Transcript Shiv Bhatia

Welcome to SILC
Outline
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Introduction to SILC
Typical Day
What to expect in each class?
What do we expect from students, parents, volunteers?
SILC Calendar
Outline of major events
SILC in the community
Volunteering
Introduction to Teachers (Will NOT be covered)
Welcome to SILC
• Interested in learning about India's rich diversity, languages, culture, cooking,
arts and dances? If so, then SILC is the place for you.
•
More than just a weekend school
– Learn about India in a fun filled way – what’s the 'dot' on the forehead
– Also take the opportunity to learn of the highly evolved thoughts from India
including historical and other significant events, geography, natural resources,
festivals, games, food, art, dance, music and more!
• Strives to develop well-informed individuals in a non religious setting.
– Plays pivotal role in bridging the cultural gap and enhancing mutual
understanding of foreign origins and cultures which are vital for strengthening
ties between cultures & nations.
• Welcome to the SILC family and enjoy India's rich experiences!
– Listen to stories, anecdotes, epics, and great literary works that inform and
inspire us all.
History of SILC
• Started in 1979 as Bharat School and then morphed in
SILC.
• Run as a non-profit by volunteers for its entire history
• Enrollments ranged from 15 students in its first year to
200 students last year
• Languages: Bangla (Bengali), Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada,
Malayalam, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit,
Tamil, Telugu, Urdu
• Electives: Art, Yoga, Sports/Cricket, Cooking, Special
Achievement Project, AP, General Knowledge, Literature,
dance, music (tabla)
Secret of SILC’s longevity: Dedication and Passion of our
volunteers.
SILC Board (2011-12)
Office
President
Principal
Assistant Principal
Treasurer
Secretary
Director-Volunteering
Director - Cultural Activities
Director - Curriculum
Director - Pulications
Director - Registrations
Member-At-Large
Director-Communications;
Former President
Name
Erin Oberdorfer
Shiv Bhatia
Sunita Mankunath
Mangala Achar
Lakshmi Buddhavarapu
Natarajan Raman
Neelam Malhotra
Divya Karan
Krishnan Nambudiripad
Rajesh Gupta
Raj Menon
Siva Jasthi
Baiju Sadanandam Gurukul support
SILC website silcmn.com
and www.silcblogs.com
GURUKUL
• Starting the academic year 2011-12, registration to SILC is
done through “GURUKUL, the SILC Online Registration
System”.
• Link to GURUKUL can be found at http://www.silcmn.com
• Paper-based registrations are no longer entertained.
• All the volunteers and teachers are also required to register in
GURUKUL.
• All the communications will also be managed through
GURUKUL.
GURUKUL contd.
GURUKUL contd.
• Please ensure that you are registered through
GURUKUL
• It helps us to reach out to you and to better run the
school
Language
Hindi
Telugu
???
Nepali
Kannada
NA
Gujarati
Tamil
Malayalam
Bengali
(blank)
Grand Total
Count
52
12
9
9
8
7
5
3
3
2
110
Elective
Count
Dance
28
???
25
Tabla
10
Cricket
10
Art
9
NA
9
Yoga
6
(blank)
3
Adult Dance
2
Cricket/Cooking
2
Yoga/Tabla
1
Cricket/Tabla
1
Dance/cooking
1
??
1
Cooking
1
Yoga/Dance
1
Grand Total
110
Location
St Paul
Minneapolis
Woodbury
????
(blank)
Blaine
Shoreview
St. Paul
Arden Hills
White Bear Lake
Maplewood
Duluth
Little Canada
Eagan
Lakeville
Eden Prarie
Maple Grove
Edina
Cottage Grove
New Brighton
Roseville
Vadnais Heights
Brooklyn Park
Inver Grove Heights
St Louis Park
Plymouth
Coon Rapids
Grand Total
Count
19
19
16
6
5
5
4
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
2
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
110
Want to carpool?
Contact the DirectorRegistrations for info
Refund Policy
SILC refund policy is as follows:
• SILC will refund 100% of the fee during the first 30
days after opening
• SILC will refund 50% of the fee, after the first 30
days and before the end of December
• SILC will offer no refunds after December
• Refund will be through check only, irrespective of
the mode of payment of the registration fee
• 3 to 4 weeks to process a refund request
How the money is used?
• SILC is a non-profit organization
• Completely run by unpaid volunteers
• The registration fee (that is the only annual fee; it is
not weekly or monthly) is primarily to offset the
cost of renting the school
• Remaining fee is used for:
–
–
–
–
–
–
School supplies
SILC Yearbook & Newsletters
To maintain the web site & GURUKUL
To support field trips
To purchase the capital equipment
To maintain the SILC library
SILC Scholarships
• SILC strives to be a school that is open to all. We have students and
parents from various parts of the world. Our instruction is inclusive to
all faiths and traditions. Anyone interested in learning about India is
welcome to attend and explore its rich language and culture.
• As such, SILC is proud to offer a scholarship to those who would like to
attend but may find it difficult to pay for the yearly fee.
– SILC will waive 50% of the fee for students who qualify.
– To apply, the parent(s) must write a paragraph demonstrating need.
Please explain why the SILC fee is excessive for your family.
– We do not require income information.
– Applications are due by first Saturday of October, though exceptions can
be made for students who start later in the year.
Send a mail to [email protected] if you are applying for scholarship
Typical day
• 10:00am to 10:05am - Invocation
10:05am to 10:50am - Language
10:50am to 11:00am - Recess
• 11:00am to 11:45am - Social Studies/Literature/Adult
Dance
• 11:00 am to 12:00pm - Preschool
• 11:45am to 12:30pm - Electives
Visit http://www.silcmn.com for any announcements,
schedules, contacts
Starting the day with
Vande Mataram
• 10:00am to 10:05am –Invocation
SILC family sings Vande Mataram at the
start of the school day.
• It is expected that all members of SILC,
parents & children, should stand at
attention when these are being
performed and join in, if they can.
• Lyrics & transliteration of this song is in
SILC folder
• You can also find the video on YouTube
or on http://www.silcblogs.com
Click on the picture
To play the video
Language Classes
(10:05 to 10:50)
• Languages Offered this year:
– Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Nepali,
Tamil, Telugu
• After Vande Mataram, students go to the
language class.
• For the first few weeks, you can see the name
of the class hanging on the classroom door.
• Please make a note of the classroom on your
SILC folder
• Please note that some languages have
multiple levels (especially, Hindi)
• Parents: If you are interested to start
teaching a new language at SILC, please let us
know
Respect
The Class
And
The Class Room
Snack Break
(10:50 to 11:00)
• Students then take a snack break for 10 minutes
• During the break, students will have snack and juice/milk. This is provided by
families each week
• Please help setup and clean-up the SILC Commons area after use.
• If you spill juice/milk OR leave a mess, please ensure that you clean up.
• It is an expectation on SILC that we handover the rented space (classrooms,
halls, cafeteria) all in good condition at the end of SILC session.
• We need all your help to ensure that the school is in neat condition after our
use.
Social Studies and Literature classes
(11:00 to 11:45)
• After the snack break, students go Social Studies class.
• Note that there are multiple levels in Social Studies (Level 1, 2
and 3). (look for Syllabus in your mail)
• Literature class will also be held at the same time;
• Literature class is open to students who have completed 3 levels
of Social Studies.
• Please ensure that you go to the level assigned to you
Dance Class (Adults)
(11:00 to 11:45)
• The most popular class - the dance class for adults will also be
held at the same time.
• Dance students perform at various events and festivals through
out the year and in summer -Festival of Nations (30+ yrs),
IndiaFest (15+ yrs), Dragon Festival (10+ yrs), Burnsville
International Festival (4+ yrs)
• Dance students are our ambassadors who show case SILC in the
community
Dance Class (Adults)
(11:00 to 11:45)
SILC Adults Rajasthani group at the Festival of Nations, RiverCenter, St Paul
Dance Class (Adults)
(11:00 to 11:45)
SILC Adults Koli dance at the Minnesota History Center, St Paul
Dance Class (Adults)
(11:00 to 11:45)
SILC Adults Garbha dance at the Festival of Nations, RiverCenter, St Paul
Click to watch the video (Festival of Nations 2008 – Adults Dance)
Dance Class (Adults)
(11:00 to 11:45)
SILC Adults Kai Kotti Kali group at the Festival of Nations, RiverCenter, St Paul
Preschool
(11:00 to Noon)
• Preschoolers are children from 4 to 6
years of age.
• For preschoolers, that is the only
session.
• All the topics (language, art, music,
social studies) will be covered through
activities rather than formal studies.
• Please ensure that preschoolers donot
sit in other classes before or after their
session.
• It is expected that the child will
continue in the preschool through out
the year if he/she starts the year at
preschool.
Elective - Yoga
(11:45 to 12:30)
• Yoga class is held in the gym
• Taught by Punjabhai Patel, SILC
volunteer for over 25 years.
• Parents are encouraged to join the
yoga class.
Elective - Tabla
(11:45 to 12:30)
• Tabla class is held in the gym
• Students should get their own Tabla
(Tabla teacher will provide guidance).
• Students perform at various festivals
(Dragon Festival, IndiaFest)
Elective - Dance
(11:45 to 12:30)
• Dance classes are held in the SILC Commons
• There are three levels in the dance class
– Youth / Teens
– Tweens (Elder children)
– Kids (younger children)
• Except for the Dance students perform at
various festivals (Festival of Nations,
IndiaFest, Dragon Festival, Burnsville
International Festival)
• Dance students are our ambassadors who
show case SILC in the community
• All the dance students may not get an
opportunity to perform at the festival.
• Their eligibility is decided by their attendance
and performance;
• Decision of the dance director in this regard is
final.
Elective - Dance
(11:45 to 12:30)
Click to
See the
Tweens
Practicing
their dance
Elective - Arts
(11:45 to 12:30)
• For the artist in your child…
• Go beyond crayons
• Art activities are connected with
Indian themes, culture, festivals.
Elective - Cooking
(11:45 to 12:30)
• Cooking class will be held in the kitchen / Home Economics room
• Only students 10 years and older can register for Cooking class.
• Please ensure that the kitchen is clean after use (dishes are cleaned, spills
are cleared).
• It is very important to keep the kitchen ready for use when the regular
teachers come on Monday
• Cooking classes are run by the parents (please sign up); They prepare a dish,
share the recipe and dish with their class mates (and some folks like me
who magically appear in the kitchen at the end of the cooking class)
What is cooking at SILC?
Visit silccooking.blogspot.com
Elective – Sports/Cricket
(11:45 to 12:30)
• Sports/Cricket class is held in the gym.
• It is popular class for some kids as a
weekend escape from the week long
academics
Elective – Special Achievement
Project (11:45 to 12:30)
• Under the guidance of SILC teachers, some students may opt to do special
projects covering the topics / people related to India.
• If you have opted for this elective, please contact the principal
Closing the day with
Jana Gana Mana
• 12:30 pm to 12:35am –Invocation
SILC family sings Jana Gana Mana – National Anthem of India at the end of
the school day.
• It is expected that all members of SILC, parents & children, should stand at
attention when it is being performed and join in, if they can.
• You can find the lyrics and transliteration of this song in SILC folder. Please
contact the SILC Principal or President to get a copy of the translation.
• You can also find the video on youtube or on http://www.silcblogs.com
Offerings this year
• Languages offered this year:
– Kannada, Hindi, Malayalam, Telugu, Tamil, Gujarati, Nepali
• Social Studies, Preschool, Literature, Adult Dance
• Electives offered this year
– Art, Yoga, Tabla, Cooking, Cricket/Sports, Children Dance,
Youth Dance
Communications
• Emails from President, Principal, Assistant Principal
• All important announcements will also be published to
silcblogs which you can navigate from
• The class teacher will also be sending any emails to
their respective students.
• Announcements during the assembly, first and second
breaks
• In general, we will try to keep all your contacts
confidential and will not distributed to anyone
School Closure
• If SILC is being cancelled due to bad weather, the SILC
President will send an email by 8.00 am to all SILC families
whose email IDs have been provided to SILC.
• SILC closure message will also be posted on the SILC website
on the home page (www.silcmn.com).
• SILC has put in place an Emergency Phone tree, which will be
activated in case of any kind of school closure. You will be
contacted by your student’s language teacher.
• If you have not been contacted and you have doubts, please
reach out to any of the following members of the SILC Board:
SILC President, SILC Principal or the SILC Assistant Principal.
Best Attendance Award
• We encourage regular attendance to get best out of
SILC and also to maintain the continuity of the
programs (ex: dance)
• Attendance will be tracked by the language
teachers.
• At the end of the year, during the graduation
ceremony, 5 best attendance awards (a certification
+ $10 gift certificate) will be given to students
Best Attendance Award
Tony Kanwar (Principal 2008-09) giving out best attendance award
School Calendar for 2011-12
SILC Calendar
Registration for 2011-2012 opens on 13th August 2011
SEP
3
No SILC
Labor Day
1
10
Orientation
5
12
Diwali
8
17
First Day of
Classes
15
3
Celebration
10
7
14
Mela
21
22
No SILC
MEA
26
No SILC
Thanksgivin
g
24
No SILC
Winter
Break
28
4
11
18
25
3
17
24
Social
7
10
No SILC
Spring
Break
14
21
Studies Day
28
5
12
19
26
No SILC
Holi
Celebration
s
Graduation
No SILC
OCT
NOV
DEC
JAN
24
19
17
SILC
29
31
No SILC
Winter
Break
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
Festival of
Nations
Summer Break
• Runs from September to May
• Just like regular school, but only on Saturday mornings.
• 30 weeks of instruction
• Includes the celebration of festivals, field trip days
31
Halloween..
• Though not related to Indian Culture, we all just want to have
fun
• We encourage SILC community (students, parents, teachers,
volunteers) to come in Halloween costumes on Saturday prior to
Halloween.
• We will give out candy at the end of the day (after ‘Jana Gana
Mana’)
Diwali Celebration
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•
•
•
•
•
•
We celebrate Diwali on November 12th
Pot luck
Picture Day
The entire SILC family picture
Arts and classes on Diwali theme
Parents talk about Diwali experiences
Don’t miss it!
Diwali Celebration (Pics)
SILC Mela
• Only fund-raising event
• SILC families donate India-related
items (books CDs, clothes, gifts)
• SILC families donate their services
(tax services, photography, book
writing, etc.)
• SILC families contact businesses
and get the gift certificates from
hotels, restaurants, grocery stores,
etc.
• Children will play games (tokens)
• Don’t miss it!
SILC Mela (Video)
Social Studies / Literature Day
• On this day, our social studies and literature
students exhibit their talents and knowledge
acquired
• This event will be held in the auditorium
• The event will be followed by pot luck lunch
• Don’t miss it!
Social Studies / Literature Day
(Pics)
Holi Celebration
• On this day, we celebrate – Holi –
festival of colors
• Event held (in mid-May due to
weather) outside on the school
grounds
• Have fun; Don’t miss it
Graduation Day / Annual
Day
• On this day, all language students and elective
students will show what they have learned during
the academic year
• The year book will also be released on this day
• Please participate in contributing to the year book
• Event will be followed by potluck / catered lunch
• Certificates (for students and volunteers) will be
distributed.
• Don’t miss it !
Graduation (Pics)
Graduation (Video)
Field Trips
• SILC takes it students to one or two field trips
during the year
• The field trips can be to a play or exhibition or
event related to India.
• Depending on the cost, SILC will pick up the tab
for the event or share some part of the expense.
• Please watch out for the announcements and
signup for the field trips
Visitors / Speakers
• Sometimes, SILC invites distinguished speakers / performers to SILC
• SILC parents and students will also chime in to share their knowledge of
Indian culture, arts,
Click on the pictures to see the videos
SILC Publications:
News Letters and Year Book
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•
•
•
•
•
SILC publishes 3 news letter during the calendar year
SILC also publish a year book around graduation time in May
Visit silcmn.com for the earlier news letters.
Contact SILC board if you want to see a copy of the year book
Please participate in contributing to these news letters and the year book
We are looking for Student Reporters and Volunteers for contributing to the
news letters
• You can write about
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–
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Your trips to India
Your experiences with SILC as a parent, student, teacher, volunteer
Review of any Indian movie, book
Cooking recipes
And why you love SILC
What you or your child have done in the community to share Indian culture, arts
Or submit any photo /painting related to India
SILC Publications:
Handbook and Directory
• Handbook contains the general information
about SILC, operating guidelines, contact
information. (Sent a Electronic copy)
• Directory contains the information about the
registered students (only printed copy will be
distributed)
• Directory also contains the profile of the SILC
teachers and board members.
Library
• SILC also maintains a library
• Its collection includes – books
related to India, music CDs and
movie DVDs, games
• Contact the Principal if you wish to
checkout from the library collection
Lost and Found
• At the end of SILC session, please
ensure that you pick up your jackets,
folders and all your belongings.
• If you have found something at the end
of the session or in the classroom,
please hand it over to Asst. Principal;
or keep it with you and bring it back to
SILC the next class
SILC: Outreach
• SILC regularly participates in fairs
and festivals
• Dragon Festival, IndiaFest, Vibha,
Telugu Association of MN – are
some such events
• If you are part of any Indian
association and would like to
share information about SILC,
please contact the President
Do’s and Don’ts
• Please arrive on time (to participate in the assembly or to attend the
class you have registered)
• Please ensure that children are not running in the hall ways or beyond
the SILC area
• Please ensure that you clean up after the snacks
• Please do not leave your winter coats and jackets on the tables
• If you signed up for an activity (snacks, cooking class, substitute
teaching, etc.) and are not able to make it to SILC on that day, please
inform us as early as you can so that we can find a replacement
• At the end of SILC session, if you find any item (bags, books, jackets,
etc.), please ensure that you hand that over to SILC board members to
be placed in ‘lost & found’. If you don’t find any one, please take the
item with you and bring it to next week’s class
• PLEASE do not disturb the class rooms. The classroom layout should
be the same BEFORE and AFTER the class.
Non-Profit Organizations
• SILC is a voluntary organization; It has been thriving for
over 30 years in that spirit
• For any India related cultural and educational events, SILC
will share these details with its community during its
invocation and through its websites
• We also support other non-profit organizations (Camp
Masala, India Association of Minnesota, Vibha)
• However, we do not solicit or seek any commercial
interests. Such activities are discouraged at SILC.
• To offset the cost of year book and news letters, we may
seek sponsorship sometimes.
Supporting SILC
• You can support SILC in many ways:
– Some companies, such as Blue Cross Blue Shield and 3M will
donate cash to SILC if an employee from BCBS volunteers for 50
hours or more a year. If you work for such a company, do let
them know about your volunteering at SILC.
– Several companies add to and even double the charitable
donations of their employees. If you work for such a company, do
consider making donations to SILC.
– SILC is registered with the online fund raising site:
www.razoo.com. On certain days donations to SILC via RAZOO
are doubled by the site.
Vibha and SILC
• Vibha is volunteer-driven non-profit organization
dedicated to creating brighter futures for
underprivileged children.
• SILC participates in two of their events –
• Vibha Kalakaar and Taal (participating in short story
writing, essary writing, photography, art/painting
contest; SILC students usually leave a mark in this
event)
• Dream Mile
IAM and SILC
• India Association of Minnesota (IAM) is a non-profit organization
whose aim is to build a strong and cohesive community of Asian
Indians in the state of Minnesota, USA. IAM also seeks to represent
the Asian Indian population to the society at large
• SILC and IAM have strong association going back several years. When
SILC faced challenges in the past, IAM stepped forward to help us, and
we have done the same for IAM afterwards
• Many members of the SILC family have gone on to become IAM
Presidents & Board Members
• SILC participates in Festival of Nations event – as one of the groups
exhibiting Indian culture and heritage on invitation from IAM.
Three Circles…
Vision and ideas
Available time
How volunteers
make it happen
Volunteer Participation
• Volunteer
– To teach a new language
– To assist another teacher every week
– To substitute in a given week when the primary teacher is not able
to take a class
– To help in many SILC events (SILC mela, diwali program, Festival Of
Nations, Field trips)
• Participate
•
•
•
•
•
•
To improve the functioning of SILC
Provide ideas, suggestions and encouragement (movie club, book club)
Take up a cooking class and show your cooking talents
Attend SILC events to encourage SILC students (vibha kalakaar, festival of
nations, dragon festival, etc.)
In SILC events held in house (diwali festival, social studies day, holi, silc mela,
graduation ceremony)
Contribute to SILC news letter and SILC year book
Uma Namboodiripad
Volunteering Award
THE AWARD
• This permanent annual award was instituted in
March 2008 to honor the memory of Uma
Namboodiripad, a dedicated volunteer at SILC, who
demonstrated immense commitment to its students
and its mission. It was given out for the first time as
part of the SILC Graduation event in May 2008.
CRITERIA FOR SELECTION
• The candidate should be a present member of SILC in
good standing, whether a Student, Volunteer
(parent/non-parent) or Board Member
• The candidate must have volunteered significant
time (30 hours or more) for SILC during the past
academic year. This will qualify all the teachers at
SILC.
• Some of the factors you can consider while
nominating a volunteer can be – his/her longevity of
service, the difference he/she is making at SILC and
in your / child’s life, the enthusiasm, passion and
inspiration he/she brings to SILC.
Teachers: our heart and soul
• SILC is run by volunteer teachers; SILC can be an addictive experience!
• We have teachers that started this year (ex: Vidya, Geetha)
• And we have teachers that have been teaching for over 25 years (ex:
Punjabhai Patel – yoga)
• And we have teachers who are former SILC students (Aishwarya Menon,
Vishnu Nambudiripad, Maulika Kohli, Mary Kate)
Have fun at SILC
• For any further questions, please email and call
• Let us have another great year
• Now off to your classes
Questions…?
• Reach out to any of the SILC board members via phone, email or in person