Annual Day in the News

We are proud that our Annual Day play "The Curse of The Golden Horse" was featured in the Times of India on 22.12.2015.

It's THAT time of the year...

December is by all means a magical month! Christmas is around the corner and Diwali lights are still conveniently blinking here and there waiting for another meaningful occasion to show themselves. Our school has decked up with Christmas displays from all four houses but for the time being the expectation of Christmas is not at all our number one priority. 

So, what is it, you might ask? More likely you will not need to guess at all, as you might be getting frequent reports from your children. The Annual Day! Yes, the school air is currently electrified with practise, practise, practise. Our annual day is literally around the corner and although we feel things are very much in control, one can not escape the feeling of slight panic of the last week before the Annual Day. We reached the stage of a completed run through and the students will now polish their moves and acts so they will be able to shine like diamonds on the stage and make us and parents proud.

There is an incredible process behind every annual day. Children first learn their part and then connect the dots and comprehend the story. They learn patience and team spirit in the process. It's an amazing opportunity for learning. Even the boring waiting for their part has a lesson within. Patience is the number one, as they need it to see how all the puzzle pieces slowly come together to create a work of art produced by the whole team. It is also a valuable opportunity for them to showcase their talent and potential - be it dance, drama, singing or speaking. At Open Minds we believe every student should be on the stage even if only for few minutes. They matter. Students matter. Every one of them.

We have a week left and we all can't wait to present it to parents and all guests. Excitement is definitely in the air! Looking forward to seeing you all there cheering and supporting our students.

Dreams

Awoken with a smile from youthful dreams

"All that is gone now," my conscious screams

Never again shall I madly fall in love

Scribbling his name on a piece of paper

In reverie, smile highlighted on my face.

I threw my anchor down long time ago

And settled in a steady and secure lagoon

The storms of the young heart

Are no more to be seen

As the hair greys and the dreams fade.

I’ve got everything one can hope for and more

And all this seems to be the nature’s way

To show the autumn is on its way

And things are as they are

And they are here to stay.

It came suddenly, this wakefulness

That the youthful time is gone

Now I can only stand and behold

My offspring to start living the dreams

That’s theirs and theirs alone.

As if the juices of life were drained

As if my body no longer wants to strain

But seeks respite in the nest instead

And the next phase awaits
When I am not here but dead.

'Dark Matter and Dinosaurs' book review

If you are interested in the Universe and related topics, you might want to read this book.

Sixty-six million years ago, an object the size of a city descended from space to crash into Earth, creating a devastating cataclysm that killed off the dinosaurs, along with three-quarters of the other species on the planet. What was its origin? In Dark Matter and the Dinosaurs, Lisa Randall proposes it was a comet that was dislodged from its orbit as the Solar System passed through a disk of dark matter embedded in the Milky Way. In a sense, it might have been dark matter that killed the dinosaurs.

Working through the background and consequences of this proposal, Randall shares with us the latest findings—established and speculative—regarding the nature and role of dark matter and the origin of the Universe, our galaxy, our Solar System, and life, along with the process by which scientists explore new concepts. In Dark Matter and the Dinosaurs, Randall tells a breathtaking story that weaves together the cosmos’ history and our own, illuminating the deep relationships that are critical to our world and the astonishing beauty inherent in the most familiar things.

Book review link:
Dark Matter and Dinosaurs review in New York Times

Our Universe

In the primary section we have started the theme 4 last week - 'Our Universe'. The display boards are full of pictures of different planets, and interesting facts about the universe. Students of grade 3 and 4 have learnt about the Big Bang theory and even have an assignment to write a paragraph with the same topic 'Our Universe'. The current assembly topic is "The mysteries of the Universe" and it started with the grade 4 sharing some facts about the unimaginable size of our universe and followed by grade 3 presenting a cute skit on Pluto, explaining why it is no longer a planet.

Isn't the Universe just mind boggling? 

Here is a link to one of many websites that are appropriate for our primary section students and you might find it useful to browse it together and explore the topics --> Universe for Kids

TEDx Youth Hyderabad

Gayatri Vatsaval from grade 8 attended a TED talk in Hyderabad recently and this is how she summarised this exciting experience:

I’ve been watching TED for quite a few months now. It’s the reason why I was so excited when I first heard about TEDxYouth@Hyderabad, which took place on 15th November at T-Hub, IIIT Campus.

TEDx celebrates human imagination by bringing in speakers who are achievers in their own way. ‘Ideas worth spreading’ that is what every TED event aims to achieve.

The event started off with a Meet & Greet that lasted for an hour, where all the attendees got to interact with each other and sign each other’s postcards. This one hour gave all the attendees a chance to make new friends. 11-year-olds became friends with college students and soon, everyone’s postcards were filled with signatures.

A main stage was filled with bean bags, mattresses and chairs, in which we spent most of our next 3 hours of fun. These 3 hours had a series of talks from innovators who spoke in New York, a few fun games including BINGO, two live talks from innovators from Hyderabad itself, a musical performance and a skit on child labor.

Sarah Parcak spoke about observing the big picture all the way from space, to find the small places that archaeologists usually miss. Raymond Wang, probably prevented a possible future disease epidemic from breaking out because of one person who sneezed on a plane. Danit Peleg changed the future of fashion. She actually has a jacket that you can download and 3D print it. The audience was very excited. Betsy McIver Cho introduced the same thrill that one gets after going on a ride by becoming a Disney Imagineer. Carla Pugh has worked to develop the efficiency of how a surgery is performed.

Nikhil and Shebaz from 10th grade, Glendale Academy developed the “Arm of God”, a machine that increases your strength and also helps paralyzed people. Navya Gudimetla from Oakridge International used solar power to fuel three appliances all in one. She made a multipurpose mosquito swatter, which had a torchlight, a solar power unit and a USB charger attached to it.

Then two of the attendees complemented the evening with a musical performance of Skyfall by Adele and Happy by Pharrell Williams. To close up the event, there was a short skit on Child Labor, with a simple story, but a strong message.

All the attendees, organizers and speakers then went up to the second floor of the T-Hub building for a final picture, which marked the end of TEDxYouth@Hyderabad 2015.

Thank you for sharing, Gayatri!

Inter House Competition, Creative Writing

               My Diwali Celebration                                                                          

This is a small effort of Open Minds to put the seed of sensitivity in the students’ mind towards addressing the environment and the global problems

OPEN MINDS-  A BIRLA SCHOOL
Event	IHC – CREATIVE WRITING
Academic Year	2015-2016
Date	5th  November, 2015
Day	Thursday
Timings	1:50P.M to 2:50 PM
Venue	School Premises ,Hyderabad

This time the school has thought of the topic that would help to address the global problems like pollution and Global warming.The topics were based on the fact to create awareness among children towards Eco-friendly environment, with Diwali celebrations coming up.Open Minds, as part of Inter House Competition, has conducted Creative writing competition for the month of November, to cultivate the competitive spirit and creative skills among the students.

Grades 1 and 2 were given the topic “My Diwali Celebrations”, grades 3 and 4  “Eco Friendly Diwali” based on picture given to them and for grades 5 to 9 the topic was “Global Warming”.

All the students have taken part in the competition with great interest and responsibility towards protecting the environment.

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