The Gurukulian

MIT Vishwashanti Gurukul | Newsletter | March 2021 | Early Years Programme | Primary Years Programme Section Page 2

Early Years

Learning and fun engagements

Early Years marched with confidence into the month of March. The month was packed with multiplicity of learning and fun engagements to keep the students motivated, engaged and enthusiastic to try out something new, like this awesome painting by Kabir or a perfect picture being clicked by Abhisha for 'ph' photographer clicking spring.
Sports Fun Fest: The Online Sports Fun Fest was organised by the PE department to have fun and make the children aware of the importance of playing games, movement to music and calming yoga. They had 'Cushion PE drill' fun games, Om session, Balloon Bounce, and loads of fun laughing and moving to music. It made the children have fun together with their friends. A thank you video clip to show gratitude came from the enthusiastic students, right after the session.

Student Led Conference

All the students had a wonderful interaction time with their parents and the teacher. The little 'VIPs' had all the attention from their teacher and the parents, it was of course, different from our usual SLC; which means a long walk for the parents to visit all the learning areas, being led by their child to listen, look and appreciate their handwork. This time, the teachers had a glimpse of the environment provided by each home and how beautifully the learning can happen with the collaboration between the parents and the teachers. The students spoke about their learning, favourites and what they enjoyed the most and shared their secret Superfoods that kept them healthy and active too. The students showed a snapshot of their learning to the parents at Student Led Conference, an opportunity for them to talk about themselves with confidence and application of communication and social skills. The perfect example of the learning communities!

Units being explored

Celebrations: The students had short sessions on the significance of Holi and Easter introducing them to the different celebrations and the stories associated with the same. The festivals are colourful, celebrating new beginnings and new life. The students made cards, craft for Easter and Holi.
EY 1 explored the world of letters and sound and have begun to listen and respond to different sounds and are learning to associate it with the letters and the objects. Read More

Primary Years

Units being explored

PYP4: The summative Task for the Unit on 'Advertisements' under the Transdisciplinarytheme 'HowWe Express Ourselves' was to Create an advertisement of their own school using different ways and elements of advertisement. All the students were enthusiastic to advertise their own school. They really did a wonderful job. This summative task proved that all the students love their school, love the conducive environment for their growth, love the joy and laughter of school life, love the caring and approachable facilitators, love all the amenities and last but not the least, they all are profoundly proud of the beautiful landscape of the campus. It is indeed a treat for us to see them blooming as proud Gurukulians. Read More

Student Led Conference:

A student-led conference is a meeting with a student and his or her family and teachers during which the student shares his or her portfolio of work and discusses progress with family members. The student facilitates the meeting from start to finish. This year on March 18th and 19th PYP of Vishwashanti Gurukul successfully conducted their very first online SLC. The students worked diligently on their presentations and took their parents on their mesmerizing learning journey. They put up their best work in each subject and reflected on why they chose that particular piece. They were trained well to give a confident and effective presentation and collected big smiles and a loud applause.

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MIT Vishwashanti Gurukul | Newsletter | March 2021 | MIDDLE YEARS PROGRAMME | DIPLOMA PROGRAMME Section Page 3

Middle Years Programme ( MYP )

'Caption It' Contest

The Middle School English Department organised a 'Caption It' Contest for the middle-school students for MYP 4 and Grade 9. They were shared with two images on which they had to frame the captions. Students came up with some witty ones which was the main goal of the contest, i.e., to make them think out-of-the box and they proved their lateral thinking skills. The winners of the contest will be felicitated with certificates. Read More

Chemistry Activity:

Materials and their Densities

Students of MYP 2 participated in a Chemistry activity named "Materials and their Densities" and did a wonderful job. In this activity, they studied how materials that have different densities behave when they are put in the same container. They explored the connections between researched information and real-world applications. They developed their Critical Thinking Skills and Transfer Skills through this activity. The activity was successful as they learned the new skill and effectively reflected on their learnings. Read More

Weathering of Rocks

The junior geologists of MYP1 were encouraged to participate in an activity based on 'Weathering of Rocks' held on 16/03/2021. The objective was not only to inculcate a scientific attitude and research-mindedness but also to create teaching aids. It involved students participating in activities so as to understand the cognitive, affective, and psychomotor aspects of the activity.
Students demonstrated the concept of physical and chemical weathering of rocks occurring in nature with the help of hands-on activities using chalks, baking soda, vinegar, etc. They were amazed to experience the result and correlate the outcome with the weathering of rocks.
They also developed the Learner profile of inquirer and communicator. They could also focus on skills like transfer skills and critical thinking skills. Read More

Spell BEE contest

A Spelling Bee Contest was organised by the Middle School English Department for the middle school students comprising the MYP and IGCSE students. This was done to encourage students to improve their spelling. It also helps them with comprehension skills, study skills and learning concepts. A word bank was previously shared with students for their preparation for the contest from which five spellings were asked to each student. Those who correctly spelled all the spellings moved to the second round where they were asked impromptu spellings. The winners from each grade of this neck-to-neck competition will be given certificates to acknowledge their merit.

Diploma Programme ( DP )

DP1- Morning Assembly

One of the non-appropriate ways of Self-care of our health is self-medication. Self-suggested medicine are not only damaging the health but also lowering our resistance toward lifesaving medicines. In youngster this habit may lead to an addiction. To spread awareness and to address harmful effect of self-medications, "STOP SELF MEDICATION"session was held on 15th March 2021, For Grade 11th students. Read More

15 Days No Procrastination Challenge

"Procrastination is the biggest hurdle of success .By understanding this challenge and overcoming this habits students will not only save the time but also enhance their academic growth. Identifying this common problem among all the students, counseling department arranged a 15 days module for all DP1 and DP2 students. This session was one to one, where counselor identifies the reasons behind procrastination and designed Individual strategies to overcome Procrastination.

Family Sessions

These sessions were specially designed for parents. As during this pandemic situation parents are like the warriors, they all are handling school life balance of theirchildren's gracefully. Aim of this session was to be with parents and children in this journey to discuss study and stress management. This session was designed to understand parental concern about their children and provide them a strong support as team for betterment of each and every child.
DrBhakti Ware.
Behaviour Counsellor.

The Gurukulian

MIT Vishwashanti Gurukul | Newsletter | March 2021 | Three Pages

From PYP Counselor’s Desk

We live in a world too fast paced for us and the generations we teach. There is constant movement and classes to attend while at the same time completing tasks assigned, setting goals and striving for achievement. We are constantly waking up and hurrying through our mornings and still somehow at times missing the bus; same way spider man would at the beginning of the movie. While being on a schedule and seizing the day is an important part of having a healthy regime, it is equally important not to allow ourselves to be controlled by it. This very same thought crossed all of our minds as we entered into the new phase of learning - E learning. As we stepped into this new phase in our lives, our focus needed to be shift, however keeping the essence of learning the same.
It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.
--Charles Darwin
Change is inevitable, it's going to happen every passing phase in our lives and for most of it; we cannot control. What we can control however, is how we react to these changes and how we react, defines who we are. We are faced with change daily. Our most current change is living through the pandemic and because of it, our lifestyle changed, our professional and educational systems changed, our home environment has shown significant change and the list is never ending.
Now, when we talk about change; it always brings about two very important questions: What kind of change will we take it to be â€" Positive or negative? How to prepare our students from these changes? The answer to both the questions is actually quite simple - it's YOU. It's up to YOU to welcome change or fight against it. It's up to YOU to look at change as an opportunity rather than a struggle. It's up to YOU, how you look at a situation and react to it. YOU alone can decide what kind of change you want to bring to yourself, your family, your job. We are always watched through the prying eyes of our children and students. They watch us closely and watch how we react in every passing situation and that's where they pick up their ability to cope with change.
If we showcase ourselves as parents and teachers who are willing to accept change and work with it, then children pick up the same set of skills and coping mechanism. Like everything else, it did take time for schools to adjust and get used to the new way of functioning, but it was achieved none the less in whichever way it could.
It is important to guide and train young minds to realize their own true potential and provide the necessary tools in building a stronger, focused and productive version of themselves. Seeing how our young minds were trying their best to be a part of this change, it was imperative to help them focus on themselves first and their state of mind.

Our life is shaped by our mind, for we become what we think
--Gautama Buddha
Spider man was able to master his new found abilities only through practice, but above all â€" by calming his state of mind. Same way, it was about time we handed over the tools of being more mindful and guide students to kick start their day on neutral first before driving on third gear. This need gave rise to BIPS, a calming method to be inculcated first thing in the morning. BIPS came into being when it was seen how our students seemed consumed with their classes online and how its effect over time has been positive especially amongst our tiny tots of grade 1 and 3. This method helped students focus on their breathing as well as their mental and emotional state of mind. Allow me to guide you through the BIPS method of relaxation:
B - Breathing Wave Students are first taught about the importance behind the simplest act of just breathing. Just like the high waves in the ocean, they were encouraged to close their eyes and visualize it and breath in as the waves rise and breathe out as it settles. Visualizing each wave and connecting it with their own breathing helps brings about a sense of calmness and peace. This step can also be combined with an auditory setup - the sound of the sea; to form a more holistic experience for the students as well as the teachers. The breathing wave aims at helping students to slow down and be in the moment. A calm mind is a happy mind which ultimately leads to a more productive and blissful day.
I - 'I am' Time Positive self-affirmation is the best way of handing over the reins of self-confidence and positive self-esteem over to the students. Change can only be felt or seen once its opened by you and you alone. It is important to guide students in understanding that the power of doing anything great in life- is to believe in yourself first above all. Self-doubt and negative self-talk can become the biggest obstacle in anyone's life. It's important to feed the right wolf inside us all and such life lessons are needed to be taught to children even as young as 6 years of age. The I in BIPS thus symbolizes self-affirmations - I am good, I am honest, I am smart, I am brave. These affirmations are said out loud as well as written down and stuck on their table as constant reminders to believe in themselves.
P - Pause for 20 seconds without moving â€" focus only on your breathing
It's important to teach students the art of stillness. Being still and not moving at all for a said amount of time help students with self-control and mind over matter. This part of the BIPS technique can be extended to any time limit suitable to the facilitator.
S - Signal that you are ready to start each session.
Always end a session on a happy and fun note. Thus, in this part of the BIPS technique; the students are given the freedom to express their readiness in any way they feel like. They are encouraged to be as creative as they can be. From a thumbs up to wide smile, from a spiderman hand gesture to a Dab, the choice is theirs and theirs alone.

Ms Glennys Mendonca
PYP Counselor’s