Let's Hear from our 'School' - Sadhana Vidyalaya

Welcome all to this new series 'Let's Hear from our School' where we intend to share periodical updates about our School 'Sadhana Vidyalaya'.

Let's hear from our 'School'

Below is the video/audio format in HD quality of our first update about the School under this new series. (watch it in full screen with audio)

Readers who doesn't have enough bandwidth to play the above video can read the same update below in text format. 

Sadhana Vidyalaya - The School with a difference

Set in the virgin jungles of Karnataka, with Kanva Lake on one side and Silk town of Ramanagaram on the other, mango groves and coconut plantations spread across the campus, the school offers a perfect atmosphere for children to study and play.

The school building is a structure that uses hollow bricks for walls as well as for the roof; these bricks are made from clay and maintain temperature within comfortable levels through all the six seasons.The class rooms are airy and spacious and windows open on pleasantly green surroundings.

Since the school is built in a hilly terrain, different sets of classes are on different levels. Interestingly, what is the ground floor for one class appears to be the first floor for another! It gives the school a landscaped appearance.

Sadhana Vidyalaya is an English medium co-educational school that runs on the Gurukul principle of the Vedic lore. 

School Building

At present we have two buildings in which school runs. There is an older building in which we started the school; it has since been converted in to a hostel. 

One building houses LKG, UKG and First Standard in addition to Head Master’s office, staff room and computer laboratory.  Second building houses Standard II to Standard IX. This building has 8 class rooms. First floor is under construction. Construction work shall be completed by August 2013.

When first floor becomes available, all classes from Standard I to Standard VII and one computer lab will occupy ground floor. Standard VIII to Standard X, Library, Senior Computer Laboratory, AV Room and Staff Room will occupy the first floor.

Facilities

The school has all the necessary facilities and more. There is a Computer Laboratory, a Library, a Laboratory for mathematics and science, an Audio-Visual room, a large auditorium, a large dining hall and playground. 

Apart from all modern facilities, school offers space for Yoga, Meditation and Prayers with a cave for meditation, a Prayer room with a Pyramid top and a large hall for group Yoga.

Library

Library has three sections – educational books for children, reference books for teachers and a general category of books that covers a broad spectrum of subjects like Yoga, Poetry, Stories, Language enhancement and Communication skills etc. The library is housed in a separate hall where children and teachers can sit and read the books.

At present we do not issue books however the reading room service is available from 9AM to 9PM.

The Library is being elaborately planned with standard ID and Access system. We shall have a Librarian to maintain and manage the library so that it is optimally and conveniently utilized. Furniture and PCs have also been planned. 

The library shall be shifted to the first floor of the school building sometime in the third quarter of 2013 when staff and material becomes available as per plan.

Mathematics and Science Laboratory

The Laboratory provides tools that help students understand the concept in a practical way. These tools are currently kept in a hall and are used by students in their class room by way of demonstration as well as in a hands-on mode.

We have all the recommended material and equipment in our laboratory so that all subjects of all standards are covered. Students and teachers take keen interest in handling the equipment.

The laboratories shall be shifted to the first floor of the building towards July 2013. Furniture has been planned and shall be fabricated in the campus itself under expert guidance. We shall appoint a laboratory assistant. The laboratory activity shall thus be streamlined and so the students shall then get a better hands-on experience. 

Audio-Visual Room

We currently have one LCD projector but we do not have a separate AV Room. We use Computer Laboratory to show the educational CDs. This is possible since Computer Laboratory is not engaged all the time. We have a good collection of material in the form of educational CDs that match the courseware; we also have interactive programs that enhance understanding of the subject. But space and power constraints have restricted the use of this facility. 

We have planned one AV Room on the first floor of the school. This room will have a foldable screen for projection and a dedicated computer [Laptop]. It will also have three PCs for teachers to learn educational software before presenting the material to students. It will further have broadband Internet connectivity so that educational YouTube programs can be viewed online.

We expect teachers to use efficient techniques of teaching so that they have sufficient time to research the material for enhanced learning experience.

Auditorium

We have a large auditorium that is equipped with a stage and three layers of curtains. It has a capacity to seat 500 viewers.  This auditorium normally serves as a Group Meditation Hall. It has multiple Pyramid structure and a life sized idol of Anjaneya. Anjaneya is depicted as sitting in Meditative posture with eyes half closed. It creates an ideal atmosphere for group meditation. Every morning children who live in the Hostel gather here along with their teachers for meditation and then again in the evening for a session of devotional chants, story-telling and learning at least one short verse in Sanskrit. 

Cultural programs and Annual Day of the school are celebrated in this auditorium.

Dining Hall

We offer mid-day meal to children to ensure that they get holistic food and also that all children partake the same quality of food. This develops the feeling of equality and community living. This program is not aided by any government or NGO. School bears all expenses. The dining hall can seat 200 children. 

There are about 50 children in our hostel. These children get breakfast with milk, lunch, snacks in the evening and dinner, all served in the dining hall.

Hope you all liked our first update from this series. We will be back soon with more updates on this series, till then..

Happy Sadhana, Vande Guruparamparam...