us from following our motto and staying true to
our school ethos -“ I Serve “. We the students of class 9 took up two major
SUPW drives during the previous academic year 2021.

Our first drive was organized for the bus drivers who , under normal
circumstances would bring us to school everyday . The pandemic had severely
impacted their means of livelihood. Their savings had been depleted by looking
after their families for almost a year and half without earning a penny. The
students donated numerous ration kits which included oil , rice , wheat etc.

These were distributed to the families of the drivers .There were approximately
one hundred beneficiaries .

I had donated 2 cans of oil and 5 kilograms of rice. I was delighted to help them .

Our second drive was aimed for the students of 5th standards . With hope and
excitement in our hearts ,we donned the role of teachers for the first time. We
were nervous of the responsibility the role carried and excited at the same time .
We were divided into groups and each group prepared presentations to teach the
topics in an organized manner .We conducted this session online with the help
and guidance of our teacher Mrs Bhave through Microsoft teams. . The session
was made interactive with visual learning aids , quizzes and games to help the
children grasp the topics in a fun and engaging way .

My group had 5 members- Ria , Khushi ,Suhani ,Tvisha ,Disha and our topic
was “ Creativity “. We had made a power point presentation on the various
aspects of creativity and had also included a doodling activity to make it more
interesting . We had divided various subtopics like abstract , aesthetic and pattern
among ourselves and we gave some information about these to the children .At
the end of our session we held a quiz related to the history and evolution of art .

We felt immense pleasure and this experience also gave us greater appreciation
of the efforts our teachers take for us .
 SUPW FETE
Community Service is the valuable action of helping someone , done voluntarily
by a person or institution such that it benefits the community .The act of serving
the community instills the feeling of kindness and selflessness in the students who
follow the motto of our school ,” I Serve “ with great diligence. Service is not just
a virtue but a habit that is imbibed in the students of St. Mary’s from the very
beginning . SUPW is a subject that is included in the curriculum of our school. As
a part of this subject , the students of standards nine and ten organized the annual
SUPW fete which is eagerly waited for by students and teachers alike .It was held
on 14th November 2022 on the occasion on Children ‘s Day for the students of
classes four to eight .

It was a day of organized chaos , attractive stalls displayed food items and
handicrafts , games stalls were put up where children could win prizes. But the
real motive behind this day is “ happiness day” which is what sets it apart – the
money we raise from the sales of this day is donated by the school for social work
to various missionary institutions that the school is associated with .

Our class 10 B was divided into groups and my group had six members – Ria ,
Khushi , Suhani , Sarra , Tvisha , Disha .

In the handicrafts category we had made phone charms , pendants and tote bags .

In food we had made garlic bread, pizza buns , marshmallow pops, hummus and
pita and candy cherry drink . I had made marshmallow pops .

Although we had divided the work among the members ,we worked together as a
team at Tvisha ‘s house .

On the day of the fete , we organized our tables with the help of our teachers and
the ancillary staff. We spread our table mats , laid our food and handicrafts and
waited eagerly for the children to visit our stall and buy the items .

As soon as the children were allowed to come down from their classes , they
rushed towards the stalls and the happiness on their faces said it all . At this
moment I truly felt that the SUPW fete was a grand success .We thoroughly
enjoyed working together and it was totally a new experience for us .

This was truly a learning experience for us and we learnt organizational skills like
time management .
 “ Social Service begins at Home “
During the pandemic , I helped my housekeeper’ s daughter with
her studies . Her name is Diya and she is six years old . Her
mother could not afford even a mobile phone so I gave Diya a
spare phone that I had so that she could attend online classes .

She faced difficulties in solving mathematics so in the evenings I

would help her with her doubts . In no time , we had bonded so
well and the look on her face which was full of gratitude and
love brought me immense happiness .

It is truly said that we rise by lifting others .