Fun ways of learning Science

“Creativity is the secret sauce to science, technology, engineering, and maths.” – Ainissa Ramirez

Students of Class VI had an amazing way of learning Science through different experiential ways. In one such activity, children were asked to prove whether air is present everywhere or not. The inspired children did prove it through an experiment with the help of glass tumbler, glass trough and water. They dipped an inverted paper cup inside a trough full of water and felt the pressure that air exerts on the outer surrounding. They very well proved that air is not only present every where but also occupies space of its own.

Through another experiment, the Class VI students showed the presence of starch in leaves which occurs due to photosynthesis. They carried the experiment with great accuracy, and showed how the leaf colour turns black blue, indicating the presence of starch. The learning outcome was that during the process of photosynthesis, glucose is produced which is stored in the form of starch.

Experiential learning is a wonderful way to bridge the gap between theory and practice. It also has a positive impact on the mindset of the students, accelerates learning and increases level of engagement.

A Joyful way of Learning

“Learning is the process whereby knowledge is created through the transformation of experience.” – David A. Kolf

Learning through experience is a wonderful way for students to learn and retain the knowledge. Hands-on activities require students to use skills like problem-solving and decision-making, which hones their abilities further and accelerates the process of learning.

Students of SAI International School are always encouraged to learn by doing, for which several innovative and interesting activities are conducted on a regular basis. Steps are taken to ensure that each child get immersed in these activities and inculcate the habit of lifelong learning.

In one such activity, students of Class VII described the poem ‘Macavity the Mystery Cat’ by T.S.Eliot, through a well-prepared power point presentation (PPT), which made the poem more interesting. Another group of Class VII student made a presentation on the story “Helping Hand”, right from their English Literature. They explained the chapter in a beautiful way, which made it all the more immersive.

Class VIII students made a presentation on the interpretation of the poem “Television’, a famous poem that advises and inspires children to read books instead of watching television. It warns us about the dangers of watching television excessively. Another group of Class VIII students made posters to put across the importance of water and also spoke on the topic “Water – the Global need of the hour”.

Global Immersion Programme to the Spectacular Singapore & Malaysia

“The best journeys in life are those that answer questions you never thought to ask.” ― Rich Ridgeway

To explore the modern marvels of Singapore and Malaysia and have an enriching learning experience, twenty-five students and two teacher co-ordinators visited the two beautiful places on a Global Immersion Programme (GIP) from October 7 to 14, 2019.

The trip commenced with a breath-taking aerial view of the enchanting Sentosa Island, Singapore from the cable car followed by watching the brilliant Laser Show. Day 2 was all the more fun experiencing the exciting rides at the Universal Studio and shopping souvenirs. The evening was spent in the Garden by the Bay. The team was awestruck being surrounded by the beautiful flowers and greenery as well as viewing the artificial waterfall.

 

The excitement in Day 3 triggered with a visit to the Singapore Flyer and clicking some memorable pictures. Next was a pleasant trip to the famous Merlion Park, enroute soaking in the beauty of the culturally rich land. The team then went to the Thian Hock Keng, a Chinese Temple filled with majestic beauty to pay obeisance. The afternoon was spent visiting the prestigious National University of Singapore (NUS) and exploring the student life and admission opportunities. The team attended an enlightening session at NUS and finally winding up the day with some heart-warming shopping of gifts and souvenirs for family and friends.

 

On Day 4 the students attended a Seminar on ‘Widening the Understanding of Management in real life’. They also went for a guided campus tour and were very excited a witness the lively campus life. This was followed by shopping and swimming. The team reached Malaysia on Friday, October 11, 2019. The next day, they visited the holy Batu Caves, one of the largest natural caves and a popular Hindu shrine outside India. Students enjoyed the natural ambience and were awestruck to see the 140 feet high idol of Lord Karthik. The divine aura all around inspired them to do meditation, under the guidance of Shri Prakash Sahoo, Principal, Secondary. Students had fun going up to the highlands at 6500 feet. They had a sumptuous meal which was an amalgamation of Chinese, Western, Malaysian local dish, with many more sweets, cakes and pastries. They reached Kuala Lumpur and had a great time enjoying the various fun rides and learning about the place.

 

Sunday, October 13 was spent on a City tour of Kuala Lumpur. The team visited the King’s place and the National Monument, which houses statues of war heroes, who lost their life during the war. They also visited the Harriston Chocolate Outlet, where they saw a wide array of delicious chocolates. The team also had a great time visiting the Kuala Lumpur Tower, lunch at Chennai Express Restaurant and finally spending time at Time Square Mall.

 

Every year the school conducts various GIPs to several countries. It helps in enriching student’s understanding on some of the most developed countries and widens their knowledge horizon. It also develops in them competencies and capabilities to respond appropriately to internal and external challenges in life.

SAIoneers experience at Round Square International Conference 2019

Being a Round Square Candidate School, students of SAI International School took part for the first time in the Round Square International Conference (RSIC) held at Indore from October 2 to 8, 2019. Round Square is a not-for-profit network of 50 countries on six continents that share a passion for experiential learning built around six ideals of learning – Internationalism, Democracy, Environmentalism, Adventure, Leadership and Service.

A six-member team from SAI International School comprising of four students and two teacher co-ordinators attended the prestigious RSIC 2019, held at Emerald Heights International, Indore. It was participated by students from 157 Schools from across the globe.

The RSIC is an amalgamation of different communities and cultures where students had a real global experience, through a wide spectrum of activities. They spent five days networking, building friendships, attending workshop on the Round Square (RS) Ideals and completing various community service project with schools from countries like USA, Switzerland, Canada, Australia and UK to name a few.

 

About RSIC

This coveted conference is hosted by different Round Square Schools from around the globe every year and this year, it is being hosted by an Indian School. The Conference was scheduled in the week that celebrates Mahatma Gandhi’s 150^th birth anniversary and is dedicated to non-violence and peace. The theme of the Conference is ‘Sarvodaya – The World We Wish to See’.

 Keynote Speakers

The team got an opportunity to hear some of the universally acclaimed speakers who spoke about a wide array of subjects including democracy, sustainable development, mindfulness and many more.The first Keynote Speaker was Nobel Prize Winner, Shri Kailash Satyarthi who briefed the students about his crusade against Child Labour. He inspired the young minds to follow the 3 Ds – Dream, Discover, and Do. Indian Politician and Writer, Shri Shashi Tharoor highlighted the fact that this generation would have to know the art of learning because of the major transitions that will unfurl as time passes.

Robot Sophia, world’s first Robot citizen and a citizen of Saudi Arabia, addressed the students on the benefits of Artificial Intelligence (AI).Artist and Women Right’s Activist, Ms. Kiran Gandhi delivered an inspiring keynote address on the power of equality. Major D.P.Singh, the first Blade Runner of India inspired the students by telling that, ‘you are the Boss of your life and once you recognise that, then no hurdle or challenge is big enough for you”. Swami Gaur Gopal Das spoke on what happiness was all about.

 

Interactive Time

Each session was followed by a Barazza where students in group took the discussion forward. Barazzas and rikkas were held to bridge individual and cultural differences. Here scintillating deliberations were held to elaborate different perspectives on a topic and students had the freedom to explore their creativity. In one such activity, students had a great time creating their own hashtags and explaining them in from of their respective Barazas. The theme of SAIoneers hashtags was ‘the future we wish to see’. SAIoneers also spoke about the importance of youth in addressing the global challenges.Every evening gala theme dinner depicting the different state of India with cuisine specific to that area and local market were set-up.

 

Cultural Performance

The SAI students gave a wonderful Odissi performance during the cultural evening. The energetic crowd enthused the team to teach them the signature Clap of Happiness of SAI and finally tossing the giant globe in the air with Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam – one world one family written over it, symbolising the world as one family. This is also our theme for SAI Model United Nations Conference (SAIMUN) which is held annually in the month of July, since the year 2013.

 

Adventure

The team took part in a 3-km Marathon along with Major D.P.Singh, the first Blade Runner of India and students and teachers from all corners of the world. The cause behind the Marathon was to ignite the student’s spirit of adventure and create awareness on Cancer. It was a joint effort by the Indore Cancer Foundation and Emerald Heights International School. For Round Square a spirit of adventure is characterised by those who push themselves beyond their perceived limits, cross boundaries and discover that they are capable of more than they thought.

 

Services

Students also went to various places to render their service. One of the SAIoneers went to an underprivileged school where she played with the kids and served them food; another student went to a school for dyslexia, where she painted walls and gave out school shoes and uniforms; the other student visited a school for the blind and prepared ladoos and pen stands; the fourth student went to a old age home and took part in gifting the elderly people block printed bed sheets and pillow covers. All the four students spent quality time in their respective groups.

 

Enriching Trips

The team went on to explore Mandu, the ancient fort city of Madhya Pradesh on Saturday, October 5. SAIoneers were captivated to see the architectural marvels and learn about the various myths and historical significance of the city. The beautiful pavilion pf the Revakund inspired the students to practice some of their Odissi steps. Their guide was a student of the host school, who made the trip all the more interesting with detailed information. They also visited the commercial capital of Madhya Pradesh, Maheshwar the very next day, where students apart from sightseeing, witnessed the traditional Maheshwar textiles. They were welcomed with thread necklaces by little kids and were filled with valuable information by their guide, a Class XII students of the host school.

Round Square students are encouraged to discover and develop their won capabilities through a range of experiences, activities, collaborative projects and challenges, both within and outside the curriculum, including social service projects, exchanges and conferences participation. SAIoneers and the Teachers had a wonderful learning experience at RSIC.

 

SAI is the only school from Eastern India to become a Round Square Candidate School. The Membership brings opportunities for students of SAI International School to develop global competence, character and understanding, through real-life meaningful activities. As a Round Square Candidate School, SAI International School has effectively incorporated the six ideals of Round Square in the curriculum.

SAI International School adjudged as India’s 3rd Best School yet again

“Desire is the starting point of all achievement, not a hope, not a wish, but a keen pulsating desire which transcends everything.” – Napoleon Hill

SAI International School is once again proclaimed as the 3rd Best School in India in Co-ed Day cum Boarding School category by #EducationWorldIndiaSchoolRankings2019

Being placed among the three Best Schools of the Country and retaining the position showcases SAI’s constant endeavour towards excellence in education. Adding to the glory of SAI International Education Group, SAI international Residential School (SIRS) received the No 1 Co-ed Boarding School of Odisha Award. It is indeed a moment of great pride and honour for SAI fraternity.

The Awards were presented to Dr. Bijaya Kumar Sahoo, Founder, SAI International Education Group, Shri Nilakantha Panigrahi, Senior Principal, SAI International School and Shri Amitabh Agnihotri, Headmaster, SIRS on Sunday, September 29, 2019 in New Delhi.

Congratulating the students, parents, teachers and staff, Dr. Sahoo said that, ‘the awards give us the encouragement to work more, discover and invent new learning pedagogies for shaping our students to be global leaders’.

EducationWorld has forayed into assessing schools in the global arena from this year onwards, starting with schools from India and neighbouring nations like the Kingdom of the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain (CBSE and/or CISCE, Delhi affiliated schools), Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the Maldives.

This year, the Schools were assessed through a robust and comprehensive school survey on wider parameters by 122 Field personnel who interviewed 4,340 educationists / principals / teachers and 7,597 fees-paying parents, as well as students from class X-XII in 28 cities.

In recent past, SAI International School has been bestowed with several National-level awards including the highly prestigious D.L.Shah Quality Award by Quality Council of India (QCI), for two successive years, for achieving excellence through quality educational initiatives. It also received the Emerging School of The Year Award 2019 at Global Education Awards 2019, Udaipur, listed among the Future 50 Schools of India by Fortune India successively for the year 2017 and 2018, World Education Award 2018 for Educational Excellence & Innovation in Global Collaborative Learning, the SKOCH 2018 Award for achieving Excellence through Monitoring, among others. It also received the coveted ELITE Award 2018, based on a globally-bench-marked assessment designed by the alumni of Stanford, Harvard and Yale University.

To adapt the best educational global practices and provide a wider exposure to the students, the school has partnered with UNESCO, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Information Centre (UNIC) for India and Bhutan, British Council, United Kingdom, Round Square, USA, AFS, USA and Cambridge University. Our Learning Partners include Microsoft, Google and Adobe. The recent recognition has added another feather to our cap.