Happy New Year

Wishing you Merry Christmas

Grandparent's Day

The students were looking forward to the Grandparent's Day with much enthusiasm and eagerness. The day began with the students  getting ready with gusto for the performances. Grade 4 sang the Grandparent's Day song and most of Grade 4 students were involved in the Choir singing Christmas carols for the nativity play. The Choir students dressed in white shirts, blue jeans, black belt and poinsettia flowers and bow ties for girls and boys respectively. 

The Choir mesmerised the audience and enthralled them with their magical voices. The Grandparent's Day song was a hit too. Grade 2 and 3 sang Hindi songs for the grandparents. The Early Years students showcased the nativity play on the birth of Jesus Christ. After the performances, the students and grandparents went to the different venues for activities planned out for them. Grade 4 grandparents got busy planting a sapling in a pot and painting the pot together. The grandparents then wrote messages for the grandchildren on hearts. The grandchildren had already made acrostic poems on their grandparents and these were laminated and handed over to the grandparents for keepsake. It was touching to read the poems written by the kids and the special heartfelt notes written by the grandparents. The love in the air was palpable and the special bond shared by the grandchildren and grandparents was celebrated.
At the end of the activity, the planted and painted pots were taken back home with them to be nurtured and grown together. 

It was a memorable day for all.
Here are a few photographs from the event.

  

Secret Santa comes to class

The kids were excited to take part in the Secret Santa activity we planned for them. The students picked chits with names of their classmates on them. They had to then secretly make or give a present to them for Christmas. They have been coming to me for the last two weeks handing over their gifts secretly and I stored them carefully in a box. Today, we shared the gifts and the children were super excited. The gifts ranged from hand made cards to things they bought using their own pocket money. It was fun to see the excitement in the students and their faces lighting up with simple gifts. 

It was a humbling experience for me to watch how children take joys in simple things in life. The true spirit of Christmas or any other happy festival is happiness and togetherness, not the material things and the students really stood for this spirit. We were so happy with the activity that we have decided to do it once more before the end of the second term, but under a different name.

The photos will follow shortly. The teacher has lost her card reader :(

Summative Task- De Bono's shoes

The students were introduced to the Summative Assessment Task in the beginning of the unit so that they could work on it on a regular basis throughout the unit.   The students had to choose an issue that they think needs to be addressed in their home, school or society. They then plan a revolution to bring about a change in the situation using Edward De Bono’s Shoes of Action. Edward De Bono’s SHOES of Action strategy: ·       Put on your Pink Slippers to choose an issue or problem for a cause which is close to your heart.  ·       Put on your Navy Formal Shoes to lay out the rules and assign group responsibilities. ·       Put on your Grey Sneakers to investigate, identify and gather information of the issue or problem identified by you. ·       Put on your Brown Brogues to plan your course of action which is practical and sensible. ·       Put on your Orange Gumboots to plan another course of action if there is an urgency or crisis. Look at things which may go wrong and plan alternatives. ·       Finally put on your Purple Riding Boots to out your plan into action and assessing whether you could bring about the necessary change that you had planned.

The students chose various issues like SMOKING, PLASTIC USAGE, RACISM, LITTERING and SAVING WATER. They have created Facebook pages, websites, plays, songs and posters with petitions. Glimpses of the students presenting their work.