Program overview

Sanskriti School, an all-volunteer school, currently offers Language classes in Hindi, Marathi and  Gujarati as well as Indian Culture on Sunday mornings (9:45AM-12:00) in Livingston. The  student-centered curriculum is implemented in class with the use of interactive multimedia,  hands-on activities, and creative projects. Here are some of the highlights of the school:  

Language

We offer several levels of language classes from beginner to intermediate to advance. Students  are placed in classes according to their proficiency in the language.

Our language teaching methodology is unique as we use aural, visual, and oral techniques in the  classroom instead of simply relying on textbooks. This method, used by leading linguistics and  companies like Rosetta Stone, fosters the most "natural" way of language acquisition.

We have created individualized PowerPoints for each class level through which students learn  vocabulary, grammar, sentence construction, and identify the alphabets in an interactive and fun  manner in their classes. Children above the age of 6, learn to write as well.

Our curriculum takes into account that the experiences of our students living in the United States  is vastly different from those in India. As such, instead of relying on cookie-cutter Hindi and  Gujarati books, we have created our own workbooks that students use to do their homework.  

Applied Language Enrichment Workshops: These workshops focus on  applying language skills taught in the first two sessions of the school year in the form of interactive skits, creative writing and other forms to encourage greater assimilation and understanding of the  language.

Culture

Students are placed in Culture classes according to age. The curriculum for each class is  especially designed to engage students at their age level.  

Students will learn about the rich diversity of Indian music and dance, foods and festivals, arts  and craft, religions and mythology, sports and games among other areas. They will gain  knowledge of Indian culture within the context of Indian history, politics, geography, and current  events.

Students will be encouraged to develop their creative potential through drama, poetry, and art  using themes and ideas related to Indian culture.

Students will play Indian sports as well.  

The student-centered curriculum is implemented with the use of interactive multi-media, hands on activities, and creative projects.

Enrichment Workshops

The enrichment workshops have proved to be very popular with  the students. Students immerse themselves in 10 week workshops (Mar-May) on topics like  Indian Dance, Music, Film making, Folktales, Cooking, Sports, Painting, Arts and Crafts among others. These workshops are free for students enrolled in Culture classes but other  children ages 5-13 may join for a nominal fee. Look out for an announcement in March.

Festivals: Students celebrate Indian festivals like Diwali by decorating diyas, making ladoos,  rangoli, etc. and playing Holi with gulal.

Sports: Students taking Culture class play sports/games on a regular basis. For the most part  students will play desi sports like kabaddi, kho-kho, lagori, langri taang, cricket, and badminton as well games like Carrom, etc.  

School Library: Students love the school library, which is open twice a month and  allows students to check out books on a variety of subjects related to India, the Indian  subcontinent, as well as the Indian Diaspora in the U.S. and around the world. As we build the  library we hope you will donate used or new books to it.

Heritage Day: Students participate in an annual celebration of Indian Culture based on a new  theme each year:  

Indian Festivals(2019): Students explored festivals - religious and non-religious from all four parts of India - through audio-visual presentations in class, arts and crafts, self-directed research  in their presentations. Kids spoke about History/Evolution of the festival, had a Kahoot quiz  on them and performed Folk dances.

Past Heritage Day topics: Natural Wonders of India, Indian Food, Indian Music, Indian Dance, Indian Weddings, and  Indian Mythology, Indian Heroes  

Community Service  

Community Service is an integral part of the Sanskriti Indian School’s curriculum. It is part of the  Sanskriti Indian School mission to not only impart an education about Indian culture and languages but  also the importance of giving back to the community and those in need. We encourage children  to participate in all of the community service activities (which is about 2-3 each year). We  expect this to be another amazingly successful year of giving!