Client: Sanskardham Foundation – Ahmedabad, India
Year: 2023 and on-going
Client Brief
Sanskardham Foundation, a renowned social enterprise based in Ahmedabad, India focuses on holistic human development and invests in modern educational initiatives rooted in India culture. Sanskardham Foundation is behind numerous social development projects including a new age technology and manufacturing university (NAMTECH), a national design university, a sports academy and multiple K-12 schools. The foundation has set up 21 learning centers for children ages 3 to 5, in rural, semi-urban locations around Ahmedabad, creating an opportunity for children from impoverished backgrounds to access quality education and nutrition.
The next phase of expansion of the Sanskardham family is the new initiative to develop Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) facility in 19 acres of total land master planned for 70% forest and 30% built-up area. Normal . has been tasked to develop the Brand Identity and Experience for this iconic social initiative.
Becoming whole, together – a new mindset
Young parents today grapple with societal and economic disruptions as they contemplate embarking on the journey of their child’s early education. Rather than reinvent what and how of ECCE, our positioning strategy was to seek differentiation through the lens of Millennial parents’ desires and angst and position the unique educational model as imperative of the new age.
The target market mindset, which we called “Becoming whole, together” was conceived. This is a mindset that describes a young parent searching for an institute with a clear direction rooted in timeless wisdom and nurtures the parent’s active engagement in child development.
“Becoming whole, together” eventually was adopted as the institute’s Mission Statement.
Together we play, to thrive – the Brand Proposition
For a child, learning is about what it means to be human. For the new institute’s Brand Proposition, we conceived every moment in early childhood education as a journey of discovery, a chance to flourish and an opportunity to thrive. We called this “Play” and made it the cornerstone of our Brand Proposition in which children craft their own tales, celebrating every ‘first’ as they collect feelings, reactions and wisdom.
“For a child, learning is about what it means to be human. It is a big job”.
Play Pedagogy – the Brand Experience
Together we play, to thrive promises play as the process (learning approach) through which we obtain the thrive (whole) state. This meant that Play becomes the essential ethos – the pedagogy – that nurtures curiosity and celebrates discovery as a child shapes his own experiences.
Further elaborating play in effect became producing a blueprint for key elements of the pedagogy. In fleshing out the pedagogy, we adapted Normal’s New Life Habits framework as a series of essential life skills and habits for the child to thrive in the new age.
Our Approach
“In our research, we quickly realised many early childhood education brands of renown pretty much promise the same things. Emphasis on values and character development (what) and experiential and child-centered learning (how) are time-tested principles and methodologies and it would be futile for a new entrant to reinvent.” Said Jinou Park, Founder of Normal. “The client wanted a more authentic identity, rooted in timeless local wisdom. And we saw alignment between that and the young millennial parents’ yearning for authenticity, involvement and like-minded community. The target market mindset Becoming Whole, Together and the Brand Proposition Together we play, to thrive were born from this.”
Balgokulam Sound Wall
Integration of sensory play in child’s development, fostering cognitive, social and emotional growth.
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To be a climate for human consciousness to thrive
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BalGokulam Vision
Normal . 