SILC: Weekly Digest (09/25/11)

Dear SILC Students, Parents, Teachers and Volunteers:

It usually takes 2 to 3 weeks for the SILC to settle into the rhythm. We are working to finalize the registrations and close out the registration for the current academic year. If you have not already done, please complete your registration (register; pay the dues; get the level corrected).

We are also working on purchasing some Tabla sets for rent and we will share the details next week. Some of the teachers have started updating their class-specific web sites / blogs. 

If you are still not sure of the level for Hindi or Social Studies or Dance classes, please contact the Principal / Asst. Principal or any board member through email / over phone / in person. We would like to publish the SILC directory of the classes, teachers and volunteers in mid-October and having the class lists finalized is one of the important things for the directory.

Thank you for all those signing up for the Chitram field trip. If you are still interested in participating in the field trip, please contact oberdorfer.erin@dorsey.com  The deadline for getting the discounted tickets has passed. But you can try contacting Erin to see whether she has any discounted tickets left.  In either case, you can collect the tickets on next Saturday October 1st. Note that the performance will be on Sunday October 2nd at 7 PM.

Here is a special note to the language students; Do you know that you can type in many Indian languages (all the languages currently offered at SILC) using Google transliteration tool?  You can visit http://www.google.com/transliterate and try out the tool to type your name.

And here is this week's Quiz: What are India's national symbols?  Answers will be in the next digest.

• India's National Flower
• India's National Bird
• India's national Animal
• India's National Tree
• India's National River
• India's National Song
• India's National Anthem
• India's National Game
• India's National Days

If any of you want to prepare quizzes, puzzles, games to educate the SILC community on Indian culture, languages, arts.. please send me your quizzes. We can include those in the digests / news letter / blogs as appropriate.

Have a wonderful week of learning.

--

Regards

Siva Jasthi

Director - Communications

School of India for Languages and Culture

http://www.silcmn.com

(mobile) 612.217.4821

SILC: Weekly Digest (09/18/2011)

Dear SILC Students, Parents, Teachers and Volunteers:

It was nice to be back in school on Saturday. The first day saw parents and children excited to take on new frontiers in the form of various classes they had enrolled for. 

[1] Orientation - First day presentation

You can find the orientation presentation shown on the first day here at this link
 http://www.silcmn.com/docs/2011-12/SILC_orientation_2011_12.ppsx

Note that the presentation is a slide show and some of these slides contain the videos and audio. Click those links to activate the multimedia content.

[2] CHITRAM - our first field trip

SILC's first field trip is quickly approaching.  CHITRAM:  A Portrait of India will be performed Oct 2, 2011 at 7pm. at O'Shaunessy Auditorium. Do not miss this one of its kind performance in the Minneapolis / St. Paul area where the Indian community will bring to life a multimedia portrayal of India under the leadership of visionary composer and McKnight Fellow Kanniks Kannikeswaran of Cincinnati, Ohio. Chitram has been performed to packed houses in Ohio, Michigan, and Florida and is now coming to Minnesota.
 
Tickets are $15 for adult general admission and $5 children/students through SILC. (Regular prices at the box office are $17 for adults and $10 for children/students;  We managed to get the discount tickets for adults and SILC will be picking up half the cost for children tickets). All proceeds will benefit Second Harvest Food Shelves. You can sign up for tickets at SILC on Saturday or email Erin at oberdorfer.erin@dorsey.com with your ticket request and then pay for them at SILC.  Orders must be placed by 9/24 for the discounted rate.

[3]  Please make sure that you collect SILC folder

If you have registered and are in need of folder (returning families may be reusing the folder from last year - those can collect new calendar), please make sure that you contact Lakshmi Buddhavarapu.

[4] Can PRESCHOOLERS attend other classes for the last 30 minutes?

We had some parents asking if they could have their pre-schoolers attend the art class for 30 mins while they waited for their older child or for the end of day announcements. We are exploring the possibility of putting out some art related materials for such families in a separate area (so as not to disturb the art class).  We have enough art supplies to engage the preschoolers for the last 30 minutes. We are looking for some parents from within the pre-schoolers’ class who would like to lead this activity. If you would like to volunteer, please reach out to the Asst Principal or Principal.

[5] Tabla Sets for Tabla classes

·         Some parents inquired if SILC could rent out “Tablas” to students who do not have one. This is an excellent suggestion and we are looking into purchasing a couple of sets so that these could be rented out at a nominal rate per week. These will be available on a first come-first served basis, so do email us to let us know if you are interested in renting them.
.         If you are making a visit to India or if someone from India is visiting you, it is a good idea to get Tabla set from India.

[6] "Unknown" Levels in Hindi and Social Studies

There were a few parents/students who had questions and we hope that their queries were answered satisfactorily. If you have more questions, please contact any of the board member or the Asst Principal / Principal.

·         One of the questions that were being asked frequently is, “My child may be 4 (or 5) years old but knows ‘this’ language fluently. Why can’t she/he register for the language class?” The SILC board understands this concern. However, we would like to point out that we prefer to have the class composition based on a balance between the age and proficiency of a student. Even though the proficiency level of a student may be higher, we also want to place students within their age group so that they can interact at the same maturity level and develop well, socially.  At the same time, it also becomes challenging for our volunteer teachers to impart knowledge to students with different maturity levels.

·         Some parents also clarified the levels for their children, since they had registered as “Unknown”. We have got changes for only 6 students, which will be done according to the discussions of parents with SILC board member, Raj Menon. We still have a large number of students who are still showing up as Level “Unknown” in our reports. Their parents are requested to get this reconciled at the earliest by meeting Raj Menon, who will be available next Saturday.

·         We also witnessed a few classes which had more students than were registered. Please make sure that your child is attending the correct class (and level) for which she/he has been registered. Effective next week, teachers will not be allowing students who have not been registered for their class/level.

[7] Complete your online Registration

We plan to publish SILC Directory during October first week. If you have already done so, please ensure that you are registered. If you are not formally registered, you will be missing out SILC and teacher communications. Some of the registrations are showing up as "Unpaid".  Please ensure that you handle the payment as well (please contact Mangala Achar - SILC Treasurer for paying through check).

[8] This week's Question or Quiz:

"A number of Indian cities and territories have been renamed over the years, mostly in an effort to erase the supposed 'colonial hangover'. This quiz deals with some of the more popular name changes over the years."

http://www.funtrivia.com/playquiz/quiz2589221da4eb8.html


--
Regards
Siva Jasthi
Director - Communications
School of India for Languages and Culture
http://www.silcmn.com
(mobile) 612.217.4821

SILC: Our first field trip to CHITRAM

Dear SILC Students, Parents, Teachers and Volunteers:

SILC's first field trip is quickly approaching.  CHITRAM:  A Portrait of India will be performed Oct 2, 2011 at 7pm. at O'Shaunessy Auditorium. Do not miss this one of its kind performance in the Minneapolis / St. Paul area where the Indian community will bring to life a multimedia portrayal of India under the leadership of visionary composer and McKnight Fellow Kanniks Kannikeswaran of Cincinnati, Ohio. Chitram has been performed to packed houses in Ohio, Michigan, and Florida and is now coming to Minnesota. 
 
Tickets are $15 for adult general admission and $5 children/students through SILC. (Regular prices at the box office are $17 for adults and $10 for children/students;  We managed to get the discount tickets for adults and SILC will be picking up half the cost for children tickets). All proceeds will benefit Second Harvest Food Shelves. You can sign up for tickets at SILC on Saturday or email Erin at oberdorfer.erin@dorsey.com with your ticket request and then pay for them at SILC.  Orders must be placed by 9/24 for the discounted rate.

--
Regards
Siva Jasthi
Director - Communications
School of India for Languages and Culture
http://www.silcmn.com
(mobile) 612.217.4821

Vande Mataram and Jana Gana Mana

We start each SILC saturday with Vande Maataram and end with Jana Gana Mana. The transliteration of these anthems are provided in your SILC folder. Audio and Video references are provided here. We would like the SILC community to learn, practice and participate.

Jana Gana Mana : Vocal (Audio)

You can download the National Anthem from here. This is official version from Government of India and runs for 52 seconds

Jana Gana Mana: Piano Music

If you are interested in playing Jana Gana Mana on piano, you can download the music here.


Jana Gana Mana : Vocal (Video)



Jana Gana Mana : If you are feeling shy to sing at SILC, you should watch this.





Vande Maataram (Original)





Vande Maataram (Another version)

SILC: Welcome message from the principal

Dear SILC Parents / Guardians and Students,

It gives me immense pleasure to welcome all of you to the SILC academic year 2011-12. We had a great start to this year with our Open House / Orientation sessions held on Sept 10th. There were a large number of new families who joined us for this orientation, which kept our volunteers busy.

For those of you who could not attend the orientation session, we will be sharing the power point presentation with you via our website very soon. If you still have questions, please do not hesitate to contact me or the Asst Principal.
Our first day of classes will be held on Sept 17th. In order to make sure that we have a smooth start to this day (and all schools days), please find given below some housekeeping points:-

1.      Arrival at School : Please plan to arrive inside the school hall at least 5 mins before 10am. Our day begins with a few announcements followed by Vande Mataram; after which the students disperse for language classes.

2.      Class Room Allocation : The Class Room allocation chart is attached in this email. Please take a moment to note the class rooms your child is supposed to go to. To assist new families with the layout of the rooms, please find attached a copy of the school map.

3.      Teachers : The list of volunteer teachers is also attached. 

4.      Level “Unknown” During registration a lot of families have selected “Unknown” against the levels for Language and SS. It will be our endeavor to guide these families to the best possible level for their child after discussing the child's proficiency / age etc. I will be bringing a list of such students. If you have registered your child as Level Unknown for a subject, please meet with me or a SILC board member to clarify the level your child should go to.  (These changes can then only be carried out by the Director of Admissions in the role of an Administrator of GURUKUL)

5.      Incorrect Subject Level There is a similar situation (as above) with those families who have mentioned a level but apparently their child may not be suitable for that level. Such students will be asked to proceed to their respective classes (as registered). All teachers have been asked to vet these students to see if they should be attending the level being taught by them. We will then make necessary changes as recommended by the teachers.

6.      SILC Hand Book : SILC, like any other educational institution, has certain rules and guidelines which we expect our students to follow. To this effect a SILC Hand Book has been prepared, which has been shared with you by our Director Communications. It is also attached here. Please do go through it.

7.      Contribution of Parents: Our voluntary teachers do their best to impart knowledge to their students. However, unlike regular school, SILC is an organization which meets just once a week. It becomes imperative for us as parents to follow through with the topics being taught in the class.  Our students have shown to derive the maximum benefit when their parents have also worked with them at home and I request all parents to do so. 

If you have any questions or need further info, please feel free to email me, call me at 651-894-2551 or meet me before or after the first period on Saturdays.

Once again, welcome back to the returning families and a warm welcome to all the new ones. 
Have a great school year ahead!

--
Regards
Shiv Bhatia
Principal
School of India for Languages and Culture
http://www.silcmn.com
(mobile) 651-894-2551

SILC: Weekly Digest (09/11/11)

Dear SILC Students, Parents, Teachers and Volunteers:

Thank you all for attending the orientation on 10th september. It is nice to see many new members joining SILC family and we are all envisinoing another great year at SILC.

If you have any further questions unanswered from the orientation, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us via email or call.

If you have not already done so, please take a moment to register  (since this mail goes only to the registered members, please pass on this information if you know any one who has not registered yet).

This is the first of weekly digests, I or one of the board members send to SILC community every Sunday. This will be one of the communication channels we use to update you all on the upcoming events, activities that are of interest to SILC members.

These weekly digests are also posted to http://www.silcblogs.com/
You can refer to these digests at these blogs or in GURUKUL message repository.

[1] Note from Shiva Bhaita - Principal
----------------------------------------
We are now working to correc the registrations (those who registered for "I do not know" levels, those who registered for incorrect levels) and another note will be sent out mid-week outlining the plan.

Please note that it is mandatory that your child or you are assigned a language or social studies or elective level before they can attend the class on next Saturday.

We will also have signs posted on the class room doors and will also have this information posted to the "classes" link on http://www.silcmn.com/. Please make a note of the class room and write it on SILC folder so that you can easily navigate to the correct classroom next week.

[2] Note from Rupa Ryan - Cooking Class Coordinator
----------------------------------------------------------
Thank you to everyone who signed up to volunteer to teach the adult cooking class for a day!  There are still spots open, including the first two weeks of classes.  It is critical that we get these first two weeks filled because there are students who have signed up.  Here are the days available to teach a cooking class:

September 17, 24

December 10

January 7, 14, 21

February 11, 18, 25

March 4

April 8, 22

If you have already signed up, but would like an immediate reminder of the date, please don't hesitate to email me.

Teaching cooking is a lot of fun because everyone in the class gets involved!  Students will help with chopping, pouring, tasting and of course clean up when the demonstration is finished.  We ask that the recipe you teach be vegetarian (and Indian!) and be able to be prepped and cooked in about 30 minutes.  You will need to bring the ingredients and pots and pans.  We have a full kitchen in the school so we have access to plates, dishes, silverware, etc.  However, we must put things back exactly where they were found.

If you would like to see the recipes done in earlier cooking classes at SILC, please visit http://silccooking.blogspot.com/

You do not need to know the recipe at the time you sign up, but please be prepared to email it to me soon after I contact you to remind you of your sign up date.  It is a lot of fun, so I hope you will consider it!  You can email me directly at ruparyan83@gmail.com.

Thank you!
Rupa Ryan

[3] Note from Divya Karan: Director - Curriculum
----------------------------------------------------
Here are the links to the Social Studies curriculum for the three levels we are offerign at SILC.  Please note that the order of what is taught in each class can be different. But youc an expect this coverage during the course of the year.

http://www.silcmn.com/docs/2011-12/SILC_Social_Studies_L1_Curriculum.docx
http://www.silcmn.com/docs/2011-12/SILC_Social_Studies_L2_Curriculum.docx
http://www.silcmn.com/docs/2011-12/SILC_Social_Studies_L3_Curriculum.docx

We are now revising the language syllabus and will be sending out those links next week.

========================================

Wishing you all a good week.

--
Regards
Siva Jasthi
Director - Communications
School of India for Languages and Culture
http://www.silcmn.com/
(mobile) 612.217.4821

SILC: First Day Logistics (09/10/11)

Dear SILC Students, Parents, Teachers and Volunteers:

Thank you for those who have registered for 2011-12 session;  3 more days to go for SILC start. We are all excited.

Here is the schedule of first day of SILC  - 09/10/11

10:00 - 12:15:    New Registrations; Finalizing the existing registrations; Giving out SILC folder

10:15 - 11:00:    Orientation to SILC - First Session

11:00 - 11:30:     Meet and greet the teachers; Tour of SILC class rooms; Snack time

11:30 - 12:15:    Orientation to SILC - Second Session
You can chose to attend one of the orientation sessions; Note that there will NOT be any language, social studies, dance, elective classes on the first day.  Regular schedule will resume on 17th September.

To streamline the first day operations at SILC, I encourage you to register online at  http://www.silcmn.com prior to coming to SILC. It is possible that some of your friends who are interested in SILC may not be getting this communication. Please feel free to forward this email. 

SILC classes are held at:

Como Park High School
740 West Rose Avenue
St. Paul, MN-55117

See you all on Saturday (09/10/11) at 10 AM.

Until we have the formal list of registrations (limited to 200 for the next academic year 2011-12), I plan to send SILC communications to the entire SILC community (to all students, parents, teachers and volunteers from earlier years as well). If you do not wish to receive these communications, please let me know. You can always catch up on the SILC happenings on a weekly basis at http://www.silcmn.com and http://www.silcblogs.com


--
Regards
Siva Jasthi
Director - Communications
School of India for Languages and Culture
http://www.silcmn.com
(mobile) 612.217.4821