​Imagine walking into a class filled with the sounds of a variety of experimental musical instruments. The class was high on children's excitement of the presenting the musical instrument that they had created. 

As each of them presented, they also named their instrument, explained what and how the sound was being produced and made nuanced observations of how various factors could affect the quality of sound that we hear - for instance, the thickness of the rubberbands, the material used, the size of a container, the size of contents within the container and so on. Towards the end of the class, we had them all play their instruments collectively. 

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#inspiringconfidentlearners
#gamebasedlearning
#experientiallearning
#makingmusicalinstruments

​Imagine running a shop by yourself. What could happen if you ask a group of 5 year olds to run a shop ?

3 toys shops called the Kids toy shop, Galacting Things for boys and girls and Toy shop operated for about 15 min and sold a total of 66 toys and made Rs. 450. Student D kept increasing his prices. Stuent V stared into his bill book entering the details and issuing bills. These mock toy shops meant the world to the dolphins of Sparkling Mindz.

They decided prices, added costs, collected money, gave change and counted items using addition, multiplication and subtraction. They worked on these skills in levels before getting to this mock market and also identified skills they need to learn to be able to go and comfortably operate in an actual farmers market.

Post the mock market student A said she could see the customers were coming too fast and she would like to learn how to add and multiply fast. Student C asked if we can learn about weights. Student D mentioned how we need to know prices before we go to the market otherwise we might be fooled by any cost a shopkeeper might sell at.

This group of students will soon be visiting a real farmers market to purchase, enquire prices and speak to farmers. They know the skills they need, they've decided the amount of work they would like to put in and they’re creating purpose as they go along.

​#sparklingmindzglobalschool
#mathwithmarkets
#funwithmath
#inspiringconfidentlearners
#reggioinspiredlearning
​

Have you ever wondered how we can save the world from becoming a garbage pile?
Do you think there's something we can do about it? Any ideas? 
If so, how can you implement them? How can these ideas produce an output?

Well...that is what project T.R.U.I is for!

WHAT IS PROJECT T.R.U.I, you ask?
As sparkling Mindzians, we were troubled to know that the waste, whether we separate or not as dry and wet waste, usually end up in the landfills and all that talk about companies recycling are usually fake. Now knowing that the waste produced in our school will end up in landfills any way, we wanted to do something about it. And that was how the concept of T.R.U.I. emerged -Tinker, Reduce, Recycle, Reuse, Up-cycle and Innovate. A project that will help us to not only T.R.U.I. our waste but also even probably sell it. 

SO, WHAT DO WE PLAN TO DO ABOUT IT?
After the tool T.R.U.I. was given to us, we wanted to start the work right away, and so we did. As a class, we sat together and brought different ideas to the table. From coasters to lampshades, sound amplifiers to keychains, pencil holders to racks, our ideas were limitless. We then needed to pick a few from that big pile of ideas. To do this, we came up with a set of parameters that will give us an idea of how 'good' the idea is, what the product will and can be. The parameters we came up with were: effective, useful, abundantly sourceable, sturdy, and aesthetically pleasing. This came in handy as it helped us pick the most matched ideas from the lot. 

LET'S DELVE INTO OUR DISCUSSIONS FROM T.R.U.I. EMERGED FROM
Our discussions started off with the big question, 'Where does our waste go?' We wondered about it for days and days. We enquired about it to many - our maintenance heads, the people who take the garbage and many others. Even after all that the answers were either “It goes to Bannerghatta.”, or “Why do you want to know?!” None of us were satisfied with any of the answers that we received. So many of these discussions and so many questions later, we finally arrived at T.R.U.I and the ideas started pouring in.

MISSION T.R.U.I
Now that T.R.U.I has stepped in and taken a very important role in all of our lives, we were ready to start making the items we came up with. But the facilitators helped us realize that there were more learning and skill set we needed to bring to the table to make this process easier. This created the mission T.R.U.I where all our learnings were connected to T.R.U.I., along with us learning the skills that will help us to create T.R.U.I. Ied items. 


Contributed by Meenakshi, Falcons (Grade 8), Sparkling Mindz Global School.

#sparklingmindzglobalschool
#inspiringconfidentlearners
#21stcenturylearning
#socialemotionallearning
​#everychildcan

#sparklingmindzglobalschool
#inspiringconfidentlearners
#youngachieversacademy
#21stcenturylearning
#socialemotionallearning
#emotionalawareness
#emotionalintelligent
#afterschoolprogram
​#learningforkeeps

#noviruscanstopus
#sparklingmindzglobalschool
#annualdaycelebrations
#ohtheplacesyoullgo
#drseussinspired
#reggioemiliainspiredlearning
#playbasedlearning
#funplacesforchildren

​"I'm very happy to announce that we have been selected by Great Companies as one of the Top SMEs of 2021.

Right from when we started this journey we have been taking unique paths and unexpected turns as we work towards our mission of Inspiring Confident Learners and Changemakers amongst children today.

To all those who have believed in our vision and supported us through all these years, here's another validation and milestone of achievement. As always many, many miles more to go as our work has just begun.

Thank You for all the trust and support!"
- Sreeja Iyer, Founder & CEO, Sparkling Mindz Global School, Preschool, and Afterschool

#sparklingmindzglobalschool
#sparklingmindzglobalpreschool
#inspiringconfidentlearners
#youngachieversacademy
#21stcenturylearners
#socialemotionallearning
#reggioemiliainspiredlearningphilosophy
#awardsandrecognition

​

SM's holistic approach to learning and life cannot be complete without our parents. But what is the role of parents at Sparkling Mindz? How do we continue to keep child in the centre, keeping the caregivers in mind? What are the expectations from our parents? 

Let's listen to our founder, Ms. Sreeja Iyer, give us a sneak peak into our culture. 

​Times have been unpredictable, with the COVID-19 spreading, driving the world to take refuge in a dark shell of uncertainty. First, the schools were shut, then we were to keep our distance from each other and then, a complete lock down extending for over a month. Does this mean we shut everything down? Should children's learning stop? How are parents going to keep them engaged? These are some of the questions we asked ourselves.

We, at Sparkling Mindz value and nurture growth mindset. We believe that there is always a way, even in the face of adversities. We took to technology and reconnected with our children over video calls. Our children too vibed with our mindset, that NO Virus Can Stop Our LEARNING! 

We have been connecting with our children ranging from 7year Olds to 14 year Olds, reiterating to them about the importance of managing themselves mentally, emotionally and physically, and being able to create a routine that involves productive engagement. Oh! trust me, our children can create amazing schedules for themselves. 

On the last video call with our youngest group of children (the 7 to 8 year Olds), we presented a variety of activities that they could add to their schedules, which included different kinds of chores, workouts, experiments, skill building activities etc. Our children were  more than delighted to accept the repertoire of  options to choose from. 

Here, we have V trying to pick ice cubes with a piece of string as part of his play and learn experiment. The joy on his face shows us his engagement and wonder. Knowing V, we can imagine the curious wonder questions and observations he must have made while he experimented. 

Here is our Advika, doing the same challenge, inspiring all of us in the process, in her own creative way!

We viewed this adversity not as a hindrance but rather as an opportunity that presented itself to help our children and us learn and grow through it. 

Children, need to be encouraged to deal with adversities with a growth mindset. Why? So they become individuals who can deal with their circumstances without giving up on themselves or their dreams.


Contributed by Disha HK, Learning Facilitator at Sparkling Mindz Global School.

#sparklingmindzglobalschool
#sparklingmindzglobalpreschool
#youngachieversacademy
#inspiringconfidentlearners
#everychildcan
#covid19
#gamebasedlearning
#challengingourselves