Totto-chan goes to school - Reveda Bhatt

Book: Totto-chan. Author:Tetusoko kuroyanagi. Totto-chan is a book that speaks about a girl who has been expelled from a 'regular' school to a school name 'Tomoe Gakuen'.The school is totally different from the formal educational system and creates stress and threats to the children by the overloaded syllabus, subjects, books and strict rules and regulations. - Naturing Education Blog

"The book begins with Totto-chan's mother coming to know of her daughter's expulsion from public school. Her mother realizes that Totto-chan needs a school where more freedom of expression is permitted. Thus, she takes Totto-chan to meet the headmaster of the new school, Mr Kobayashi, where the two establish a friendly teacher-student relationship". Wikipedia

Illustration by
Reveda Bhatt

Class 9, The Aryan School

reveda0311@gmail.com

We are reading Totto-chan at My Good School.
Join us every Sunday at 11 am on Google Meet, join the school for Rs 1800.00 per annum only.

Tomoe Gakuen - Aanya Kumar

A school on a train does sound weird. But, according to Totto-chan, it could be real fun. Tomoe Gakuen was full of fun-filled surprises for all its students.

I would like to present this poem on Tomoe Gakuen:

Tomoe Gakuen, an unusal school,

With train boogies as its classrooms.

With no rules for studying or going in the pool,

To the students, it seemed relatively cool.

Totto-chan was expelled,

Mother was worried.

She had to find a new school,

An unusual one indeed!

Tomoe Gakuen, was fit for Totto-chan,

As her day at the new school quickly began.

Totto-Chan was happy and had hights to seek 

And I’d say the school was pretty unique.

Aanya Kumar

Podar International School

Grade 6 B

The Headmaster - Rishona Chopra

 

The headmaster or the headmistress leads the school. Teachers sometimes use them as a weapon to scare them; when someone does something wrong, the teacher says that she'll send that child to the Headmistress's office. They aren't that scary. They are not frightening at all. They can be as sweet as plum and a strict at a stick.

In this book, Totto-chan meets the headmaster to see if she gets approved. Surprisingly, the headmaster told her to speak whatever she wanted. The headmaster listened to her for hours without a yawn!

This chapter is a must read for everyone as it changes the point of view about teachers.

Rishona Chopra
Grade VI
Gyanshree School

Totto-chan - Aadya Sharma

Aadya Sharma

III-C

Gyanshree school

Totto-chan: The Little Girl at the Window - Amaira Bhati

                                                                 

Tetsuko Kuroyanagi is from Japan. She was born in 1933 and is 88 years old. She wrote Totto-chan in 1982. On May First, we started reading the book. This story is about a little girl named Totto-chan, who is strong-willed yet kind-hearted, compassionate yet unwavering in principle. Totto used to go to a school where she had a strict teacher, and the teacher often observed her very carefully. Totto-chan always used to shut her desk; she would bang it with a big noise. Totto never used to sit on her chair; she would stand near the window every time her teacher was teaching. One day her teacher held an activity of making the flag of Japan and the teacher kept roaming around the class looking at her students' drawings, but when she saw Totto-chan’s drawing, she was very disappointed. Totto had made her flag in many colours, she made strokes and flinches around the flag, and her flag was so big that she drew some flinches on the table. It took them some severe trouble to rub it off. 

Another day Totto-chan went out of the window and started talking to someone. When her teacher leaned out to see who she was talking to, the teacher caught her talking to birds who were making their nests. Her teacher was so frustrated by Totto's behaviour that she held a meeting with her mother, and the teacher told everything about Totto-chan’s mischief. The teacher told her mother that she didn't want to make a nuisance out of her class, so she had to expel Totto-chan from the school. 

Totto-chan’s mother didn’t tell her anything about being expelled from school. She told Totto that she would be going to another school, which would be even more fun. So they went off to a new city, a new school, and a new beginning. Toto was so excited about going to her new school by train. She sat quietly on the train, but when the ticket collector came and asked Totto-chan for her ticket instead of handing in the ticket, questions had now popped up in her inquisitive mind, but the ticket collector snatched the ticket away from her. Totto-chan’s mother was very worried about Totto’s admission. Her mother took her hand and said that they couldn't be late because ahead of them, the gate of a small school was gradually coming into view in the distance.

Amaira Bhati,

Grade 3 - F,

Gyanshree school

Totto-chan - Anvesha Rana

 

On the first day of May 2022, we started reading the book Totto-chan, the little girl at the Window by Tetsuko Kuroyanagi. This book is based on actual events, and the real-life Totto-chan is today a celebrated television actress in Japan. During World War 2 in Tokyo, a different school with railroad cars as classrooms was opened by an extraordinary man Sosaku Kobayashi, the founder and headmaster of the place. The school followed other teaching and learning methods; consequently, Tetsuko Kuroyanagi wanted to tell everyone about this place through her book 'Totto-chan'. 

The characters that we have met till now are Totto-chan, her mother, her teacher and the stationmaster. Totto-chan is a young, chirpy girl who is full of life. She is bursting with curiosity and an eagerness to learn. Totto-chan is different from most other kids who want to just lead a simple life, whereas Totto-chan is never out of options about who she wants to become. Still, her lovable personality is always supported by her mother. Totto-chan's mother is a calm and composed lady who lets Totto-chan be who she truly is and wants her daughter to always be happy. Totto-chan gets expelled from her school, and her mother doesn't tell her about this since she doesn't want to alter Totto-chan's confidence. 

The teacher at Totto-chan's previous school was a young, focused and practical lady though she was rigid in her terms and observed Totto-chan only as a pest in her class. Totto-chan and her mother met the stationmaster collecting tickets; he was a considerate and helpful fellow. He proposed that Totto-chan could work with his son since both wanted to work at the station.

The author of this book is a Japanese actress, voice actress, World Wide Fund for Nature advisor, and Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF. She is well known for her charitable works and is considered one of the first Japanese celebrities to achieve international recognition.

If I ever have a book about myself like Totto-chan, I would want it to be an autobiography because only I am aware of many things about my life. Also, certain personal aspects need to be added to a book. So, I would love to have an autobiography about myself. 

Anvesha Rana, 
X-B, 
Gyanshree School

The Railroad Station - Rishona Chopra

The best thing in children is probably their innocence and curiosity to explore. Their cute naughtiness can be annoying but is done so innocently!

In this chapter, Totto - Chan and her mother are going to a new school. Getting off the train at the Jiyugoaka Station, Totto-Chan was fascinated by the ticket collector's tickets. She wanted to be a ticket seller but at the same time a spy too!

Isn't it wonderful to see that children can be so imaginative and excited!

For me going to a new school is the worst thing! You have to make new friends, but for Totto-Chan, it is slightly different. She is a jolly person seeing the world with eyes filled with love and innocence! This chapter indirectly tells about her personality. 

How fun it would be to be a ticket seller who is really a spy?

Rishona Chopra
Grade VI
Gyanshree School

My best friend, Totto-chan - Rishona Chopra

My best friend is Totto-chan. She is a sweet, loving and adventurous girl. She wants to be a spy and a ticket collector too! She is funny and has a great sense of humour, and always makes me laugh. 

She is the most caring person I have ever met, and she knows how to make me laugh when I am not in the mood. She is so cute! My heart melts when I look at her, and I can possibly never say no to her wish. At the same time, she is naughty, too, but not in the wrong way. 

She is an innocent girl who looks at the world with eyes filled with love and care. Never has she broken anyone's trust or hurt someone. She is truly the best friend possible!

Totto-Chan's best friend - Rishona Chopra
Grade VI
Gyanshree School