In the last few years, one concept which has come up really fast, and appears to have taken deep roots in the early years learning methodologies everywhere, is Right Brain Development. Either your child's preschool is offering it, or your friend's child's school is, or you have heard or read about it in different forums. At our preschool in Gurgaon , we have had parents enquiring on whether we do right brain development activities. So the question is, what is right brain development, and why is there so much of hype surrounding it? The concept actually first came into picture with the work of Nobel laureate Roger Sperry, who discovered that the human brain is made up of two parts - left and right, and that both these parts of the brain handled specific functions. The left side of the brain handles language, facts, processes data at a slower speed, and works on the conscious. The right side of the brain works on the subconscious, handles the sensory, visual and spatial perce...

Do you have a favourite book/series? Have you ever thought about why it is your favourite? Even when the entire story line is not perfect (it can never be), you are drawn to it over and over. You maybe drawn to a different book in different stages of your life, but there may still be some that will remain eternal favourites. If I reflect on my favourite books/series, the main attraction for me has been associating with the characters, figuring out what was best in them, associating with those traits in myself, and trying to emulate those that I thought I didn't have as yet. Hermione was who I thought I was - follow the rules, do everything right, strive to be the best. But Fred amd George had traits I wanted in me - dare to follow your dreams, don't compare yourself with others, it only matters that you are the best version of yourself. Howard Roarke taught me that it is important to have conviction in your own work - it does not matter what others think, so long as you are hap...

 Last week, we did a post on how our experience taught us that children find it difficult to say Thank You and Sorry as they grow older, and how Sorry was somewhat tougher to express as compared to Thank You. This week, we shall try to cover some basic tips which we as guardians (parents, grandparents, educators, caregivers) can incorporate into our daily routine, and as a matter of habit, to help inculcate a sense of ease in children when it comes to gratitude as well as regret. HOW TO NORMALIZE SORRY AND THANK YOU Make thank you and sorry a part of the regular conversation Talk about different circumstances under which you may need to thank or apologize. You can turn this into a game. Give your child a situation, and ask them how they would react. Don't hesitate to say thank you or sorry around your child. Whether this is at home (to your partner, to your child, to your domestic help, to your parents, to guests), at the market, in the park, if the situation warrants it.  Ma...

The best part of being a part of a creche, preschool and daycare in Gurgaon, or even now of online preschool in India, is the beautiful opportunity we have had over the last almost 10 years to interact with children across a diverse age group. We have had kids as young as three months in creche, 2 to 4 years in preschool, and as old as 12 years in our daycare facility in Gurgaon. Quite apart from being the funnest workspace ever, it has also given us some insights into human nature, an opportunity to introspect, to understand how it can sometimes be difficult to practice what we preach... I want to take here, two phrases in particular - THANK YOU, AND SORRY. These are very crucial parts of our dictionary, yet, our experience with them have given us a lot of food for thought. THANK YOU Thank you can have two associated connotations - GRATITUDE, and HAPPINESS. Gratitude for receiving help, happiness of say receiving birthday wishes or even better, gifts. Every year, the so many birthdays...

 Happy New Year! Admittedly, around May-June, it seemed like a far away possibility for us to be thinking about a "happy" new year. The prospects appeared bleak - the preschool and daycare industry was possibly the only industry which was completely shut down (even after the unlock guidelines), there did not seem prospects for fresh admissions, it was a time when meeting base expenses seemed like an impossible ask. As an industry, we had truly hit rock bottom. The year has come to a close, and while things continue to be difficult (the physical spaces remain closed) the year has also taught us a lot, as have our kids. We would like to share our learnings and our key takeaways from 2020.  What 2020 Taught Us There is More to Life than Work We learnt to be grateful for all the small things in life we take for granted - our health, our loved ones, enjoying nature, eating home cooked food, reading books and so much more. Focus on all that is good instead of dwelling on the bad....