________________
INTRODUCTION
Introduction When I was young, there weren't any Jain books available in English in USA. The JAINA Education Committee has revolutionized this and brought English books to every household so the language barrier is dissolved. However although most of the books are for kids of ages 10 and up, simple books about Jainism are lacking for kids under that age.
I joined Jain Päthashälä myself when I was 13, so I was extremely excited to see the Level 3 and 4 books (ages 13 and up), and enjoyed the curriculums derived from them in class. The lesson plans worked out extremely well and the revisions of the books kept getting better and better. As soon as I graduated from Päthashälä and became a teacher myself. I realized the lack of books for elementary level children. I originally started out as a teacher of 7 and 8 year olds, and I realized that none of the books applied to them. For the few months I taught them, I used to devise lesson plans for hours. It involved creating handouts, activities, and practically writing chapters that should have been in a book for the children. The children had no books that applied to them.
The other books were extraordinary, but the wealth of information they contained did not appeal to the younger kids. The kids first need to learn how to be a good person and the basics of Jainism before they delve into the eight
JAINISMI - BASICS OF JAINISM
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
