News Letter October-December 2020...Expedition 2020-21 (Grades 7-9) With online classes in the...

1

How strange it is! That December and this December. Then and Now.

At both points, we have only looked forward to a glorious new year, as

if the nightmare we lived through was just a bad dream.

Last year at this time we were jubilant- in oblivion of the invisible

universal terminator and this year we are hopeful- of slaying the

slaughterer with vaccine. Of course, a lot of water has gone under the

bridge- that December and this December.

The year gone by has taught us many different lessons. We have made

many new discoveries about ourselves- we are not what we were- we

are a lot more resilient, adaptable and enlightened.

To know how different, it was for our school and students, please read

on….

National Public School, Koramangala

News Letter October-December 2020

2

Achievements

CLASS OF 2020 UNIVERSITY ADMISSIONS- Update (As on date)

Name University

1. Abhay K Iyengar PES University, Banashankari Main Campus

(CS)

2. Abhiram Nitin National Law School of India University

(NLSIU), Bangalore

3. Advaith Suresh IIT Bombay

4. Ananya Varshney St John’s Medical College, Bangalore (SJMC)

5. Ann Kurian PES University

6. Anushka P Nair BITS Pilani KK Birla Goa Campus

7. Aryaman Lath BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

8. Akshath Vadapalli Shiv Nadar University

9. Dhruv Gopal BITS Hyderabad

10. Hansel P Shah KLE - USM

11. Hita Juneja SRM University, Chennai

12. Ishita Bharadwaj RV College of Engineering

13. Ishaan Ghosh Azim Premji University

14. Janhavi Oke

Bowring Lady Curzon Medical College and

Research Institute

15. Prachi Goyal Lady Shriram College

16. Raunak Prasant IIT, Madras

17. Ridhi Mehra University of Washington- Seattle

18. Rohit Paul BITS Hyderabad

19. Shreya Chauhan Krishna Institute of Medical Sciences

20. Snehal Deep VIT - Vellore

21. Sanjana Bansal PES University

22. Sankalp Kundu IIT Madras, Programming and Data Science

23. Shadan Hussain BITS Pilani, Computer Science

24. Vaishali S NIT Karnataka

25. Vidushi Bhartari IIT, Madras

3

Inter School

Compettitions

NPS-INR

NPS-INR organized a

math centric fest, Mathtrix

from 17th to 20th

November 2020 virtually

on Zoom. Some of the

events conducted were:

(i) SEG-FAULT: A game

of logic, skills and unique

thinking. It was an

opportunity for coders to

innovate real world

solutions in a COVID-era

Hackathon.

Pranjal Srivastava of

Grade 11A, Pradyun

Goel of 11B and Ansh

Grover of 11B stood

second in the event.

(ii) ABSTRACTION:

This event highlighted

out- of -the -box ideas and

artistic skill to solve

puzzles by applying their

creativity.

Aathira Sunil of 12A and

Sanat Kuruganti of 12A

secured third place in

this event.

(iii) DESOLATE

PLANET: This event

challenged the decision -

making, biological and

mathematical skills,

strategizing the creation of

a new biosphere. It was a

quiz round of biology and

mathematics.

Our children, Jason

Gomez of 12A,

Visweswara Krishna of

12B and Shashank

Jayant of 12B have done

us proud by winning the

first prize in this event.

NPS-HSR

NPS-HSR conducted

Odyssey-an inter school

virtual fest on 13th

November 2020 virtually,

using Microsoft Teams.

Odyssey offered a chance

to showcase varied skills

in a plethora of events

ranging from acapella and

art to music and fashion.

Our children won3rd prize

in Mythos (literary event)

and Terpsichore (dance

event).

Winners were Sara

Thomas of 10 A and

Ishaan Kale of 11 A.

Major Events

Teachers’ Day

Love finds its way and so

does gratitude. This

Teachers’ Day was unlike

previous years.

The sweet roses, the

beautiful handmade cards,

the shine of eyes filled

with love, the thunderous

chanting of “Happy

Teachers” Day and the

eagerly awaited live

performances in the

auditorium just couldn’t

be. But Love finds its way

and so does gratitude.

Students of Grade 12

went live on YouTube

with a heart-warming

potpourri of all that they

knew their teachers love

and look forward to,

whether it was old

Bollywood melodies and

dances, Shiamak Davar

inspired energetic dance

sequences, soft lilting

instrumental music, self-

composed poetry, or

lovely messages.

What made it so

emotionally rewarding

was that the children

transcended all obstacles

put down by the lockdown

and found their way to

bring cheer and smile to

their beloved teachers’

faces.

4

Children’s Day

Like every other event of

this academic year,

Children’s Day was

celebrated in an

unprecendented manner.

Though the students

couldn’t bring the roof

down cheering the

teachers’ performances,

the teachers surely let

down their hair and

delivered an outstanding

show.

It began with a speech by

the Principal, whose

words urged us to find

where our core beliefs and

morals lie and what we

want to be as people.

This was followed by an

action packed ensemble of

dance and music executed

in superlative finesse.

From a graceful classical

dance to a foot tapping

bollywood number, a

mellifluous medley of

songs in various

vernacular languages to a

soothing rendition of a

popular song.

Each and every

performance made us wish

we were in the auditorium

in school to experience the

adrenaline rush and

thunderous applause that

refuses to ebb for a long

time.

The amount of effort the

teachers had put in to give

us a phenomenal

Children’s Day by getting

out of their comfort zones

and taking out time from

their busy schedules to

learn steps and lyrics and

edit the videos to

perfection is truly

something every student,

especially the students of

Grade 12 will cherish

forever. Children’s Day

truly puts into perspective

how talented and

accomplished our teachers

are beyond academics.

-Nidhi Pramod, 12 B

5

Senior School Interhouse Events

6

Senior School

Interhouse Events

2020 quoted as ‘the worst

year ever’ has brought in

with it many

unprecedented events, but

this couldn’t stop the

students of NPS KRM

from conducting and

competing in the

interhouse events of the

academic year 2020-21.

NPS Koramangala senior

wing vied for top positions

in assorted events which

were conducted in the past

month.

Despite the huge physical

to virtual shift, the Student

Council proceeded with

the events flawlessly and

the students showed full

participation, not letting

the current scenario

become a hindrance to

them.

The Drama Club

conducted the Standup

Comedy and the

Impersonation event

where the students

portrayed their theatrical

skills.

This year, the Eco Club

came up with an

innovative idea of

connecting Environmental

Awareness with

Advertising and

Communication skills.

Each team was given an

endangered species for a

topic, and they had to

design a leaflet

surrounding the animal, a

Spotify playlist supporting

the topic, along with a 6-7-

minute podcast to engage

listeners and spread

awareness about the

endangered species. All

participants excelled in the

event and showcased the

true podcasters within

them!

In the event ‘A Classic

Twist’, the participants

had to recreate a movie

scene if it took place in the

ongoing pandemic.

‘Ataraxis’ event by Art

Club allowed the

participants to unleash

their creative side by

preparing an abstract art

piece representing what

they feel about inner peace

or music.

The Literary Quiz event

tested the partipants’

knowledge of authors,

tongue twisters, riddles

and more while the Rap

Battle allowed

participants from each

house to compose and

perform a rap based on a

cartoon character (Homer

Simpson, Sponge Bob,

Peppa Pig, Garfield).

The Cyber Club

conducted the ‘Coding’

and ‘Gaming’ event where

the teams battled it out

Round Robin style on

Krunker.

The Online Quiz event

was a very close

competition with marginal

point differences.

The Science and Math

Clubs worked together to

organize the Interhouse

Murder Mystery event.

Teams of four from every

house had an hour and a

half to solve clues and

puzzles based on logic,

math and science to

discover the murderers of

an eminent scientist, and

safeguard his research.

For the Dance event, each

house was given a famous

personality that the world

lost in 2020.

Teams were required to

depict their life and

achievements through a

short dance video. The

exemplary dance

performances mesmerized

the audience.

The Music Club

conducted the Indian

Classical Music event,

where the participants

were judged on their pitch

and technique.

This year, in addition to all

the other events we had an

interhouse Photography

competition and the

participants delivered

above and beyond

everyone’s expectations

with spectacular

photographs.

STAND-UP COMEDY:

1. Pioneers

2. Explorers

3. Voyagers

7

IMPERSONATIONS:

1. Pioneers

2. Explorers

3. Voyagers

CAMPAIGN (Eco club)

First Place - Explorers

Second Place - Voyagers

Third Place – Challengers

CLASSIC TWIST (Art

club)

First Place - Voyagers

Second Place - Pioneers


ATARAXIS (Art Club):

First Place – Explorers

Second Place - Pioneers


RAP BATTLE:


Second Place -

Challengers

Third Place – Explorers

LITERARY QUIZ:



Third Place – Pioneers

CODING EVENT:

First Place -Voyagers

Second Place - Explorers

Third Place – Pioneers

GAMING EVENT

(Cyber club):

First Place - Challengers

Second Place -Explorers

Third Place –Voyagers

QUIZ EVENT (Quiz

club):

First Place - Pioneers

Second Place -Explorers

Third Place – Voyagers

MURDER MYSTERY:


Second Place -

Challengers

Third Place –Pioneers

DANCE EVENT:


Second Place -

Challengers


INDIAN CLASSICAL

MUSIC EVENT-

First Place -Voyagers

Second Place – Pioneers

PHOTOGRAPHY

EVENT (Editorial

club)-




8

Art event - ATARAXIS

Topic- How Music Makes Me Feel

The prize-winning creations are here.

First Prize- Explorers -

Maitreyi Verma-9A

Second Prize- Pioneers- Arya Dilip 11 A

Third Prize- Challengers- Tanushi Lath 12B

9

Interhouse MUN:

The Interhouse MUN was

conducted on 31st October

2020 and had three

committees – the Cabinet

of Magical Affairs, the

World Health

Organisation and Security

Council.

Delegates had to take up

the mantles of their

respective

Nations/Fictional

characters and represent

them with as much dignity

and authenticity as

possible - presenting

arguments on their behalf,

promoting their interests

and ultimately reaching

peaceful resolutions. All

committees observed

well-informed debates,

passionate arguments and

innovative solutions.

The delegates’ composure

during press sessions,

their ability to think on

their feet and their

response to global crises

decided the ultimate

winners.


Second Place -

Challengers


Interhouse Sports

Covid 19 just couldn’t

downplay the spirit of

NPS KRM sportspersons.

Our teams came up with

interesting sports events,

In the online chess event,

players faced off in a time-

controlled game of 10

minutes and no increment.

In the sports quiz, each

participant had to answer a

set of questions with the

help of their general

knowledge of various

sports. The e sports event

consisted of the popular

mobile game ‘Cod

Mobile’, where each team

played in a knock out

tournament. Besides these

there were competitions

like Skipping, Push-ups,

Basketball and Football.

SPORTS QUIZ:


Second Place -

Challengers


CHESS BOYS:


Second Place -

Challengers

CHESS GIRLS:


Second Place – Explorers

COD MOBILE:


Second Place – Voyagers

SKIPPING-BOYS


Second Place -

Challengers


SKIPPING-GIRLS




PUSH-UP-BOYS




PUSH-UP-GIRLS




BASKETBALL-BOYS




BASKETBALL-GIRLS


Second Place -

Challengers


FOOTBALL BOYS


Second Place -

Challengers


10

FOOTBALL GIRLS




KHOJ-An

Expedition 2020-21

(Grades 7-9)

With online classes in the

pandemic year 2020-21,

the triennial Science

project- KHOJ is tweaked

to suit the ‘new normal’. It

is inspired from Googles

time project- Genius

Hour. The idea is to direct

students to research

regularly for a fixed time

on a topic of their choice.

The objective is to build

the students research

prowess and unleash their

passion.

The idea was shared with

the students through a

presentation. The 5 steps

involving

i) Explore one’s passion

ii) Propose a topic, after

careful thought

iii) Research on the given

topic

iv) Create a 3minute

video on the topic chosen

v) Present the video in

front of an audience and

answer queries

The students are guided

through some steps to

research, keeping in mind

the first-time researchers.

For example, skimming

and scanning information

by going through different

search engines and

checking the authenticity

of the information and

taking down notes.

(Plagiarism to be avoided

at all costs). Skills that

would help them in the

future.

The students are keeping

track of the research

regularly in a journal,

enabling them to take

ownership of their

learning, move

systematically, ensuring

constant learning and

engagement. At the end of

the learning, a research

paper will be submitted

along with a video.

Ms. Aparna Dinesh led

students through an

activity to identify their

area of interest and narrow

it down. This activity

involved listing activities

they follow closely and

linking it with their

strengths.

Several questions were put

forth to check out and

select the topic to be

chosen for research.

A subject expert to be

identified, to help the

learners and give a

personal touch in the

virtual world.

A timeline was shared to

help in planning the

progress of Khoj an

Expedition, so learners

could be guided through

it. During the presentation

by teachers, children

discussed the problems

they could face and

brought forth suitable

solutions.

A feedback was collected

from the children after the

Khoj presentation. It

revealed that children

were excited to work on

their passions and the

activities conducted,

helped in choosing their

topic.

Gr7-9 is all set researching

on their chosen topic, after

having given the proposal

to their Class teachers and

Associate teacher.

They will work on their

project in December and

create the short video. The

video and research paper

will be submitted in

January 2021.

Set of videos will be

presented to an audience

in February.

Quintana 2020

The Entrepreneurship

Project was introduced in

our school by our Director, Dr. Bindu Hari

nine years ago, and with

every passing year we

have witnessed more

creative, inspiring and

innovative products.

Every year the students of

Grade 6, work with great

energy and zeal to make

the Market Day a big

success.

11

This year we have put a

slight twist to our same old

Market Day.

The students will not be

making the products but

instead will think of a

unique and innovative

product, make a business

pitch presentation on the

product and then pitch

their idea.

There will also be a

knowledgeable and skilful

Mentor from Grade 11

allotted to every group to

handhold the projects

initiated by the Grade 6

students.

The students of grade 6

will think of a product, a

group of selected teachers

will look into the ideas and

put the students in groups,

make a presentation using

any tech tool, practice the

lines/Prepare for the Pitch,

advertise the product with

the help of a

video/poster/pamphlet etc

and lastly, pitch the

product before the judges

in the month of February.

As young entrepreneurs,

the students will not only

hone the techniques of

modern business but also

put to use their natural

talents in different fields

such as -mathematical

skill, language skill,

technological skill and

teamwork skill.

At the end of the game, the

students will gain some

valuable experience in

starting, managing and

growing a successful

business venture.

Constitution Day

Constitution Day was

celebrated on 26th

November 2020. The

students read aloud the

Preamble of the Indian

Constitution there by

pledging to uphold the

values embedded in the

Preamble.

The students were also

made aware of the

significance of this special

day by their respective

history teachers during the

course of the week.

Finally, the students of

grade 6-10 attempted a

quiz on M S Forms

prepared by Advik Kabra

of 10C, Secretary Quiz

Club.

This quiz engaged the

students in building their

awareness and

understanding of the

Preamble and the Indian

Constitution.

1M1B

The Future Leaders

Programme conducted a

very special Facebook live

chat with their 10

Unstoppable Young

Leaders who are taking

Covid 19 head on. Among

the 10 Unstoppable Young

Leader was our student

Riya Nagar from grade

10.

18th to 26th September was

celebrated as the Global

Goals Week in line with

the UN General Assembly

meeting.

A series of exciting Live

events were lined up for

the students as part of the

week to #ACT4SDGs

showcasing the young

leaders who were acting

on the SDGs.

The live chats of the week

focused on Climate Action

related topics like

Responsible

Consumption, Future of

Food, Water Safety and

Future of Fashion. Among

other speakers there were

Ria Raghu and Pranav

Goyal of grade 10 in

project Future of Food and

Responsible Consumption

respectively. The

discussion of the youth

leaders captured a lot of

attention online.

Career Counselling

On 22nd December 2020 a

career counselling session

with Mr. Shiv Dewan,

founder of One Step Up

Education, was organised

for the students for Grade

10. Mr Dewan made the

students aware of various

traditional as well as

modern courses of studies

and careers available for

children as they cross

12

Grade 10. Through his

interesting talk which was

laden with numerous live

examples and anecdotes,

he sparked students’

curiosity and set them on

to do introspection about

their own strengths to

choose the subjects just

right for themselves.

KHOJ 2020- NPS

KRM Interschool

Fest

On December 22nd, the

National Mathematics

Day, NPS Koramangala

held its very first online

school fest. The fest, with

6 events, 13 participant

schools and over 80

contestants was an

outstanding success.

All the events challenged

their participants to think

out of the box and ignite

the flame of curiosity

lying dormant within

them. The winners for the

event Strategy, conducted

by Nikita Kiran of 11B

and Pranjal Srivastava of

11A were Yuv Verdia and

Omkar Bajaj of NPS HSR

and the close runner ups

were Debosmita and Atul

Nadig of NCFE.

Epistimi, the Coding

event organised by Ishaan

Kale of 11A and Saarang

S of 11B was a tough

competition which was

won by Kaushik G Iyer of

DPS East followed by

Mrinal Jain of NPS HSR.

Ingenium, the Arcade

game with an intellectual

twist created by Shubhi

Agarwal of 11B and

Ishani Karmakar of 11B

was won by Parth Jaju of

NPSI, Chennai and not far

behind was Yash Mathur

of NPS INR.

Chain Reaction, the

event formulated by

Pranav Sanghi of 11B and

Kedhar Krishnan of 11B

was one which definitely

had the participants

wiping the sweat off their

brow, was won by

Tarunyaa Sivakumar from

NPSI, Singapore and in a

close second place was

Aadyot Bhardwaj from

NPS INR.

In Exypnos, a Treasure

Hunt filled with enigmas

and puzzles, created by

Aditya Aiyer of 11B and

Abraham Paul of 11B, the

team comprising H Ram

and Yashas Chandra

Vatsyayan of NPS INR

emerged victorious

followed by Aryan Soni

and Eshaan Jakhmola of

NPSI Singapore.

In Khoj’s stimulating

Commerce Fest, Criza

held by Sanjana Sudeep of

11A and Prithvi Bapna of

11A and judged by the

esteemed Nisha Nambiar

and Manoj Shanbhag, the

team comprising

Abhimanyu Pant and Adit

Bansal of NPSI, Chennai

took home the first place

while Abhishek Balaji and

Pradyumna Shyama

Prasad of NPSI Singapore

bagged the second place.

All the participants,

organisers, event heads

and volunteers put their

best foot forward and

made huge contributions

to the overall success of

KHOJ 2020.

13

Primary School

Book week 2020-21

“So please, oh please, we beg, we pray, Go throw your TV set away, And in its place you can install, A lovely bookshelf on the wall, then fill the shelves with lots of

books.” --Roald Dahl

It’s that time of the year

when the primary has its

Annual Book Week, the

online sessions being no

deterrent.

October 5th to 9th saw the

students of primary plunge

headlong into the

festivities of Book week:

Cosplay, Reading

Together, Author Visit,

Puppet Storytelling,

Poster Making, Buddy

Reading, Book Marks and

Creative Writing. Phew!

The list is quite long.

Grade 1 saw the little ones

participate

enthusiastically in cosplay

of their favourite fairy tale

characters that comprised

Cinderella, Avengers,

Amelia Jane, Robin Hood

and Harry Potter. They

made book marks too.

Grades 1 and 2 were

introduced to the origin of

Jataka tales and

Panchatantra and students

of Grade 5 treated them to

a storytelling session

through buddy reading.

Grade 2 wrote about their

favourite book and made

handmade puppets which

they used to relate to the

stories.

Grade 3 ran the horses of

their imagination wild and

wrote about a strange

machine they found in

their uncle’s attic. Grade 4

had Ms. Trina Roy

engaging them in an

interactive session on the

components of a story.

The exuberant Grade 4

wrote prompt-based

stories. They were also

introduced to the annual

Spin-a- tale, scheduled

towards the end of next

semester, by their English

teachers.

Grade 5 had Ms. Anitha

Murthy acquaint them

with the concept of

‘Haiku’, the Japanese

version of short poems.

Children enthusiastically

took part in Cosplay

dressed as a wide range of

characters from

Maleficent, Pirates,

Captain America, Mary

Poppins, Vikram & Betal,

Worst Witch and Harry

Potter.

While Grades 1 and 2

were treated to extra

reading in the form of

Jataka tales, Grades 3 and

4 had Fantastic Mr. Fox

uploaded in the content

library.

What made for the most

fun part was the ‘Reading

Together’. Every day for

the entire week. a time slot

was allotted during the

snack break where the

students and teachers alike

got to read their favourite

book while munching

snacks.

A school that reads

together definitely grows

and learns together!

Ishita Nayak 5A

Pranjal Agarwal 5A

Rashmika Devanapalli 5A

14

Gia Goyal 3B

1A Book Week Reading in unusual Places

Himanshi Yadav 3B

Disha Shah 3B

15

Ananya Mehrotra as Pink Crayon- 1B

Adhrit Saha as Po (the Panda)-1B

Hridimaan J Medhi as Robin Hood- 1 B

Avishi Goel as Elsa- 1 B

Communal Harmony Week

“Let us embrace the beauty of every

culture and faith to create peace in our

world” Communal Harmony Week was celebrated

from November 23 to 27 with great

enthusiasm and loads of fun filled activities.

Grade 1: Dressed in ethnic finery students

toured through different states of our

country presenting their important facts.

The spirit of oneness was evident through

the celebrations.

Grade 2: Students witnessed a Role Play

by the students of Grade 5, created

slogan/poster on communal harmony and

answered a comprehension passage on the

topic.

Grade 3: The students created a

slogan/poster on communal harmony and

eagerly participated in interactive

discussion on a situational video - why

‘harmony’ is an important element in our

16

society. A quiz on communal harmony

added to the fun element.

Grades 4 and 5: While the creative side of

the students came to fore in slogan/poster

making, their writing skills were exhibited

through success stories of communal

harmony during the present times.

Quiz was fun and informative. Role plays

depicting lives of various Communal

Harmony Leaders were presented.

A special assembly on Communal

Harmony was held in all the classes as a

culmination that included a series of pre-

recorded PPT, videos of music, dance and a

short skit. The enthusiasm exhibited by the

students was noteworthy!

17

Let there be peace and harmony.

Narayani Bhandari– 3 C

Geetanjali Chidambaram- 3A Grade 4 A students

18

Gandhi Jayanthi

Birth Anniversary of Mahatma

Gandhiji was celebrated on October 1st

2020. The day began with a short assembly

in the morning which included the thought

for the day with music / satsang (spiritual

discourse) / meditation. Students listened to

the story of Gandhiji's life and

achievements. They enjoyed playing a

game of "See no evil / hear no evil and

speak no evil". The day’s learning

culminated in a poster making session.

Kira Bhavin Thaker as KasturBa Mohandas Gandhi -1B

Panav Rachh as Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi – 1B

Students of Grade 1 A

Mihika Jain

– 1 C

Shreyasi

Mishra – 1 C

19

Ananya Mehrotra -1 B

Avishi Goel -1 B

Ethan Adarsh -1 B

Adhrit Saha -1 B

Dentist Talk

On 18th November the

students of Grade 4 had an

opportunity to attend an

online dentist session by

Dr Rupali.

The session reinforced the

learnings of the topic “My

Teeth” and consolidated it

through interaction with

the expert. It covered an

overview of types of teeth

and their uses. The

anatomy of teeth was also

explained by means of a

chart. Importance of oral

hygiene was reiterated

with a demonstration on

good brushing techniques

by the doctor. The session

concluded with an

interactive Q&A round

that covered a wide range

of questions by the

students

.Constitution Day -Constitution Day was

celebrated on 26th

November 2020 with great

gusto by the students of

Grades 1 to 5.

The day started with the

morning assembly where

the salient features of the

constitution were

explained to the students

who read out the Preamble

in the special assemblies.

Various presentations and

quiz were conducted in the

classes as the day ended

with the students listening

Manasvini Rau Grade 5 C

20

to the Prime Minster Shri

Narendra Modi’s speech.

Social Empowerment through

Work Education and Action

(SEWA)

CBSE has introduced the SEWA (Social

Empowerment Work in

Action) programme as one of the 5 core

areas of the CBSE-I syllabus, designed to

raise awareness on addressing real-world

problems and serving the world

community. Activities and initiatives

which develop students emotionally,

ethically, socially and personally are a vital

aspect of school life at NPS. SEWA is

aimed at learning beyond the classrooms,

thereby providing a holistic education.

Grade4&5- Composting

Grade3- Kitchen Garden

Grade2- Growing our own Microgreens

Grade1- Germination and recording the

process

21

Birds- Our Winged

Friends

On 11th December,

students of Grade 5 had an

opportunity to attend a

session on Birds- Our

Winged Friends

conducted by Ms Aparna

Mishra, a social scientist

& History researcher, and

Ms Vidya Murali, an

illustrator and heritage

enthusiast.

The students were taken to

the wonderful world of

birds starting from their

earliest appearance to

habits and habitats. They

touched upon different

dimensions of human and

bird relationship like birds

used by humans as

messengers, gladiators,

entertainers, their

inspiration in

aerodynamics and their

role in fables, literary

works, art and artefacts.

Ornithology - the study of

birds and Salim Ali, the

famous Indian

ornithologist, were also

discussed. Children were

given valuable insights

into bird care and the

lessons that can be learnt

from them.

The presentation was

followed by a quiz on

birds which kept the

students enthralled.

The session concluded

with an interview with

young avid bird watcher,

Advik, who talked about

his passion for bird

watching and shared some

tips and tricks of

identifying birds in their

immediate

neighbourhood, through

bird calls and through

their specific traits.

Overall, it was a great

learning experience for the

students.

Inter-Class

Competitions

Grade 1

“Competition is a good

thing; it forces us to do

our best”- Nancy

Pearcey

The Inter-Class

Competitions for Grade 1

were organized on a

virtual platform from 3rd

November 2020.

Students participated in

various events like

Literary, Cultural and

Quiz with great

enthusiasm.

The participants prepared

zealously to excel in

respective events,

showcasing talent and

skills.

The final round of Inter-

Class competitions was

held from 30th November

to 21st December. While

some of the events were

held live on MS Teams,

for other events, recorded

videos were sent.

The excitement was

evident as they awaited

the results and cheered for

their peers!

22

EVENT Name of the

Competition

Exceptional Commendable Creditable

Cultural

Events Indian Folk

Dance

Mahika

Rajvansh- 1C

Ananya

Mehrotra- 1B

Neesa M Anand- 1C

Indian Music Mishti Sangam-

1B

Meghana R

Nambiar – 1A

Aditi Kulkarni - 1C

Western Music Siddharth

Anoop- 1B

Anagha S – 1C Neesa M Anand -

1C

Literary

Events English

Recitation

Siddharth

Anoop- 1B

George Joseph –

1A

Aditi Kulkarni - 1C

Hindi Recitation George Joseph

– 1A

Hridimaan J

Medhi – 1B

Arshita Choubey -

1C

Kannada

Recitation

Anagha S – 1C Mayuri S - 1C Sai Rudransh Sylada

- 1B

Quiz

Events General

Knowledge Quiz

Grade 1A

George Joseph

Kyra Jaiswal

Vihaan Agarwal

Grade 1B

Adrit Saha

Ananya Mehrotra

Ethan Adarsh

Grade 1C

Niraanjan Singh

Tomar

Shreyasi Mishra

Abhijit Chaturvedi

Math Whizz

Grade 1A

Anvi Mittal

George Joseph

Neelanjana

Lakshmi J

Grade 1B

Panav Rach

Hridhiman J

Medhi

Ananya Mehrotra

Grade 1C

Aishi Jaluka

Niraanjan Singh

Tomar

Pradyun Prasanna

Spell Bee

Grade 1A

Anvi Mittal

Meghana R

Nambiar

Sumeet Singh

Grade 1B

Aarth

Chakraborthy

Ethan Adarsh

Sai Rudransh

Sylada

Grade 1C

Niraanjan Singh

Tomar

Saanvi Dwivedy

Shreyasi Mishra

Early Learning- Kindergarten

Gandhi Jayanti

Kindergarten 1 and 2 celebrated Gandhi

Jayanti on 2nd October 2020. Through an

engaging PowerPoint the teacher explained

the importance of celebrating Gandhi

Jayanti. India’s non-violence independence

movement by Mahatma Gandhi was

narrated to the children. Gandhiji’s values

of truth, non-violence, harmony, morality

and simplicity were shared with the

children. They made poster/collage of

anything that they associated with Mahatma

Gandhi.

23

Culmination of ‘Weather and

Seasons’

KG 2 had culmination of EVS topic

‘Weather and Seasons’ on 10th October.

The children made four placards on the

main seasons in India- Spring, Summer,

Monsoon and Winter. The teachers enacted

and depicted different seasons by wearing

clothes specific to the seasons and quizzed

the children, who answered by showing

their placards. The children and teachers

enthusiastically participated in this

engaging activity.

Class party

The last day of Term 1 was indeed a fun day

for the children of KG. The teachers

arranged a class party for them with games

and dance. Needless to say, all children

were extremely excited. The parents were

asked to keep party snacks and some juice

for them in advance. The children were

happy and couldn’t help wanting more. It

was indeed a task for the teachers to ask

them to log off from their first virtual class

party.

Grandparents Day

Grandparents are a delightful blend of

laughter, caring deeds, wonderful stories,

wisdom and unconditional love. KG2

celebrated the Grandparents Day on

November 7th 2020 to show how valuable

grandparents are and to make them feel

special.

The event started off with a movie of the

children spending their time with their

grandparents. Our Principal, Ms. Jyotsna

Nair, addressed the grandparents and spoke

about how integral they are in our lives and

shared some beautiful quotes. The children

welcomed their grandparents and made

them feel very special, sharing their

sentiments for them. The events lined up for

the day included songs and stories from the

grandparents, dance performances by the

children and games for the grandparents.

The coordinator then addressed the

grandparents and thanked them for being a

part of their grandchildren’s’ life.

Grandparents thoroughly enjoyed the

program and felt very touched that a day in

their honour was organized by the school.

Book Week

Kindergarten celebrated their ‘Book Week’

from 9th to 13th November 2020.

The parents and children were made aware

of the benefits of reading.

It was a fun filled week of celebration

focusing on children’s books, spell bee,

reading and word/ story building games.

The children regaled in the activities that

were planned for the week. They

enthusiastically took part in the ‘Dress-up

Day’ where they had to dress up as their

favourite story book characters. This event

allowed the children to contribute and talk

about some of their favourite stories and

characters. Children watched and

participated in the ‘Puppet Show’

demonstrated by the teachers.

The highlight of the ‘Book Week’ was the

story telling sessions by Mr Prateek Dhruva

and Ms Sanjana Kapur- professionals from

Amar Chitra Katha, who entertained the

children with their stories and ended the

session with a quiz.

Diwali Celebrations

The children came dressed in traditional

clothes on the 13th of November. They were

shown a short movie on why Diwali is

celebrated.

Ms. Neha Bharadwaj and Ms. Puja Bhalla,

special educators from Chennai,

mesmerized everyone with their melodious

songs, which was a delightful experience.

24

Children’s Day

Children’s day was celebrated on 18th

November.

The children were made aware that 14th

November is celebrated every year in India

to commemorate the birthday of Pandit

Jawaharlal Nehru, our first Prime Minister,

fondly known as Chacha Nehru by children.

Children’s day celebration began with a

prayer. Various activities and events were

organized and performed by teachers. Love

was the theme of the day.

The much-awaited movie ‘The NPS Little

Brigade’ was also released on this day.

Parents, children and teachers watched the

movie together.

This was a special Covid awareness

programme, visualized by our Director and

brought to life by our tiny tots.

The children thoroughly enjoyed the movie

and the performance by the teachers. They

had a fun filled morning.

How we Travel

As a culmination of the EVS topic

‘Transport’, a Show and Tell was organised

on 28th of November.

The tiny tots were each given two minutes

to talk about their favourite vehicle and

share facts about topics like the modes and

means of transport, people associated with

various means of transport and safety rules

to be followed while travelling.

The children spoke very confidently. Some

of the children were dressed like pilot while

the parents were dressed up as co-pilot.

They had wonderful props to support their

topic.

It was a joint effort of our little ones and our

dear parents.

‘Every Drop Counts’

As a culmination of the EVS topic ‘Water’,

a variety of activities were conducted for

KG 2 on 5th December 2020.

Confidently answering the questions in the

Quiz, they described the importance of

water conservation. They could distinguish

the objects that float or sink through an

experiment. Taking part in a water relay

and making words from the slogan

’Conserve Water’ was fun. There was a

surprise online quiz for parents too, who

participated with enthusiasm.

Christmas Party

Keeping up the Christmas spirit alive,

Kindergarten teachers hosted a fun filled

Christmas party for the students on 21st and

22nd December.

The children were made aware that

Christmas is all about showcasing kindness,

affection and happiness.

The day was made exciting by organizing

fun filled Christmas games. Children were

shown a movie on Santa and the birth of

Jesus Christ. Keeping the Christmas cheer

in mind, the children, the parents and the

teachers were all dressed in Christmas

colours.

The event concluded with a captivating

performance by Ms. Neha Bharadwaj and

Ms. Puja Bhalla who sang Christmas carols

for the children.

25

Early Learning- Montessori

The month of November started with the

sweet smell of flowers, the array of colours,

the aroma of sweets and the lighted diyas

bringing the hope and spirit of Diwali alive.

We celebrated Diwali with our little one’s

by sharing stories of victory of good over

evil, playing games, making origami diyas

and decorating them.

‘When you are happy and you know it, be

like a child’- that is exactly what the

teachers did by performing dance and

puppet show that brought out the flavour of

the season. The session rounded with

games, video show and virtual potluck

which enthralled and enhanced the spirit of

Children’s Day.

Once upon a time….in the Montessori

kingdom a jungle came alive.

A story telling session by Amar Chitra

Katha created a vivid and realistic setting

taking the children into the mysterious

world of natural wilderness.

In this ever-challenging time, it is

paramount that one is resilient. A parent

workshop on ‘Building emotional

resilience in young children’ was

conducted by the Montessori Co-

ordinators.

The objective of this session was to create

an awareness of the need to help children

identify the emotions they undergo and

discuss how they can start laying the

foundation for emotional resilience in their

children.

26

Making origami diyas (Seniors)

Making origami diyas (Juniors)

Games played during Children’s Day Celebration

Story telling session by Amar Chitra Katha

27

The month of December

brings with it a feeling of

joy and celebration,

especially for our tiny tots.

Children enjoyed singing

Christmas carols and

doing a variety of

Christmas related craft,

drawing and colouring.

The Seniors & Juniors

also had an opportunity to

showcase their oratory

skills during the Show &

Tell sessions.

PTM sessions were

conducted during the first

two weeks of December

and the parents were given

some tips based on the

needs of the students.

The parents were highly

appreciative of the quality

of learning that their

children have gained

during these challenging

times.

On 21st December, a

whole class Christmas

party was scheduled.

Children came dressed in

Christmas colours.

They watched a video,

sang, danced & played

games. It was truly a time

for fun & frolic.

On 22nd December, Inkle

Weave Educational

Training Services

conducted a carol singing

session.

Ms. Neha and Ms. Puja

brought the Christmas

cheer.

It was a musical end to the

year that has been a

learning journey for all.

Teacher Speak

A Passing

Thought…

There is nothing

permanent except

change. - Heraclitus

The paradox entailed in

Heraclitus’ words of

wisdom had bemused me

in my younger days but

the unfolding of life over

the years has taught me to

embrace this tenet

wholeheartedly. Change is

the only reality in nature

and man must adapt to the

constantly flowing waters

of life in order to grow and

survive. The ever-shifting

grounds consistently

truncate normalcy but

acceptance of

impermanence alone

makes man sense the

deeper beauty of life’s

significance.

One such moment, when

the teacher community

experienced the

wrenching away of the

ground beneath their feet,

was the sudden lockdown

imposed in the month of

March due to the ensuing

Corona virus pandemic

worldwide. The lockdown

was indeed a bolt from the

blue and teachers across

the country had to shift

gears quickly to adapt to

the new scenario.

Learning the tight rope of

using technology quickly

and adeptly for the on-line

classes was a humongous

challenge for each teacher.

The use of technology had

been a bare minimum in

the teaching-learning

process, but from then on,

it had to take centre stage.

Although initially

unnerved, the teachers

from NPS Koramangala

decided to take the

challenge head on. The

willingness to learn, the

days of rigorous training

imparted by the school

during the summer break,

28

collaborative help from

colleagues in and across

departments, sincere and

patient answers to our

seemingly ignorant

questions from the

Principal and co-

ordinators ultimately did

the trick. We progressed

from baby steps to

confident strides to engage

our students in full-

fledged on-line teaching

from the month of June. I

must also acknowledge

that all our students who

are indeed technologically

savvier also played their

role to help and encourage

us to cross the unknown

hurdles that we

encountered umpteen

number of times during

the live classes.

It has now been a journey

of seven months of

teaching on-line. Looking

back, from the start till

now, I cannot help but

recollect my thoughts at

this juncture. I realize that

the teaching learning

process is never going to

be the same again after it

has leap frogged from

traditional teaching to a

techno based one. This sea

change will continue to

affect and surely better the

system. Moreover, this

stop-off has taught me

life’s important lessons of

resilience, adaptability,

overcoming fear, to be

open to life-long learning,

consistent practice in

order to excel and indeed

positive team work. I

personally have grown

manifold in this short span

of time.

I would like to conclude

with Michael Jordan’s

words-

“If you run into a wall,

don’t turn around and give

up. Figure out how to

climb it, go through it, or

work around it.”

By Deepa Janardhanan

HOD- History and Civics

department.

Student

contributions

Female Lives Matter!

Empowered women

constitute the most potent

force that can transform

the world. Yet, women are

discriminated against,

even before their birth in

the form of female

foeticide and after birth as

female infanticide. Even

later in life, women are

subjected to blatant

discrimination and abuse

and aren’t given fair

opportunities or

recognition. Hence, they

end up being unable to

contribute to their full

potential.

This begs the question-

why? The main reason is

the patriarchal mindset

that persists in society,

which confines women to

their homes and keeps

them busy performing

their ‘motherly duties’.

Such expectations cause

women to not be in

contention for jobs or drop

out of promising careers

early.

How do we set this right?

Firstly, we need

affirmative action for

better representation of

women in important areas

such as the legislature,

judiciary and law

enforcing bodies. After

all, ‘ceteris paribus’, or all

things being equal, a

woman can do as well as a

man! We should also

provide career support for

women through critical

phases in their lives that

take place while they are

working.

The situation of women is

improving gradually with

the efforts of responsible

governments,

corporations, NGOs and

the UN but we have miles

to go. The World

Economic Forum says that

at the current rate of

progress, it will take 108

years to close the gender

29

gap. Think of all the girls

and women you know-

many of them may never

be treated on par with men

in their entire lifetime.

There is so much that

empowered women can

do! We have shining

examples like Marie

Curie, Indra Nooyi, Oprah

Winfrey and many more

who have excelled in their

respective fields. Even in

the face of the biggest

pandemic that has hit us in

the past 100 years,

COVID-19, countries and

states led by women such

as Germany by Angela

Merkel, New Zealand by

Jacinda Ardern and the

state of Kerala by KK

Shailaja have been doing

better than the ones led by

their male counterparts.

It is clear from the above

examples that women can

reach the pinnacle of

success when given the

appropriate platform.

Thus, it is imperative that

we expedite the process of

women empowerment so

that we can enjoy its

benefits to society at large.

Swati Nair, 10 C

Never Give Up

When you’re about to

stop

And say,” Hey, I can’t do

this anymore

I feel gloomy and I’m

about to drop

My palms are sweaty and

my legs are sore”

Even if your stomach is

throbbing with pain

Even if your mind is

telling you to catch some

Zs

Get up and race to the

end of the lane

Kick up, get up and fight

the beast

Endure the agony and

break the chains

Wipe the sweat off and

push no matter what

Tell yourself that you can,

that your mind is wrong

Because the quitters are

the ones who rot

The winners are the ones

who are remembered all

along

Anirudd Archak, 8B

Student Art work

Avni Kansal- 8C

Maitrayee Kundu – 7A

Sohum Joshi – 6C

The biggest takeaway from year

2020 is, live life as it comes;

neither dwelling in the past nor

worrying about the future.

In the words of Ralph Marston-

Seek to live in harmony with the

rhythm and flow of life. Live life

as it comes, and it will come to

you in great abundance.

30

With this thought we take our leave and wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year- 2021.

Compiled by – Ms. Geeta Kathait, and Ms. Prathima with inputs from students and teachers. Designed by Ms. Jijy George and Ms. Anupama Rao.

News Letter October-December 2020...Expedition 2020-21 (Grades 7-9) With online classes in the...

Documents

Transcript of News Letter October-December 2020...Expedition 2020-21 (Grades 7-9) With online classes in the...