April

April 24

April 22nd was Earth day, so today in class we discussed eco friendly products that we use or can use to help the environment. Some of them are: agarbathi, biodegradable powder colors for Holi and, benefits of Havans. We then discussed Chapter 32 which concludes the Valmiki Ramayana. This chapter talks about Sita’s agni pariksha, Rama’s return to Ayodhya, and the festival of Diwali. Afterwards, we went through presentations that the kids have made on their characters. As a reminder we have our FINAL presentation on MAY 1st VIRTUALLY. Parents please join and any other family members are welcome to join. Our plan post presentation is to continue to have classes focusing on Uttar Ramayana (not included in the Valmiki Ramayana).

Homework for next week:

1. Use the feedback given in class to make corrections to slideshows.

2. Parents please make sure to send your kids presentation by TUESDAY APRIL 26th. You can send the presentation to: alegaonkar@gmail.com

3. May 1st is the day of our year end presentation all kids dress up and have fun!

April 17

Class Summary: 04/17/2022

April 16th was the festival Hanuman Jayanti so after todays prayers we discussed it who is Hanuman and why he’s important. We then discussed Chapter 28-31 which was the war of Lanka, the death of Kumbhakaran and the lifting of Dronagiri Parvat. Afterwards, we played a Kahoot to review what we learned in class.

Homework for next week:

1. Read Chapter 32-35(end of book) and be ready to discuss.

2. Complete the slide presentation for the chosen characters

3. As a reminder parents please make sure that your child’s presentation is completed before April 24th as that is the day we will have a trial run of all the presentation.

4. May 1st is the day of our year end presentation all kids dress up and have fun!

April 10

We watched a video to review what we've learned so far and to preview Ch 25-27. We then discussed Chapter 25-27 which was the creation of the bridge to Lanka and the humiliation of Ravan. Afterwards, we went into breakout rooms to work on the slide presentations.

Homework for next week:

1. Read Chapter 28-29 and be ready to discuss.

2. Complete the slide presentation for the chosen characters

3. As a reminder parents please make sure that your child’s presentation is completed before April 24th as that is the day we will have a trial run of all the presentation.

4. May 1st is the day of our year end presentation all kids dress up and have fun!

March

March 20

We watched a video to review what we've learnt so far and to preview Ch 24. We then discussed Chapter 24 which was the interaction between Hanuman and Sita and the burning of Lanka. Afterwards, we went into breakout rooms to work on the slide presentations.

Homework for next week:

Read Chapter 25 and be ready to discuss.

Complete the slide presentation for the chosen characters

March 13

Today we started with our weekly prayers and discussed the meanings of our names. Watch a video to review what we've learned so far. We then discuss Chapter 23 which was about Hanuman reaching Lanka and what he did when he reached Lanka. Afterwards, we went into breakout rooms to work on our slide presentations.

Homework for next week:

1. Read Chapter 24 and be ready to discuss.

2. Have a first draft of the slide presentation ready to share with the class next week

March 6

Today we started with our weekly prayers and did some introductions to get to know our new teacher. We reviewed main things that we've learned so far throughout Ramayana class, starting from Chapter 1 all the way through Chapter 22 just as a refresher. Afterwards, we played a Blooket quiz for the first time!

Homework for next week:

1. Find out the meaning of your name and be ready to share.

2. What is the meaning of the word/name Kaustubh?

3. Continue working on research and adding to your slides for the year-end presentation! We will spend some time sharing our progess next week.

February

February 20

Level 4A had meditation today.

We will continue with discussions of ch.22 and 23 next class.

February 13

We started the class with prayers as usual. Then proceeded to start discussing Sundar kaand. A brief backstory to Bhagwan Hanuman, his different names, boons and blessings showered upon him, reason for the same, his qualities and his gifts to humanity were discussed. A small portion of Chapter 22 was covered.

Kids were then split into the breakout rooms to work on their year end projects with teen volunteers.

H. W. - be prepared to wrap up discussions on chapter 22 and start 23.

February 6

We began class today with our weekly prayers and learned about the celebration of Vasant Panchami.

After that we each chose 2 characters for our year end presentation. We've divided the class into three groups, each with a teen volunteer lead in case anyone has questions.

Homework for next week is to read Chapter 22 (if you haven't already) and research the characters you chose in class. Start working on the script for the presentation of your characters. You can include a slideshow, drawing, music, dress up as your character or anything that you think would enhance your presentation. Be creative!

(Remember we're just getting started this week, and the presentation ultimately should be done in March)

January

January 16

today's class included the parent-teacher conferences at the beginning. thank you to all the parents who were able to join and ask questions. if you were not able to make it, please feel free to email or ask questions on whatsapp at anytime!

after the conferences, we moved to talking about chapter 19. this chapter covered Rama meeting Sugreeva and Hanumana, and Sugreeva helping Rama with trying to find Sita. We then played a kahoot to cover what we learned today and review what we have learned in the past.

Homework

- read chapters 20 and 21 of the book!

December

December 12

We started with Aranya kanda. Introduced some new characters like shurpanakha, Khara dushana, Akampan and some others already talked about make an appearance again like Marich and Ravana.

Do talk to the kids and have them describe the character and related events.

Homework:

- Read chapters 16 and 17 and be prepared for a Kahoot

- Find out where(name of the place )Bharata lived in the 14 years that Rama was in exile

- Be able to tell the 10 avatars of Lord Vishnu in order.

November

November 21

Meditation Day:

Mrs. Ashwini Naik took over class today to teach the students about meditation!

Benefits of Meditation:

• You can relax and disconnect

• Makes you calmer

• Get some energy afterwards

• Gain focus on a task

• Become more positive in life

  • Positivity means looking at the “bright side”. It leads us to gratitude for the things we have instead of complaining about the things we don’t have

We heard the story of the two angels. One angel sets out to collect all the prayers from the world for more things from God, while the other sets out to collect all the prayers of thankfulness. The angel who went out to collect prayers for things from God quickly had a lot of prayers (for money, exam scores, good health), while the angel looking for prayers of thankfulness didn’t get anything. This shows that humans should take more time to be thankful for what we have instead of focusing on what we want all the time. We can thank God not only through prayer but also through our deeds (living ethical lives and helping other people).

Gratitude is an attitude, and the introspection we gain through meditation helps us develop gratitude and become better people. This is especially important as Thanksgiving comes closer, but don’t

When our mind and body are relaxed, we can look into the positive side and be thankful for the gifts we have in our lives.

To properly meditate, you have to be awake and aware. Meditation is not sleeping--you have to sit straight and be relaxed--no messing with things in your hands. Gently close your eyes: if you force your eyes to be closed, you’ll get a headache.

Choose a word or a name of God to focus on (anything that you like/find relaxing).

Everyone did a good job meditating in class! Good job everyone.

There is no homework! Enjoy the Thanksgiving break!

November 14

Today in class, we covered Chapters 10 and 11. We learned about the beginnings of Rama, Lakshmana, and Sita's journey through the forest. We talked about their meetings with King Guha, Kevata, Rishi Bharadvaja, and Rishi Valmiki. At the end, we played a kahoot to review everything we've learned so far (Chapters 1 to 11).

Homework: Read Chapters 12 and 13, and be ready for a quiz/kahoot!

November 7

Today in class we covered Chapters 8 and 9. We learned about Sita's birth, how Rama was able to lift the bow of Shiva, and the grand wedding of Rama and Sita. We also discussed how Manthara convinced Queen Kaikeyi to ask for her two boons.

Homework: Read Chapters 10 & 11 and be ready for a quiz/kahoot! Find out who the 10 avatars of Bhagavan Vishnu are.

October

October 31

Today in class we covered Chapter 7. We began by learning about Diwali, and reviewed Saptarishi as well as some content from Chapter 6. After that, we learned about how Rishi Vishvamitra took Rama and Lakshmana with him in order to protect his Yajna from Rakshasas' attacks. We also understood why Rama was hesitant to kill Tadaka, and the story of Rama blessing Ahilya. We ended with a kahoot for review.

Prepwork for next class: Read Chapter 8 and be ready for a quiz/kahoot!

October 24

Today we covered Chapter 6 about the birth and education of the four princes. We learned about the Ashwamedha Yagna and Putrakameshti Yagna, Rishyashringa, and the important teachers of the four princes. We also talked about the Saptarishi, which is a Sanskrit word meaning seven sages. After that, we played a kahoot to review chapter 6 and some previous chapters.

DOCUMENT: Click Here

Prepwork: Read Chapters 7 and 8 from your textbook and be ready for a quiz next week!

October 10

Namaste parents,

This Sunday we started the class with reviewing and discussing our festivals Navaratri and Dussehra.

Then moved on to Ramayan. We start each class with Bhagwan Shri Ram’s prayer - Shri Ram Ram Rameti…..

Enlisted all the Kaands is Ramayan and gave a brief description of each kaand.

We covered chapter 5 and finished the class with a (much awaited) Kahoots in chapters 1-5.

H. W -

1 Please help kids enumerate all the kaands of Ramayan in the correct order with the correct pronunciation.

2 Read and be prepared with chapters 6 and 7 for next class on 10/24.

3 learn/ revise the prayer ‘Shri Ram Ram Rameti…..’

4 Kids are expected to know answers to the following for next class:

• All kaands of Ramayan, correct order and pronunciation.

• Real name of king Dasharath and why was he given the name Dasharatha (covered in class)

• Real name of Raavan (need to research)

• King Dasharath’s daughter and Bhagwan Ram’s sister’s name (need to research)

Please note: NO HATS CLASS ON 10/17.

October 3

Today we covered Chapter 4 about Ravana, the evil King of Lanka. We learned about Ravana's family tree, his good and bad qualities, and the curse which was given to him by Nalakubera. We each started our own drawing of Ravana, and participated in a quiz at the end of class.

Prepwork for next week: With your parents, discuss Ravana-like qualities that you might have and want to get rid of. Read Chapters 5 & 6 from your textbook. Finish drawing/coloring your picture of Ravana and be ready to share with the class!

September

September 26

This week, we covered chapters 1-3 of our textbook, which can be found on the HATS website. In chapter one, we discussed the definition of Ishwar and God, as well as what Avataras are and the avatars of Vishnu. This also included a quick introduction to what the Ramayana is and an introduction to Hanuman as well. Then, in chapter 2, we learned about Rishi Valmiki and his transformation of his life to becoming a rishi and actually writing the Ramayana. Then in chapter 3, we learned about Sant Tulsidas, who is said to be an avatar of Valmiki. We learned about Tulsidas' life, what motivated him to become a devotee of Ram, and how he came to translate the Ramayana into Awadhi.

HW: Read chapters 4 and 5 of the textbook by next week's class!