by Susanne Ganns
When we visited the school in March 2019, the final exams were under way and the school year is drawing to a close. The children have grown so much, the elders were almost as tall as we are.
The first children leave school
For the eldest pupils, “the seriousness of life” begins now in the truest sense of the word. They will have to leave school after graduation in order to switch to public schools. They would have liked to stay and still have the hope that after one or two years they will be able to come back and complete their university or vocational degree at this school. The parents also keep asking us to make it possible for the children to stay at the school.
Unfortunately there are still no funds available for the further expansion of the school. We are working on solutions to start with some buildings of the planned university, so that more classrooms and teacher flats could be available. As a result, an additional school bus and several teachers would be needed for a larger number of students.
We are confident that the vision of the nature school can unfold as a university and vocational school of integral learning and will soon become reality.
Spring is now also arriving in India
This year it was very cold and rainy from February to the beginning of March and so the garden was also waiting for us. But during our visit the trees began to blossom and the seeds planted by the children began to sprout.
Due to the long winters in the past years a greenhouse was bought and therefore seeds can be grown early and the yield increased.
One of the cows gave birth to a snow-white Nandi (bull calf). And a friendship has developed between the school dog and the little bull, who both enjoy racing.
The second dog of the school was unfortunately fetched a month ago by the tiger.
Fun and games
The swings are still the most popular meeting place during breaks and give the greatest pleasure.
We brought handmade natural skipping ropes from Germany and created a completely new fun game for students and teachers. With great joy they swung the long ropes and tried to jump together. Also the teachers had a lot of fun and were gripped by the natural competition, who can do the most jumps without mistakes.
Rope jumping supports and encourages children in many ways.
Stimulation of eye-foot coordination, perception – processing – reacting and implementing, sense for rhythm, training of strength and endurance, eye-hand coordination – differentiation.
A mountain bike, with which the teachers can ride to the next village for errands, is another break attraction for the children. Again and again, one child is allowed to ride along and all the others run happily behind.
As farewell the children sing us a song for God SHIVA and we hope with the children, the parents and teachers that the school can continue to grow, that all who read these lines tell others about the school and that soon sponsors will be found who want to support this trend-setting and lively project.
The school year is coming to an end. We wish our school leavers all the best for their future and hope to see you again soon. All other children we wish a wonderful holiday until 01 April 2019 when the new school year starts again.