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Nagar Kirtan

Walk to golden temple @ night to watch chardi kala jatha

Chardi kala jatha

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Last weekend our students had the chance to compete again, this time in knowledge and trivia. A great time was had by all.

Squad leaders chose 8 team members to compete head to head with the other houses, each team composed of both seniors and intermediate students. The remaining students could also participate when the time for the core teams was over if they still didn’t have the right answer. The questions came from all general areas of knowledge, including history, books, science, sports, music, movies, and more.

1st Gold House

2nd Blue House

3rd Silver House

4th White House

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11O2NNyZrkc&ab_channel=MiriPiriAcademy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXtobHLZcvA&feature=emb_title&ab_channel=MiriPiriAcademy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpcbR0RS6k0&ab_channel=MiriPiriAcademy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eK4dnXVzCaw

Written by Inderjot, MJ

On September 21st 9th grade began an adventure to explore the district of Himachal Pradesh. With high spirits our departure was smooth leaving MPA Academy, Amritsar to Mandi our first stop; then to our final destination Manali.

On our way to Mandi, we made a stop at the famous Gurdwara Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji where we were able to see some of the belongings of Guru Ji even to this day.  As the story goes, Guru Gobind Singh was invited by the Raja of Mandi and when the time came for him to leave, the King of Mandi humbly asked Guru Ji who will protect Mandi in future; in response to this question, Guru Ji aimed his gun at a pitcher floating in the river and fired, the pitcher instead of sinking kept floating. Seeing this, Guru Gobind assured the King of Mandi that like the pitcher floated even after being attacked, so will Mandi remain safe from any attack.

We then arrived and settled into our Hotel in Mandi where we were greeted and served dinner. We had an early evening heading to bed shortly after dinner and meditation. We woke up early to the beautiful mountain landscape, starting our morning off with yoga and meditation.

We then continued our journey to Manali, traveling along the River Beas, enjoying the scenic view and stopping along the way. When we arrived at our final destination, Manali, we settled into our hotel and enjoyed an evening in the local market, exploring different shops and eating good food.

The next day after breakfast our group was collected by two trek guides who drove us up to Rohtang Pass ,which is known for its scenic beauty. Upon arrival at the very top of the mountain, we explored the landscape together taking a meditative breath walk around the vast landscape, stopping at parts to chat and meditate. On our way back down the mountain, we stopped to enjoy some corn on the cob. Further down the mountain we went Paragliding off the low point of the mountain all the way down to the bottom meeting point to enjoy some maggie noodles and chai together. After the ride to the hotel with an awesome scenic view, we settled in for the night.

The following morning, we headed out early after breakfast and meditation to visit the famous Gurudwara Manikaran Sahib and the Hot Springs in Kullu, which is located in the Parvati Valley in the district of Himachal Pradesh.  In the Gurdwara we went to show our respects and enjoyed Langar (community kitchen in a Gurdwara, where a free meal is served to all the visitors). The view from the Gurdwara bridge was breathtaking and the surrounding landscape surreal.

Our last full day in Manali we went to a local paintball range where the kids had a blast playing speed paintball. Afterward, we enjoyed the town market and strolled along the Beas River; and then headed back to the hotel for a nice bonfire and dinner to end our trip. On the following morning we headed back to Amritsar with relaxed minds and open hearts.

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Written by Puran Devi, MJ

The 11th grade class began the pilgrimage to Hemkund Sahib on the night of September 14th. Armed with a strong spirit, enthusiasm, and a three-person staff, the group of 9 students boarded the “sleeper train” from Amritsar to Haridwar.

The next morning we were met by 3 drivers who had been waiting for us for 3 hours. This delay would not be the first as we encountered a few landslide delays on our ~14hr drive up the mountain. Making a few stops for snacks, meals, and bathroom breaks, provided time for high-altitude acclimation and appreciation for the beauty of Himalayan mountains.

The three day hike began with a steady incline 12km path. Donkeys were loaded with our luggage and all of us took off to our next destination, a hotel in Govindghat where we stayed for the next two nights. Our group climbed at our pace and just about  ~6hrs after take-off we were reunited and celebrating our Day One hiking accomplishment over warm tea, appetizers, and dinner. That night we enjoyed Golden Milk to soothe our tired muscles and continued our bonding over a bonfire.

The second day, we visited the Gurdwara in Govindghat and then began the steep 6km hike up to Hemkunt Sahib. We dressed in various layers of clothing to withstand the cold temperatures as we continued our journey up. Once in Hemkunt, we were met with breathtaking views of the Himalayan mountains and the Lokpal Lake. We warmed up and nourished our bodies with hot chai and langar from the Gurdwara Langar Hall before engaging in the highly anticipated dip in the freezing Lokpal Lake. We fortified our minds and spirits by entering the cold water and receiving the blessings that came with this highly cherished ritual. More chai tea, and meditative time in the Gurdwara followed this experience to help with the physical and spiritual integration. We were met with some rain as we began our return to Govindghat and enjoyed another cozy evening.

The third day was the continuation of our way down. We walked the 12km and made occasional stops for Maggi noodles and chai tea. Some altitude sickness was experienced and donkeys were used for support. We arrived at Govindham together and completed the three day hike with an integrative night in the Gurdwara. We stayed in the Gurdwara Nivas and nourished our bodies with Langar. We enjoyed a night of card games and meditated before bed. The next morning was an early 4:30am start to begin the journey to Rishikesh. We drove for about 12 hours before reaching our Rishikesh Gurdwara destination.

The trip was wrapped with a night in Rishikesh. Students got some free time for exploring, shopping, and eating at their favorite restaurants. Many were delighted to see a former classmate and recent graduate, Ali, who met them for dinner at Tavola Con Te, an MPA favorite Italian restaurant. The next morning, there was more free time and then we loaded up the cars to make the one hour drive from the Rishikesh Gurdwara to Haridwar train station for our afternoon train journey back to Amritsar.

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As part of our ongoing professional development efforts, this year 11 MPA teachers including our Academic Principal Kirandeep Kaur are taking the online course ‘Creating Cultures of Thinking’ at the University of Harvard School of Education. By participating in this course, our teachers will learn how to leverage the Eight Forces that shape the culture of groups, classrooms, and schools. Since thinking deeply and critically are skills that no student can do without, they will understand how language, time, environment, opportunities, routines, modeling, interactions, and expectations shape a group’s cultural dynamics.

The ‘Cultures of Thinking’ course developed by Harvard’s Project Zero department encourages teachers to understand and enhance learning, thinking and creativity. The MPA teachers, along with hundreds of teachers from around the world will spend the next three months, exploring the Culture of their classroom and work on how that Culture can be leveraged to promote deeper learning.

As one teacher shared, “In this course we will get the tools to establish a thinking culture in our school and classrooms. We are learning to identify those forces of thinking and how we can work with them to help our students to become thinkers.”

Throughout the next three months, the teachers will be reading, researching and applying their learning in their classrooms. Weekly meetings of the learning group and bi-weekly assignment submissions add to the rigor of the course, but none of the teachers are shying away from the additional work. They are looking at this course as an opportunity to learn and grow, so they can impact the learning of their students.

Another great aspect of this online course is the learning that happens through interactions with educators from across the world. The rich conversations and discussions with other educators have already begun to influence the teachers’ way of thinking. As the teachers reflect on their current practices and modify their teaching, the students are sure to experience the ripple effect in the classes.

“While there is still a lot to learn”, another teacher shared, “we were so excited to see that we are already familiar with a number of ideas/routines which other international educators are talking about. This has given us such a sense of achievement.”

With 11 teachers (app. 33%) currently engaged in this course, the multiplier effect of the learning is sure to filter into all classrooms. We wish all our teachers lots of luck as they move forward with this course and are excited to see its impact on our students.

The participating teachers are:

Alisha Talwar, Baljinder Kaur, Dharwinder Kaur, Gurjeet Kaur, Gurmit Kaur, Harjit Kaur, Mamta Menon, Manisha Bakshi, Nidhi Pathak, Sophia Sharma and Academic Principal Kirandeep Kaur.

One of the highlights of our sporting calendar is the annual Ultimate Frisbee Competition which took place last Sunday. The students have trained for the games for only a week. Beginners learned how to throw and catch the disc and the rest just tried to improve their skills.

House teams were divided into Intermediates and Seniors.

Blue House won with 65 points! Congratulations!

2nd Silver and White House – 30 points

4th Gold House – 10 points

Blue House also won Girls, Senior and Intermediate far throw!

P.S: Did you know that Ultimate Frisbee players use the term sports-disc, not frisbee? The word “Frisbee” is actually a trade-marked name of an American toy company.

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