Jan 11, 2026 - Kindergarten (Sunday AM)

Hari OM Dear Families,

Here is this week's update.

 

Week : 11

11th Jan 2026 / 9:15AM

 

Shlokas-

We all chanted OM 3 times followed by  shloka

"Om Saha Navavatu" (page 8 in My Prayers book) 

"Sarawathi namasthubhyam" (page 12 in My Prayers book)

"Guru Brahma" (page 61 in My Prayers book)

"N"' - is for Nobility-upholding high moral standards and strong character. And that we can be noble by taking care of others and putting others needs first.

Brainstorming: noble deeds and how we can do simple deeds for others by putting others' needs first and helping others.  And we can develop noble qualities by learning from great people. We discussed Noble people like Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King, Abraham Lincoln etc. - who lived many years ago and did many Noble deeds and helped mankind. And we can develop noble qualities by learning from them.

Noble person-  We showed pictures of our dear "Gurudev" and shared with children about Swamiji and what made him Noble.

Story Time : The Noble Cow

There was once a cow who went deep into the forest grazing. She then realized she went faraway from where she was supposed to be and heard a roar. There was a tiger who was waiting to eat her. The cow thought about her baby calf and pleaded with the tiger to give her some time so that she could get home, feed her calf and set things right before she died in the hands of the tiger. The tiger was not ready to believe her! But as she kept on pleading, the tiger tried to test her nobility. The cow went home, hugged her calf, fed her and gave her baby calf to her neighbor, another cow and had to leave as promised in front of the tiger. The tiger was shocked and surprised to see the mother cow's sacrifice and not breaking her promise. She was truly noble, the tiger didn't want to eat her, instead set her free to be with her child. Being Noble has its rewards. the moral value understood by this story.

Noble deeds and how we can do simple deeds for others by putting others' needs first and helping others.  And we can develop noble qualities by learning from great people. We shared the story of Gandhiji, The Other Shoe.

The Other Shoe 

Once Gandhiji was traveling on a train. As he boarded the train, one shoe of his fell between the tracks, there was no way for him to get that back as the train was standing on the tracks. So, he removed another shoe and threw it near the first one that fell. A friend asked him why he did so.. Gandhi ji answered, whoever picks that one shoe can now get the other and can wear it as a pair. This is indeed a noble act.

A game requiring children to sit down if we called out a noble act and stand up if it was not a noble act. Children really enjoyed this game. 

Yoga time: Jumping Jacks, Tree pose, snake pose, Lion pose, stretch exercises.

N for Narayana

who is narayana? What is the lord doing?  Lord Narayana is the protector who is seen on the bed of a snake, adisesha, holding a flower, a conch, a chakra and a gadha. The Lord took 10 avataras or 10 forms to protect everyone. Sri Rama and Sri Krishna are the most prominent avataras.

Next Letter:  'O' - is for Obedience which means dutifully doing what one is told to do without protesting. We discussed why we need to listen and obey our parents, elders and teachers and not argue, as they by their experience know what is good for us and will keep us safe and happy. Obedience helps us to achieve harmony and brings about discipline.

 What will happen if the Sun does not set in the evening? What happens if mom does not cook food every day? What happens if no one will follow the road signs? Why is there a need to do everything in order? because otherwise there will be chaos. And when everyone and everything works in orderly fashion there will be 'harmony'.
To maintain this harmony, all things and beings have to obey the rules of nature. Through different scenarios, we went over why kids need to obey and explained that sometimes even if we do not like what we hear and what we have to do, as it is in our best interest to listen and obey.

 Narayana Says...  Game time

 Later children were asked what they were doing in the game. They all agreed that they were following directions/Listening without any protest, and the O word for that is "Obedience". 

 We discussed situations to help children understand who they need to obey.  

Would they obey a stranger offering candy? 

Would they obey a friend who wants to be naughty?

Emphatic NO!

Children responded they would obey Parents, teachers, grandparents, Uncles/Aunts etc.. because we trust 100% that they know and wish only what is good and best for us. We also discussed that by obeying, we are learning the value of "Self-Discipline"

Story time : "The Obedient Child" 

Vikram's father was a sailor and they both were on a big cruise ship. One day the ship caught fire, Vikram's father being responsible for others, made Vikram to stand on the deck and had to rush to save others. He instructed Vikram to not move whatever happens. Vikram obeyed his father. By then, the others called Vikram to get on to the rescue boats. But Vikram said firmly that his father asked him to stay there until the fathers comes back. When the father came back, the boy stood like a charm. He hugged his son and hurriedly moved from the place of fire. The rescue helicopters came and saved Vikram and father. Being Obedient helps save oneself from trouble, the moral value learned.

We discussed what happens when we don't obey , what if, no one follows traffic rules or you don't obey teachers at school, or you don't obey the storm warnings while beach visits? they get into trouble and misery follows. 

Children were able to share beautiful examples of people who were obedient and listened to elders despite being intelligent and strong themselves like Rama , Hanuman and  Shravan Kumar. They also could relate to examples of Sita, Ravana from Ramayana who did not obey and got into trouble , or say fictional characters like Nemo and Simba who got into misery not listening to their Dad's. 

Parents are  our Guru's as they teach us the right thing to do, and we need to obey them at all times. 

Shri Rama, and Hanuman
Hanumanji was so strong, and so clever – but still he listened to his elders.
Shri Rama was a prince and so loved by all but still listened to his father, went to the forest to fulfil his father's word, even though no-one wanted him to go.

O is for Om

What does OM mean?

Om was the first sound created. OM sound was the closest to the beginning of creation, it is the most divine. we chant OM we should always sit straight with our eyes closed and concentrate on the sound. Om is made up of 3 sounds- Aaaa Uuuu Mmmm.

Next balavihar class is Sunday 1/18/2026 and the kids can be dropped off in the class directly before 9.15 am. 

Class Rules and requirements:

1. Children should bring their notebook for likhita japa and writing alphabets. Balavihar handbook, pencils and erasers and crayons. ( Please bring your own items if kids are allergic)
2. Children may bring their own "spill proof water bottles"

NO snacks please. Please give them a good breakfast before coming to Balavihar. Also make sure they use the bathroom before going into the class.
3. Please bring the children to balavihar a few minutes before 9.15. We want to promptly start by 9.15. Please make sure the student is not late and may come latest by 9.20 and not later than that.

Links and Reminders:
Please join the class WhatsApp group if you have not already- the invite link sent in one of the earlier emails, from KG class chinmaya vrindavan domain.

 We will update the class blog for the parents through an email and at the parent portal - Parent Portal 2025-26 (cmnjparentportal25-26.blogspot.com)

Please refer to the Balavihar Handbook-  for the various House contests and Geeta Chanting Yagna information. (Handbooks have been distributed in the class) 

Please reach out to us with any questions or concerns you may have.

Hari OM

Veda Rajamony and Vidhya Aiyer