In tough times like these, how can one learn to remain inspired and committed to the greater vision, mission and purpose? As the saying goes, 'Tough times don't last, tough teams do...!' 

This is how we choose to stay together, our SM community. We hold the fort down, we got each other. And we invite you to explore your life and share with us how you stay inspired and joyful.

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Sparkling Mindz makes you do things beyond your comfort zone; gently nudging and pushing you to grow.  This one (as you must have guessed from the article) is about HOW I RAN A 12K MARATHON! Actually, how all of us at school ran a 12k Marathon?

Yes, we do run a marathon every year and this year on Oct 2nd, 2019 we all ran a solid 12 kilometers! While at any other place a marathon maybe about running and winning. Not at Sparkling Mindz. Here, it stands for everything that we as Sparkling Mindzians stand for -

1. Beating my best - it was not about comparing with anyone else but bettering our own timing
2. Being one with oneself - spending an hour+ running by yourself can bring out a lot of voices in your head - some that are cheerleaders and others that can be very discouraging
3. Finding my rhythm - running is all about discovering the rhythm in your breath, body and mind and each can find a different one

Something interesting happened on one of our last day of practice,. You must be wondering why bring up a practice session? Well, it was the day where we would run three rounds of around 4K each on site testing whether we could really do 12Kms or not! The moment of truth was here.
​
As soon as we began stretching you could already see the different thoughts running through people's minds, "Yay! We are doing 3 rounds today!", "Can I really run 3 rounds.... [sighs]",  "Oh my, I am so excited! I am sure I can do it", and more.  All of us having different thoughts, all of them that affected our run. Thoughts affected run? Yes! Let's explore what I meant through this.

We began our run and the facilitator screamed a heavy ‘Ready.......Steady.......Go..!’ and all of us ran with our hands moving front and back, our lungs filling with air, our legs drifting across the surface and thoughts running across our minds. All that were there in front of us was the pitch black road with trees on either sides, rocks laying here and there and wind passing by. In the first stretch some of us stopped and some took time off, all based on what we chose to tell ourselves.
We all finished the first round like we were flying through air and when the second round began, things started to get different. Few had pulled themselves up, some had fallen behind, some were determined, some were just talking and others were just walking. All telling themselves different things - ‘I can do this I will finish .’, ‘What! Where is my friend I can’t run like this.’  and ‘[sighs]...I am so tired I am not sure if I can do this’. Throughout the second round there were distractions, motivations, goals and narratives all of them new and some, different. Well, all of us managed through the second round.

​You ever hear the words ‘strong determination’? Well now we witnessed it because in the third round, narratives shifted and patterns changed. Everyone who committed to the third round began and this round started off like a bird taking off with its wings wide open. All of us told ourselves, "We could do it!" All of us with a productive mindset. This round was as fast as the wind and everyone by now was very eager to finish this run and achieve their goals.

The run ended and everyone was stretching- when we closed our eyes and took a deep breath,  we could feel this energy inside of us, something that drove us for the rest of our day. It was a source of power within us.

Why is this so important? Well, because that day the amount of improvement all of us showed was huge, how some of us learnt to shift states and narratives was an achievement. That day was the day when we all gave it our best, the best that we could give then. 

What’s next? Well, we are from Sparkling Mindz...so we want to constantly do more and do better, and so we will! We will continue our practices diligently and continue growing and learning. This is just one of our milestones in the many coming ahead.

Contributed by Meenakshi Tanikella, Falcons (Grade 8), Sparkling Mindz Global School. 
Edited by Sreeja Iyer, CEO & Founder Sparkling Mindz.

​I was having a conversation with children today on putting effort and how it's not easy, yet we do it. We reflected on it during our facilitators meeting. It inspired me to write a poem. Sharing...

Everyday 
I choose a fight
With my time
On what's right 

I choose to grow 
I choose the pain
I choose the joy
From deep within 

Everyday 
I choose to talk
With care
And deep thought

I choose to grow 
I choose the pain
I choose the joy
From deep within 

Everyday 
I choose to work
To make an impact 
For what it's worth

I choose to grow 
I choose the pain
I choose the joy
From deep within 

Most times I win
Even when I don't
I still choose the fight
As it's worth my might

If our children saw everyday as a challenge to grow and make themselves better. If they just started to see themselves as worthy of great things we would see them pushing themselves and picking battles that are worthy of everyone's time. 

Contributed by Sreeja Iyer, Founder, Sparkling Mindz Global School and Preschool

It was 9:05am, which meant, it was time for the preschool children at SM to go into their respective classes to begin their day. As I was calling them all in to the class from the front space of the school, Aarav was looking around the window area , looking out, touching the surface, etc. He seemed to be in deep thoughts. As I called him too to go to his class, he stopped me and asked me, "Ma'am, how do we close the window?" 

Aarav and Aadya stared at this in wonder, trying to have an experience of opening and closing the window. After having figured it out, they happily jumped out and ran to their class with a newer dimension of thinking about how they could close the window. 

This little conversation served as a morning inspiration as it was yet another reminder about how curious children are about every little thing. And their passion to figure things out, and also helping others to figure things out. 


Contributed by Sruthy Krishna, Learning Facilitator at Sparkling Mindz Global Preschool. 

The 3 to 4 year olds at SM were having their Movement Song today and they were running, walking, jumping, clapping, singing...and just pretending to be different animals. Post this, the facilitator thought it would be a good idea to sing '5 little monkeys' to get the whole class together when they started to run all over the place. As soon as they started the rhyme, the facilitator was in for a surprise! The rhyme took a whole new turn itself! They wanted to be dragons instead. So we sang...as follows:

5 little dragons flying in the sky,
One fell off and bumped his head.
Mamma called the doctor and the doctor said,
No more dragons...

S: Ma'am, dragons don't get hurt. They get up say arrrrrrrrr and fly away. 
F: Okay. 
5 little dragons flying in the sky,
One fell off and bumped his head.
Then he got up and..?
 
At this point they are all making dragon sounds. 
S: Then he got up and started flying because he's so strong. He doesn't get hurt. 

F: okay so how about,
5 little dragons flying in the sky,
One fell off and bumped his head.
He got up and said "Arrrrrrrrr"

They all were strong dragons at this point, enacting the whole thing out, screaming "arrrrrr"... 

F: And then? 
Collectively: He flew to the sky. 
F: Awesome! 

'Opened his wings and flew back to the sky!'
F: Does that sound okay?

S: YES!!!
F: Let's do it then!

The new song is as follows:

5 little dragons flying in the sky,
One fell off and bumped his head.
He got up and said "Arrrrrrrrr"
Opened his wings and flew back to the sky!

4 little dragons flying in the sky,
One fell off and bumped his head.
He got up and said "Arrrrrrrrr"
Opened his wings and flew back to the sky!

3 little dragons flying in the sky,
One fell off and bumped his head.
He got up and said "Arrrrrrrrr"
Opened his wings and flew back to the sky!

2 little dragons flying in the sky,
One fell off and bumped his head.
He got up and said "Arrrrrrrrr"
Opened his wings and flew back to the sky!

1 little dragon flying in the sky,
One fell off and bumped his head.
He got up and said "Arrrrrrrrr"
Opened his wings and flew back to the sky!

They loved this new rhyme that they co-created and have been pretending to be dragons ever since. They had to be brought back to reality by calling their names to shake the dragons off and come back to class again as themselves. 

Magic arrives and manifests when children are left to be themselves in the class. They truly become co-creators of their own learning, and enjoy the whole show. There was no facilitator in the class at that point, just a bunch of curious individuals who love to learn together!

An interesting conversation that took place with a 4 year old today during their usual library hour where I was issuing each of them books:

Me: K, come on up with your book. 
K (screaming with excitement): Ma'am I got 'Princesses are not just pretty' book this time!!
Me (surprised): WOW! How did you know the name of this book?
K (smirking, without a pause): That's because I am a clever clock!

K and I were having a moment of the witty comeback when H came up beside him and said, "Ma'am I only told him the name of this book".

To me, the witty comeback was a sign of K's growing confidence and his ability to make a good connection with what his friend.

​ What kind of wit or humour have you heard from your child recently? Do they make you laugh or cringe in pain knowing that they are shining a mirror onto your behaviour sometimes?

Contributed by Sruthy Krishna, Learning Facilitator at Sparkling Mindz Global Preschool.

It is the Poetic Soiree season and like you rightly can guess, Poetry is in the air. Unlike, other times, we have inspired poetry and children's own poetry being shared. As children express themselves, some of their innermost thoughts and struggles resonate. They are all learning to love themselves and not get influenced by other's opinion of themselves. 

Children very easily get influenced by what their friends think or say about them. They easily internalize negative messages about themselves  and make it their own. 

We have been talking to children about their internal voice and keeping it positive. Sharing a poem I wrote based on the inspiration.  This has been an ongoing process for us, so this poem was written in Aug 2017.

-When I love myself--

When I'm harsh on myself
I can't see anything good
When I love myself
I'm okay even if they're rude

When I judge myself
Every finger points at me
When I love myself
They are just being free

When I criticise myself
I lose the will to fight
When I love myself
I gather all my might

When I look for flaws in myself
I stare down a deep, dark hole
When I love myself
I find ways to make myself whole

When I don't trust myself
I get angry at all my mistakes
When I love myself
I'll learn and up my stakes

When I care too much
About what others will think
I lose sight of what I hold dear
And what I value in the fear

When I live in fear
Of being found
For the fraud I'm
I cry, I run, I hide

When I live in joy
Of discovering
Who I'm
I stay, I learn, I grow

--Sreeja Iyer
CEO, Sparkling Mindz 

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