6th Aug 2021,

Dear Parents,

This was a Chak De week for us. Even though it's a bronze medal, India ended the drought after 41 years. It feels great and we celebrated by watching a  hockey movie together. Remembering the pride and getting inspired. Hopefully there are many more to come!

Few of the highlights for this week are:

Judiciary

The meeting started with recommendations of starting a few clubs. We had started it last year but it had died because of lack of interest. Joining clubs are optional so we are planning on putting sign ups. Gardening, Movie, Excursion/Outdoors are a few club choices right now. But the biggest dilemma is...when is there enough time to do all of this?

One of the key points discussed was the introduction of project day. The idea arose when we were pondering if there is a way to assemble an all round learning in an environment which necessarily is self driven. Yet it cannot be casual but has to go through the rigour of inquiry, research and presentation. Towards the end of every month we intend to host a sort of an exhibition where kids will have presentations on their chosen topic of interest. They can also display various talents, basically anything that ignites their curiosity. We hope to invite a few parent volunteers who can come as judges, but not necessarily to judge…:) A request to all parents to have a talk with their children about their project ideas. This will initiate a discussion and their minds will begin working. This month’s project day is decided on 26th Aug and further details will follow through.

Movie Club 

The decision on establishing a movie club was taken and as you know it will be held on the 1st and 3rd Fridays of the month. This time’s movie was Chak De and what better time to watch it. Initially there was a lot of chaos in winding up and finishing lunch. After we settled, it was a fun time. Few were jumping around because of excitement, while others were fully engrossed and sitting still. After it was over, a discussion was initiated to ask everyone what they liked and disliked. There were some interesting observations about gender equality and religion. 

Sessions 

Adolescents’ sessions are going well whereas few of the pups’ sessions are getting bombed by them. We were wondering if they were getting bored or were they simply checking the limits of our patience. Hopefully it's the latter…:) The workbooks are being promptly brought in and discussions on them are taking place. 

कर के सिखो

This time we did chemistry experiments. The KKS team had these readymade kits which were completely self sufficient and simple to use. We did many experiments understanding simple to complex concepts. But complex things didn’t seem like that since seeing was believing. Some of the experiments included density and viscosity in fluids and other included things like electromagnetism, refraction and electroplating. 

Friday Food 

This time it didn’t turn out like always, which means it was a great learning opportunity. There was an error in estimating the quantity, few items were forgotten. We ended up having too much material and some of the items were returned. Unfortunately we couldn’t take a review because of some chaos. It seemed like a missed opportunity to assess and learn from the mistakes or misjudgements that we have committed. 

Music 

Limangi set us off on a musical path today. She asked us what music meant to all of us and what we understood or recognised as music. It was a bit abstract but all had some idea. We understood what the musical notes were and all of us had a chance to sing and hear everyone else. Quite frankly, some of them were pretty painful to hear and some were hilarious. We hope to continue and have lots of fun. 

Food for thought

This time we have a few Ted talks that are truly assuring and inspiring. Do let us know your thoughts after watching them.

1. Steve Jobs’ convocation speech

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tuw8hxrFBH8&feature=youtu.be

2. Urmila Samson 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oCwAz1b6PZ8

3. Prepare children for life, not for standardized tests

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oCwAz1b6PZ8

Until next time...take care and stay safe!