The UK is one of the European countries with the biggest Malayali diaspora. Keralites have migrated to Britain for higher education, work, business, etc. Britain is home to diverse communities from all over the world today, and living in such a diverse atmosphere can benefit children in terms of developing cultural awareness and acceptance. However, learning about one’s culture is one of the most important parts of growing up. There is a famous saying about emigrants from Kerala: “You can take a Malayali out of Kerala, but you can never take ‘Kerala’ out of a Malayali." We hold our culture so close to us wherever we go, but when life takes us far away from our homeland, sharing the essence of your culture with your children can become difficult.

Learning Malayalam in the UK

Children who grow up in foreign countries with limited exposure to their roots often struggle with finding their place in the community and alienation from their own culture! Improving your children’s exposure to Malayalam at home is a step you can take as a Malayali parent in the UK to prevent this from happening! The academic year is divided into 3 terms in the UK, so you can also use the term breaks in between each term to engage your kid in Malayalam.

However, balancing this responsibility with your own work, the busy UK school system, other commitments, and finding an effective way to teach your child Malayalam can all end up being a bit too much on your plate! At Akshharam, we understand this struggle you face, especially in an environment saturated with exposure to English and other European languages. That’s why Akshharam’s Malayalam learning program is designed to fit seamlessly into your child’s routine while making language learning an enjoyable experience!

Akshharam

For Malayalis, their mother tongue and culture are inseparable, and learning about one automatically leads to another. One of the sweetest languages in the Dravidian language family, Malayalam is predominantly spoken in Kerala and received the ‘classical language of India’ status in 2013. If you are a Malayali parent in the UK, gifting your child with a platform to learn their mother tongue is one of the best steps you can take to introduce them to their culture. Akshharam Online Malayalam Language Learning School can be the perfect platform for your kids to learn Malayalam in a fun yet effective way!

A connection to our roots is essential for all of us to grow, especially for children who grow up away from their homeland! Learning about our roots is requisite to being part of the community and building a sense of belonging. Even in the age of information and connectivity, a distance could form between your kids and their grandparents if there is a huge communication gap!

Taking active steps to bridge that gap is essential, but it is not at all easy to bring your child’s attention to Malayalam when they are constantly exposed to other languages like English and multitudes of other cultures. However, you can rely on Akshharam’s tailored curriculum, designed to generate curiosity and excitement about Malayalam in your little ones! We use live classes and unique teaching methods to improve your children’s Malayalam naturally while also fostering their interest in Malayali culture!

Our learning module

The Akshharam Malayalam learning module is tailored to help everyone, even beginners who know nothing about the language. Our unique pedagogy, live and interactive classes, homework, and regular assessments are all designed to ensure progress as the program continues. Our learning module has four programs that gradually improve the reading, writing, comprehension, and conversational skills of children in Malayalam.

• Harishree sessions: First of the four sessions, Harishree is an introductory program in which the students get introduced to Malayalam writing. Here they will learn to identify, write, and read Malayalam alphabets; they will also learn to write small Malayalam words in this session.
• Vaayanashaala Sessions: This second level of classes is focused on improving fluency in reading and writing Malayalam. From this level onwards, your tiny tot will have a learning buddy just like him/her along with the tutor to make learning fun and effective.
• Thoolika Sessions: The Thoolika session is essentially a foundation course in conversational and independent Malayalam writing. Here, the kids will learn to create their own sentences, read stories, comprehend the meaning, write summaries, and make simple conversations.
• Kilikonchal Sessions: The final chapter of this learning journey, Kilikonchal is all about conversational Malayalam practice. Everything our little students have learnt so far will come in handy here!

End note

Learning a language is a wonderful journey, and kids learn better than adults most of the time! If you are a Malayali parent in the UK, there is no better time to enrol your kid in the Malayalam classes for children by Akshharam! Connect with us to learn more about our Malayalam classes for kids and discover ‘Akshhara Deepam'—the manuscript magazine written by our beloved students on our website!