Bala Lahari Timings
Class Hours:
Bala Lahari classes are conducted on Friday evenings between 7:15 PM and 9:00 PM.
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7:15 - 7:30 PM |
Assembly |
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7:30 - 9:00 PM |
Classes Begin |
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9:00 PM Onwards |
Prasadam |
A typical Bala Lahari assembly starts with the chanting of three "Omkars" followed by the Guru Stotram. Then the students chant Saraswati Stotram, and Santhi Mantram. All students are expected to be present at the assembly. Any important messages and upcoming events for the kids will be announced in the assembly. All students then promptly return to their respective classes following the assembly.
Schedule for Group 1:
7:30 - 8:00 PM
Practising the slokas learned in the past weeks, and learning a new sloka. Typically we learn a new sloka once every 2 weeks.
8:00 - 8:20 PM
This is the story time for kids. We go over the story we talked about last week, and continue with the story. We are doing Ramayana for group 1. We also learn stories concerning various festivals (like the story of Ganesha chaturdhi, Diwali etc).
8:20 - 8:30 PM
Short break.
8:30 - 8:45 PM
This is the Bhajans time. We learn and sing old and new Bhajans. Typically we learn a new bhajan once every month.
8:45 - 9:00 PM
Arts and crafts time. The children color pictures of Hindu gods and goddesses, and also any pictures related to hindu festivals etc. This helps the children identify the deities, and also the significance of a festival, and the activities associated with that festival.
Schedule for Group 2:
7:30 - 8:00 PM
Practising the slokas learned in the past weeks, and learning a new sloka. Typically we learn one new sloka every week.
8:00 - 8:30 PM
Story time for kids. We go over the stories we talked about in the past, quiz the children to see how mauch they remeber, and understand, and learn a new story. This could be a mythelogical story (like the Dashavatarams) or a moral story.
8:30 - 8:45 PM
This is the Bhajans time. We learn and sing old and new Bhajans.
8:45 - 9:00 PM
Interactive time. The children do cross word puzzles, and brain teasers about hindu mythology, the way we conduct pujas, and other culture related stuff.
The teachers manage and adjust the timings as they see fit. We also change some of these activities to accommodate the bi-weekly "Sanskrit class" for the kids or an occasional "Yoga class".