School E magazine Middle School August - November- 2020-21

Issue
LVG-10/2nd Quarter/2020-21

If your world looks gloomy and you are feeling grim and glum,
Make a rainbow for yourself, Don't wait for one to come,
Don't sit watching at the window for the clouds to part
There'll soon be a rainbow if you start one in your heart.

We are pleased and ebullient to acclaim that we are ready with all new hopes and
hues to bring out the second edition of our quarterly e-Magazine, Different Strokes,
for the Academic Session 2020-21. The reflection of the learner’s creativity and
achievements is the epitome of our magazine and we take immense pride in sharing
the accomplishment of our learners with our readers.

Entering the world of the New Normal and accepting the challenges coming along
the way never seemed easy. But Kudos! to the brilliant and capable learners and
our hardworking teachers who unitedly sailed through and yet again proved the
power of teamwork, sincerity, hard work and dedication.

This quarter is indeed another successful attempt to make our budding talents give
shape to their creativity and showcase their potential in different ways. Even if the
whole world seemed to have stopped and deadlocked in the current situation, we
along with our dedicated team, tirelessly worked hard to find out unprecedented
ways to help students learn the art to explore and bring out their real self. Success
depends upon our power to perceive, the power to observe and the power to
explore. The sincere efforts and innovative ideas exhibited by our young learners
will surely keep you enthralled while you flip through the pages and help you
experience a different world of knowledge and talents.

In these challenging times, it is the prime duty of all the educational institutions to
inculcate various humane virtues amongst the learners. All such educational
institutions should be the replica of a society where the child becomes a little star,
ready to sparkle in the large sky, to be self-reliant and self-dependant. It is our
endeavour at Lotus Valley International School to explore and express such innate
talents of our learners through this e-Magazine along with their academic
excellence.

We extend our immense gratitude to our parent fraternity who have been a
constant support and provided the learners with their valuable guidance and
motivation. It is always the shared commitment and dedication of Parents and
Teachers that becomes the driving force to help learners reach the pinnacle of
success.

We hope you have yet another astounding experience while going through the
second edition of our quarterly e- Magazine, 2020-21 !!

Education is not merely acquisition of facts but
also of values which help us improve the different
facets of mankind. A pivotal role of education lies
in shaping the personality of a child into a healthy
mind and happy soul, who is not only equipped
for academic excellence but is also prepared to
face the challenges of life in a balanced and
harmonious way.

In these unprecedented, shocking and mysterious DR SHAYAMA CHONA
times of the Coronavirus pandemic, a once-in-a- Padma Shree &
100-years event, we have no option but to
reinvent and upgrade ourselves. History will Padma Bhushan Awardee
remember how we behaved and acted in these
circumstances, how our character was shaped
and perhaps how our reservoir of compassion
grew or depleted.

The Principal and teachers at Lotus Valley International School have braved these
tough times and made a tough yet obvious choice. They decided to rise to the call
of duty, deal with anxieties and become a pillar of strength for all. They extended a
helping hand to each other to overcome this finite phase with equanimity, nerves
of steel and hearts brimming with love and compassion for each other. Also, when
this grim crisis is over, and it will be, teachers would have emerged with upgraded
skills in technology, embracing new ways of teaching and having adopted digital
literacy.

We owe it to ourselves, our children and parents, to prove that, we, teachers,
presumably groomed in old fashion ways, from conventional schools are adaptive
to new tools, overhauled curriculum design and the unheard world of virtual
pedagogy and can weather the storm to ensure that our children continue to learn
and grow.

Now I see the Lotus family confident to sustain digital learning plans, ready to cut
through the noise of well done and kudos, and move towards a long lasting, robust
plan to teach in distance mode. I am reminded of Alfred Tennyson's inspiring
poem in this moment, “The old order changeth yielding place to new...and God
fulfills himself in many ways...”. When we will look back on today, we will know
we were the generation of teachers, parents and learners that brought in this
paradigm shift.

Cheer up and keep the optimism surging!

Author Roald Dahl loved the sparky sound of Mrs ANITA MALHOTRA
words; sometimes, he would fill notebooks with
fantastic words to find ones that sounded just Director-Principal
right for his stories. He even made up a word to State & CBSE Awardee
describe the words he made up; he called them
Gobblefunk. The Lotus Valley Family has its
own set of Gobblefunk, which was made to best
suit these unprecedented times.

From face-to-face learning to LMS based
blended learning, the school has come a long
way without putting any fetters on learning.

Our school Management and facilitators
continue to map academic excellence with a
good human value system, which in myriad
ways is ingrained in the culture of the school.

Whether it is through project-based or research-based learning; the blend and
balance between asynchronous and synchronous learning enables our students to
reach their full potential. In an endeavour to promote all round development of
our learners, virtual sessions for Work Education commenced in October for
Grades II-VIII.

Given that these unprecedented times have dawned upon us all, the need for
conversations around mental health is paramount. Keeping this in mind, we
organised various programmes like Step Up Programme, Kindness Calendar,
Kindness Matters and Ensuring Personal Safety with the school’s SEN
Department to enable learners understand how to keep themselves safe,
encouraging them to show kindness towards each other and empowering them to
express their anxieties and inhibitions.

In order to motivate learners to make fitness regime a part of their everyday life,
especially during the current stay-at-home period, the Primary Wing
commemorated the National Sports Day in a novel way. The month-long
celebrations facilitated joyful learning as learners zealously participated in
innovative and age-appropriate activities, orchestrated by blending Visual arts,
music, dance and challenging exercises together.

The year 2020 has been all about changing roles Mrs ANITA MALHOTRA
for everyone. Teachers have become co-parents
and more importantly, parents have become co- Director-Principal
teachers. From invigilating children during State & CBSE Awardee
exams to assisting them in assignments, parents
have stepped up by sharing their knowledge with
the student community through our unique
Parent Participation Programme. Topics like
Cyber Security, Time Management,
Collaboration, Poetry & Creative Writing,
Leadership, Dental and Hand Hygiene,
Maintaining Bone Health, Storytelling, Yoga,
History to some fun topics like Halloween
themed craft gave learners an opportunity to
learn from the pool of information provided by
our effervescent parents. Pertinent topics such
as, Molecular Genetics and Leveraging Social
Media for Positive Reinforcement have further
broadened our learners’ horizon.

It was indeed overwhelming and a proud moment for me to observe an involved
participation of our school alumni who came forward to connect with our students
through Lotus Blooms, an Alumni Connect Programme. The session was
conducted to counsel the learners about life outside the comfortable environs of
home and school.

I was further delighted to witness a whole-hearted participation from our young
and talented performers in प्रtibha…. ‘Gallant for Talent’, an event organized for
the learners of Grades Prep-III to discover their own potential and bring their
talent to fore. Furthermore, the indomitable spirit of the young torchbearers of
Grade-I revealed itself through their phenomenal attempt at presenting the first-
ever virtual class assemblies. Our little learners from Primary Block did not stop
at this and continued to mesmerize us with their recent brilliant performance in a
special assembly held on the auspicious occasion of Gurupurab in collaboration
with Suncity School as a part of Sarv Sahodya initiative.

The lockdown did not deter our students from evaluating their learning through

the medium of Half Yearly Examination. The Virtual Open House held for both

Primary and Senior Blocks was a collaborative and constructive interaction
between mentors and parents to assess learners’ holistic development. The Virtual
Coffee Meet too proved to be a meaningful step in this direction.

The National Education Policy 2020, has further Mrs ANITA MALHOTRA
strengthened our resolve to push for a multi-
disciplinary approach to teaching and learning. Director-Principal
The Research Based Unit Test Framework too State & CBSE Awardee
has been designed to take the learners on the
journey of self-discovery and guided learning.

Meanwhile, Bonding Time in the Primary Block
continues to not only strengthen the special bond
between teachers and learners but also provides
a platform to engage learners in meaningful
activities based on General Knowledge and
research-based learning.

Amidst maintaining the academic forefront, the
learners and teachers of Lotus Valley
International School have also become a part of
the COVID Pledge, 2020 to reinforce their
commitment to take all necessary precautions
and be vigilant in their ways to prevent the
spread of the virus.

Co-curricular plays as important a role as academic activities. From Inter-House
to Inter-School, our learners have been doing it all. Learners participated in
competitions like ATL State Level Online Competition, NCRYPT-Film Making
Competition, Multiple Intelligence Championship to name a few and have won
accolades all along. Learners are all geared to equally shine bright in the upcoming
Olympiads.

I could go endlessly sharing the achievements of my wonderful children of Lotus
Valley as my heart swells with pride to observe them blossoming and growing from
strength to strength.

I would like to conclude by extending my heartiest gratitude to the entire Lotus
Valley family, the management, teachers, learners and the parent community for
being the strong pillars by lending their support and care at all times.

I look forward to an even stronger bond of continued understanding and
compassion in the coming years and eagerly await better times when seeing my
children walking into the school will be nothing short of a Celebration!

Here's wishing you and your family a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2021 !

ACADEMICS…

 Online Olympiad Exams – Grades I-XII
 Interdisciplinary Session: Physics-Arts – Grade XII
 Interdisciplinary Session: Physics-Sports – Grade XI

SCHOLASTIC FEATS…

 Eclectique 2020
 MUN Training – Grades VII-VIII
 Lotus Lights – Grades IX-XII
 Virtual Second Language Orientation – Grade VIII
 Telangana Art Work – Grades IV-XII

RENDEZVOUS…

 Coffee Meets – Grades IV-VIII
 Coffee Meets – Grades IX-XII
 Novel Reading Programme – Ms. Dalbir Kaur

 Parent Participation Program – Ms. Shweta Talwar
 Parent Participation Program – Mr. Vinod Kumar
 Parent Participation Program – Mr. Maulin Gandhi
 Parent Participation Program – Mr. Pankaj Bukalsaria
 Parent Participation Program – Ms. Nikita Jain
 Parent Participation Program – Ms. Shweta Ranjan
 Parent Participation Program – Ms. Shweta Talwar
 Parent Participation Program – Ms. Shibani Atwal
 Parent Participation Program – Ms. Subah Gupta Batra
 Parent Participation Program – Ms. Renu Singh
 Parent Participation Program – Mr. Shailesh Mehta
 Parent Participation Program – Ms. Shubhra Jain
 Parent Participation Program – Ms. Shweta Talwar
 Parent Participation Program – Dr. Nidhi Sharma
 Parent Participation Program – Mr. Anurag Jain
 Parent Participation Program – Mr. Akshay Vats

RENDEZVOUS…

 Broadening Horizons – Dr. Puneeta Bhatia & Dr. Jasmeet Monga
 Broadening Horizons– Ms. Ritu Singh
 Broadening Horizons– Ms. Shweta Ranjan
 Parent Participation Program – Ms. Shailja Kohli
 Parent Participation Program – Ms. Nidhi Tripathi Ranjan
 Virtual Open House – Grades IV-XII

BRAIN TRAIN…

 Inter-School Competitions – Grades IV-XII
 Inter-House Competitions – Grades IV-XII

TEEN VOGUE…

 Independence Day Virtual Assembly – Grade XII
 Lotus Blooms: The Alumni Connect Program – Grades VIII-X
 Lotus Blooms: The Alumni Connect Program – Grades XI-XII
 Commfluence 2020
 Expressing Your Feelings – Grade IX
 Wise Up, Young Minds – Grades IX-XII
 Student Council – Grade XII
 TOROI Innovation Labs Program – Grades IX-XII

BEYOND THE CLASSROOMS…

 Work Education – Grades IV-VIII
 Mentor Connect Programme with Counsellors :Season -I – Grade IV-V
 Mentor Connect Programme : Season -II – Grade IV-VIII
 School Cinema – Grade IV-VIII
 ATL Plezmo Catalyst Challenge
 Dussehra Celebrations – Grade IV-V
 Hindi Diwas Celebration – Grade IV-X
 Expressions & Emotions – Grade IV sessions with counsellors
 Emotions & Attitudes – Grade V sessions with counsellors
 Coping with Emotions – Grade VI-VII sessions with counsellors
 Building Resilience: Developing Self-Awareness

–Grade VIII sessions with counsellors

TREADING TOWARDS BIGGER GOALS…

 NEP 2020
 Sarv Sahodya Student Webinar : Metamorphosis
 STEP Proagramme - Grades VI-VIII
 B.E.S.T. Club
 Kindness Calendar – Grades IV-V
 Covid Pledge
 #Tinker From Home Series
 SEWA Program – Grades IX-XII

CRUISING THE WORLD…

 World Hepatitis Day – Grades IX & XI
 World Mental Health Day – Grades IX - XII
 Hispanic Day – Grades IV - VIII
 International Day of World’s Indigenous People – Grades IV - VIII
 The Constitution Day – Grades IV – VIII
 Constitution Day Celebration – Grade XII

AWARDS AND ACHIEVEMENTS…

TRACK & FIELD…

 Fit India Freedom Run – Grade IV- XI

NOTICE BOARD…

YOUNG MINDS AT WORK…

FROM OUR MAIL BOX…

CREDITS…



It has been our ever endeavour to IGKO Exam was conducted smoothly on 7th
ensure analytical and logical skill & 8th Nov 2020 & IEO on 29th Nov 2020.
development in our learners. Taking Learner’s attempted the exam with full zeal
the safety of the learners into
consideration, the school decided to and preparation.
organize ONLINE OLYMPIAD
EXAMS in collaboration with SOF
foundation for learners of Grades I to
XII. These exams help in developing
a greater competitive spirit and
exploration of potential among

learners.



Interdisciplinary session was

amalgamation of Physics concepts with

artistic views on topic -

Mirage ( An optical illusion).

Ms. Savita gave a live demonstration of
Mirage paintings while learner's could
relate it to Total Internal reflection
Phenomena(Physics perspective).

All children participated and shared their
art work in the form of Name slips.
Overall it was an enriching session for
learners.



An interdisciplinary sports session
conducted during XI Physics class with Mr
Rahul, the PE facilitator.

Learners studied the "Projectile motion"
which is a part of XI Physics curriculum,
Rahul taught the strategies to how to do a
better goal using a football in the class and
vice-versa learner's applied their learned
concepts of Physics to exactly calculate
speed, time and range to achieve the same.

Children enjoyed the session a lot.
Overall it was very exciting
and enriching for them.



Lotus Valley International School, Grades XI and XII deployed rationale
Gurugram celebrated its annual and logical arguments by engaging in
confluence of languages, Éclectique - debates on topics like social media and
2020 on 29th and 30th October. career counselling. The sessions enabled
them to elucidate their standpoint
Éclectique celebrations commenced with through rhetorical eloquence, sharpened
discussions about the origin of various their skills of research and presentation
languages taught at Lotus Valley. Middle of information in a compelling manner.
school grades delved deep into languages
with fun activities like story weaving in The entire week witnessed the carnival
groups, verses vs verses-reciting poetry, of languages, with the effective use of
unleashing the critique within by fun activities, playing with phrases, word
watching short films and sharing their games and discussions on books and
reflection, and by playing with idioms. movies.

With multilingualism as the key,
characters from the world of Literature
were brought alive during a convivial
conversation by the learners of Grade IX
in ‘Jab We Met’, whereas Grade X
learners adorned the cap of a Radio
Jockey and interviewed famous
personalities from across the globe in an
articulate manner.







Learners of Grades VII and VIII A simulation of the actual UN took place
enthusiastically attended an MUN training in the session where the leaners were
conducted by Ekus Singh Khosla and informed about the working of the
Manya Dhull of X Andes and Kriti Malik official committees including terms like
of Grade XII Wordsworth from 4th August
till 7th August 2020. The aim of the GSL list and Moderated Caucus.
training session was to make learners
aware about the basics of United Nations A few students were
and working of the committees. Learners also given a chance to
were briefed about a new concept of MUN take part in the
(Model United Nations) and also about the GENSOC MUN for
wide array of opportunities in the same. learning experience.
Working and the structure of MUN was Through the sessions the
also introduced to the learners to make learners were able to
them familiar with the concept of grasp the basic and
debating. important concepts
relating to foreign policy
of various countries and
the role of countries on a
global platform.

The learners were also

made familiar with

happenings and news

around the world in an

interesting and

engaging manner.

Learners of Grade IX showcased their
talents and inspired their peers through
their creativity during Lotus Lights. It is
conceptualized in a way that learners get
indulged in a variety of modules. An array
of activities including music, dance,
poems and art were displayed by the
learners to leave each other mesmerized.
‘To feel, to gain and to inspire is the true
essence of Lotus Lights’.





Some of the greatest innovations, the
world over have happened during
challenging times. Lotus lights provided
an opportunity to the learners to share
their talent and experiences with their
teachers as well as peers, and how they
have shone bright during these difficult
times. The Learners showcased varied
talents like dancing, singing , poetry ,
motivational talks, painting etc. across all
sections.



The third season of Lotus Lights, ‘The The event was truly an amalgamation of
Expression Series’, was hosted on 9th Nov art in different forms.
by Grade XI and was filled with new, Kavya recited her beautiful poems;
artistic, vibrant, enlightening and jaw Khyati Prasad filled vivid colours in her
dropping performances. It started with paintings and Srishti Makkar graced
Ananya Jain sharing her delicious pizza displayed her enthralling dance
recipe followed by Hriday Gulati with his performance.
hilarious stand up comedy snippet which
was a hoot! Jalaj Yadav, Roli Aggarwal,
Sarisha Jaggi, Anirudh Rathod and Lovish
Chaudhary, showcased comparisons
between Haryana and Telangana, based on
the art integration program initiated by
CBSE, highlighting the wonders of both
states incredibly.



Lotus Lights-3 provided yet another

creative outlet to the Grade XII learners

to connect with and inspire their peers.
Rohan Mendiratta conveyed that “Your
spirit is the true shield” by his Karate

techniques. A melodious rendition
“Fight Song” by Sonakshi Kumar was

an inspiration for all. Divyakshi Singh

shared some valuable points regarding

effective public communication. Riya

Bhanot mesmerized everyone with her

dance and the theme of her dance was
“Let’s Celebrate”.

Lotus Valley International School,
Gurugram conducted Virtual Orientation
Session on Saturday, 31st October 2020
for parents and learners of Grade VIII.
The event gave an overview of an
upsurge in the popularity of each
language, training and learning.
Presentations displaying the bookish
aspects and entrancing facets of each
Second Language option – French,
German, Spanish, Sanskrit & Hindi –
were expounded by the respective
subject teachers with an aim to help
learners make their choice for the
session 2021-22.

It paved way for our maestros to showcase
their talent through the following art activity

• Telengana Folk Art- Telengana is a great
place for Arts & Crafts with many
astounding handicrafts, there are many
folks arts prevalent in Tenegana out of
which the students have learned the
portraiture art form of Telangana.

• Phulkari Arts - Represents Folk
Embroidery of Punjab which means
floral work, the designs not only include
flowers but also cover the various
motives and geometrical shapes



Learners of Grades VI to VIII unfurled
their creativity through drawings. Their
paintings are based on Gond paintings that
stand out for use of bright colours and
intricate lines. The Gond art mostly
represents a tree emerging out of birds
(peacocks) and animals (ox, horse, deer,
elephant and tiger).











Learners of Grades IX & X created master
pieces based on Cheriyal Scroll Painting
which is a stylized version of Nakashi art,
rich in the local motifs peculiar
to Telangana. The scrolls are painted in a
narrative format, much like a film roll or a
comic strip, depicting stories from Indian
mythology, and linked to the shorter stories
from the Puranas and Epics.



Learners of Grades XI & XII
replicated the art works of famous
Indian painters of Telangana, Thota
Vaikuntam & Laxma Goud.

Their paintings capture simple
lifestyle of villagers like the paddy
fields, toddy pots on shoulders of
men, the household chores, temple
rituals etc.
Their drawings range from
stark charcoal on paper, transparent
washes and pencil drawings. The
stylisation of these paintings are a
perfect foil to Indian classical dance
as the figures seem to dance, as if
following their creator in a statuesque
movement, reminiscent of temple
friezes.





Director-Principal, Ms Anita Malhotra
follows the maxim – ‘Children are the
Priority, Change is the Reality, and
Collaboration is the Strategy.’
In its efforts to strengthen the connection
between the school and parent fraternity,
the school held its first Middle School
Virtual Coffee Meet with the parents of
learners from Grades IV-VIII between 5th
– 7th August 2020. Director-Principal, Ms
Anita Malhotra extended a warm
welcome to the parents present at the
Virtual “Coffee & Conversation” Meet.

In her address to the parents, Principal stressed upon the
importance of parent-teacher partnership towards the holistic
growth and development of the learners in these challenging
times.
Parents contributed by sharing their constructive feedback. The
meet concluded with the Headmistress thanking parents for
their zealous participation.





The Coffee Meets of Grades IX and XI
were held on 4th August and for Grades
X and XII, on 10th August to facilitate
meaningful interaction between the
School and the Parents.

Interactions between the School team and The Meets commenced with the Principal,
the Parents on scholastic and co- Mrs Anita Malhotra’s address wherein she
scholastic issues, future plans, etc further illumined the School’s Virtual journey, the
enriched the session. scholastic and co-scholastic endeavours and
achievements.

Mrs Malhotra lauded the concerted efforts
by the team of parents, teachers and
students which led to the excellent
performance of the learners in AISSCE and
AISSE 2020 and discussed the new
developments in Education. Scholarships
for meritorious students were also
announced by the Principal.

The Vice Principal, Mrs Ruchi Joshi,
presented visual vignettes of the School’s
virtual journey via PPT and the upcoming
endeavours. The School’s Virtual Alumni
programme and Coding Clubwere unveiled
during the meet.

“Any book that helps a child to form a
habit of reading, to make reading one of his
needs is good for him.” -Maya Angelou

Lotus Valley International School takes
pride in the well-developed and dynamic
reading programmes across various
grades. A workshop on 'Novel Reading
Programme’ was conducted for the
parents of Grade IV learners on
Saturday, 8th of August 2020 by Ms
Dalbir Kaur, an International Trainer and
the Founder Director of One-Up Library,
Book studio and Learning Lab, Delhi.

Ms. Dalbir ended the session with

a quote by Kate Di Camillo,
“Reading should not be presented

to children as chore or duty. It

should be offered to them as a
precious gift”.

The objective of the session was to
share how books allow us to be
captivated, connected, curious and
compassionate. She helped parents
realize that reading isn’t only activity
to alleviate boredom or enhance
vocabulary but also helps to stir
thoughts and imagination in the mind
while creating a connection with the
book.

"Alone we can do so little; together we can The session received an overwhelming
do so much.“ - Helen Keller response from the learners. The skills
discussed will definitely help learners
As part of the Parent Participation to work with each other in the future.
Program, a session was conducted for the
learners of Grade VI by Ms Shweta Talwar, The hour-long session proved enriching
mother of Shivangi Talwar of Grade VI with a good message and strong learning
Narmada on 4th Aug 2020 on the topic for the kids to take home.
“Collaboration”.

Ms Talwar began the session with an ice
breaker activity followed by a short story
on collaboration, composed by her
daughter Shivangi Talwar.

Learners were asked to share their
experiences with collaboration. The four
pillars of collaboration - Partnership,
Trust, Cooperation, and Leadership, were
explained beautifully to the learners in a
way in which they could relate.