Letters from Parents

 

Letter To Ms. Aruna

Dear Aruna Ma'm

Aditi being aditi will always hold you and the memories of this year very close to her heart.

I sincerely thank you for being the most wonderful teacher she could have had at this stage when she moved to a new environment. Needless to emphasize that she has gained immensely in this past year. She has grown in so many ways...they touch my heart and make me proud at the same time. And I thank you for nurturing, facilitating and encouraging that growth in the most positive and supportive manner.

For all that you have done for Aditi, a mere thanks feels inadequate. But then that's the inadequacy of the language. Being a mother yourself- you know how to perceive feelings that rise from the heart- especially those of love, gratitude and a bonding that will stand the test of time.

Aditi is blessed to have you in her life and she will hold you in her heart for the whole of it.

You are twice blessed (and even more) to have had many children in the past and many more in years to come, who will love you and hold you in their heart forever. I'm sure you too will remember each of them in the same way. That's their blessing!!

Sincere thanks and Kind Regards

Ganga

Letter of appreciation

Dear Madam,

Sneha, our daughter joined Form 5 at Pathways in the Second Semester.

She has always been a reticent child. But today, we watch her eyes gleam and face light up with excitement every time she has an activity to do. And she has lots to tell us – yes, lots and lots - she animatedly explains how she draws pictures (she wants to be an artist), researches on the laptop (has taken away mine at home!), sculpts a monster (it has these huge nostrils), makes a Precis (a kind of PPT, she tells me), and more at her school. She also talks about evolving friendships and helpfulness of peers with whom she 'hangs out and collaborates'. Yes, her vocabulary is witnessing such as 'Big Bang' that we are over the moon.

The project on Pollution has been of a special learning value. In fact, we have been involved with it as much as Sneha has allowed us to get, of course! So whether it has been taking her all around the neighbourhood so that she can click photographs or refusing our stubborn daughter that she needn't take gutka and cigarettes for the class poster, it has been one crazy month for the sake of 'pollution'.

Allow me to share some episodes with you.

The clicking of photographs for the activity was an amusing affair for the father and daughter (Sneha) argued about what to photograph and what not to photograph. Sneha did not want her father to advise her one bit as, after all, he did not know what personal pollution was all about (she said). So he was used as a driver as she happily clicked photos which she felt were right and we drove around the neighbourhood for more than 2 hours. (Here, let me pause a while and share that we did not know what personal pollution was all about so we quickly checked the Internet on our return! We had heard of land pollution, soil pollution, water pollution and noise pollution, when did personal pollution crop up? – we thought that day.)

Another episode was that of getting printouts of pictures of materials that cause personal pollution. I, a generally calm mother, was all worked up when Sneha insisted that her group's poster had to be the best and so she needed real samples of cigarettes and alcohol and other such things. We had to finally give in to our daughter's determination on the project, but I think I was smart and careful mother as well for I did not let my very clever daughter know that I had informed her teacher requesting her to explain to her gently and throw away the things which she had absolutely insisted that she had to take to school. I had of course read the fine print on it with Sneha before that to explain how consumption of such things causes personal pollution. (While Sneha was away at school that day, I also had to read up everything I could find on Personal Pollution so that I sound like a knowledgeable mamma in front of my daughter, further on.)

The visit to the Yamuna River is a family anecdote now. Our daughter was so upset by the abuse of the river water that to show us how dirty the water is that she brought back a pet bottle full of dark water. My heart sank for a few seconds! I gave an angry look to my husband and was arguing with him on how dirty the Yamuna water was and how we must take care to drink potable water, when my daughter took out a bottle of black poster paint and jumping around me like a monkey told that she had mixed black poster paint in the water to show us just how dirty the water was. We got the point, dear! And we are off colas too.

And of course, there is this episode where though we were all lethargic the morning Sneha had a school visit to the landfill and she could have missed school if we had our way that morning, but no, she was up and ready to go with her bag, packed. She wanted to get a close view of this place that we had often showed her from afar and called 'Landfill'. It was the day, when she would get an answer to why so many eagles and vultures fly over that place. So off she went to the landfill to get her answer and when she returned she had a face mask to show us. Of course we told her that she must keep it away because it had germs but she wore it and rattled off about the place and with her for the next five minutes we took a mental tour of the landfill, the hundreds of trucks that visit the place to dump trash, the route upwards and downwards, and a detailed description of the trash till we were quite ready to throw up. (Her form tutor shared with us later of how Sneha went up to Dr Advani 'on her own' to request her to invite recycling workers to give a talk in school! This surely was proof that our daughter was gaining self confidence and the project on pollution had made an effective impact on her.)

What Sneha learnt about pollution in this entire activity was extended when she pointed at a traffic policeman and said to me, "Look mamma, he is wearing that mask I got because there is so much air pollution from the smoke of the vehicles!"

We now know that Sneha is an aware citizen who will be mindful of pollution in future. As parents, the pollution project has been an eye-opener for us, as well!

Thank you Sneha, Form 5 and Pathways for letting us make the journey with you.

Warm regards
Mrs Shradha Anand
(Sneha's mother – Form 5)

Letters to Teachers

Dear teachers

Ms. Agnihotri, Ms. Mittal and Ms. Lamba, Thank you for organising the SLC today. I thought it was brilliant to have the children present themselves the concepts they have learned and share with usI their grades. While grades are always subjective in the minds of a parent in a PYP scenario, specifics of their mistakes are never subjective, and I'm glad to see where the children are doing well, and where they need improvement. And reviewing this with them in a formal situation, it set the stage where we as parents could assist them in setting goals in front of their teachers (whom obviously they respect and fear more than their own parents) like daily hourly practice sessions for math and english writing. We set up that their iPads, iPhones, iMacs could only be accessed in the evening after their practice sessions are done. Sort of like, no bath no dinner. And doing this in front of their teachers gave it some gravitas.

You'll notice I gave both my children a "Fair" ranking vs. a good and excellent, and not for any other reason other than that they need to understand that there are always areas of improvement and when presenting a case/ scenario/ brief later in life, there is no 2nd chance. You have to give it your best. Either you win the deal or you dont, and setting the expectation from their father that they need to strive continuously will assist them in self improvement in the years to come. My grading is not a reflection of their education, but a reflection on their ability for continual self improvement.

Thanks again for setting this stage today. Its marvellous to see how far they have come and am glad the 3 of you are continuously shepherding these kids.

Have a great weekend.

Letter of appreciation

Dear Madam,

The back to school programme that has been initiated by you was a wonderful experience. The hours spent as a student gave me an insight into not only the method of teaching but how as a student my child could contribute towards making it a true knowledge harnessing exercise. Being in academics, it also was an eye opener to how teaching at school level is undergoing a change and its not far, that Universities will have to change their methods of teaching.

A fall out of Orkojeet joining Pathways has been that both my husband and I, often end up counselling friends.We have sent a few to your school and two of them have already considered Pathways and they look forward to formalising the process. This programme which was essentially a role play will enable me to give more relevant inputs of how the learning exercise is a different trajectory to that given in the other cirriculam.

I would like to thank you and your faculty for giving us this experience and look forward to many more such innovative programmes.

Warm regards
Srabani

Appreciation Letter

Dear Ms Madhurima and Ms Preeti,

It was a great pleasure to meet you both and learn from you about Ishaan and I am very happy with how he is blossoming in all aspects of his being-----learning of course but his hindi divas performance, his creative expressions in what he creates at home and the art work he makes, the concepts he comes up with and things like that which make me really admire what the school is all about------giving him space to really open out the way he wants to and enjoy his own ideas and thoughts.

He is always happy to go to school and that is a great indicator for me, each day when I see him i ask him whether he had a a happy day and he has.
Thank you for all the inputs and efforts your end. He relates and likes you both very much.

I will be working on his writing with him at home too, so thank you for that insight. I have also explained he can always reach out to you both in school when something upsets him and also that I have spoken to both of you about the issue bothering him.

Warm regards
Antara

Letters to Mrs. Lamba

Dear Ms. Lamba,

It was a memorable experience meeting Mahuaa's tutors. We want to congratulate you, Ms. Swapna, Ms. Deepti, Ms Radhika and specialist tutors for the progress Mahuaa has shown.

Our purpose of meeting Mahuaa's form tutors and co-tutors is to get a feedback on Mahuaa and know her areas of improvement. As you say together we can work on child's progress. Our purpose to meet you is to get counselling for ourselves as parents. We feel proud to say that whatever you advice us we follow it with full dedication and it has made us feel good, confident and satisfied that we have seen a lot of improvement in our child.

When we met you on 24th September 2011, our only concern was that Mahuaa is an introvert, she is quiet, she is not making friends with her fellow students. At that time, you told us to be patient and observe changes in Mahuaa's personality gradually. We want to thankyou for that. Mahuaa has shown tremendous progress . She has shown a big change from Pre Nursery to Nursery.

We are very happy that since the beginning of her education phase she is with you and your teaching staff.

Regards,
Rahul Agrawal, Deepika Agrawal

Letters to Teachers

Dear teachers

We appreciate all the wonderful efforts by yourself in shaping these children into fantastic individuals. After being part of the Parent and Me workshop we are truly able to imagine the kind of fun that these fortunate children are having. We can also well imagine the kind of effort from your side that would be going into making this endeavour successful.

All our compliments for both of you and the fantastic team out there at school who work so hard to ensure that these children are shaped into good and responsible citizens.

Thanks and regards
Jaslin and Harsharan Marwah

Letters to Mrs. Lamba

Hi Mrs. Lamba,

I just wanted to thank you and the staff at Pathways for implementing all the ideas discussed in our last meeting so effectively. I was very pleased to receive both a call and an email from the school nurse regarding Mikail's fall on Wednesday.

Also, I must comment that his handwriting has improved drastically, and while I have been working with him at home, I must thank the teachers for their part in this as well.

Thank you again
Safia

Letters of Appreciation

Pre-term Showcase Assembly

“It was an amazing program and we, from a parent’s point of view, thought it was a really good way to fill in two months and help the child settle down at the new school.”

Chitra Ganesh
Mother of Supriya Ganesh (9)

Hi, I am Roshni's mom. After watching the pretermer's assembly today I realized that Dr. Advani's advicse to make Roshni join the preterm programme even for a month was absolutely right. She has developed her confidence level in these few weeks and the most important of all is that she is not missing her old school and her old friends at all, just because in Pathways all the children and even teachers are very friendly with each other. Hope they keep up the spirit.

(Mother of Roshni Arora – 11)

We believe that the Pre-term Program is an excellent concept having far reaching advantages. Its a perfect bridge - especially for students coming from other than IB / IGCSE boards. We have seen Shikha (our daughter) grow in confidence during this term, her questioning / reasearching ability aroused. It was indeed a pleasure to see her exploring and discovering her true interests and makinge wise choices. This is such an important intersection of life as wrong subject selection / choices not aligned to one's interests can set you up for life-long dissatisfaction. I have never seen her more interested in looking forward to go to school. Here, we must extend our compliments to Dr. Advani, Mr. Jaffaer and the entire team of Pathways to make transformation happen in these beautiful children.

(Father of Shikha Vats-11)
Satish Sharma, Chief – India Operation

The Pathways pre-term programme is a wonderful way to get students from other systems eased into the IB way. At the end of it, the student feels totally equipped to hit the ground running! That apart, it has succeeded in making Aakanksha a part of the Pathways family. Most importantly, she has made lots of friends, often the most critical step in settling down.”

Warm Regards
Archana Jain Gupta
(Mother of Aakanksha – 11)

Letter to Ushaji

Dear Ushaji,

Anjali and Jaiya are truly enjoying their experiences at Pathways thus far. They both have so many stories to tell me on the drive home. Yesterday, after their first day, Anjali said, "It was so fun-the day seemed so short." Without me even asking how the day went, Jaiya burst out, "It was the best day!" My husband and I ended the evening saying how happy we are for Pathways.

I will continue to pray for you and the staff for a successful, fruitful, fun school year.

Sincerely,
Ellen Peterson

Letter to Shalini

Dear Shalini Ma’am,,

Thank you all for making Karn feel so very wanted, special and most of all comfortable in his new environment. Even with his limping foot and at times unbearable pain, I can feel and see the happiness and his emotional drive to be in school. It is a pleasure to see and hear from him about his comfort level with teachers and bonding with his classmates and the surprise factor being his relations with his seniors.

My apprehensions as a parent have been set aside as I can see he is adjusting well to a very new system of learning [for him], all thanks to the great team, ably steered under your steady guidance.
I look forward to our long healthy relationship.

Thanks and Regards
Anuradha Nag
Middle School Parent

Letter to Aneesha

Dear Aneesha,

First let us thank you for sharing Samaya’s report and pictures. They were very motivating and I am amazed that Samaya has now learnt how to spell her name. All thanks to you and Rupal.

Regards
Shuchita
Primary School parent

Letter to Dr. Vineeta

Dear Dr. Vineeta,

Hope you are doing well. Having seen the forwarded e- mail, I must say that the curriculum booklet contains all the pre- requisites and parameters which are required to see the all- round progress of our children. This is amazing. I wish to see all the mentioned pragmatic approaches getting imbibed in Sara with the passage of time.

Please convey my sincere thanks to the Director, Principals and especially teachers who have meticulously planned the curriculum.

Best Regards
Rashid

Letter to Ms. Aneesha and Ms. Rupal

Dear Ms. Aneesha and Ms. Rupal,

Yesterday when I was sitting with Hardit to read a book, I was pleasantly surprised to hear Hardit telling me that the name of a book is called a 'Title' and the person who has written the story is called an 'Author'.

It feels nice to see that Hardit is learning new things and is able to recollect much later.

Infact I would say both his father and I are able to see positive changes in Hardit after he has joined Pathways.

If you feel we as parents need to extend any specific support, please do let us know and we will be more than happy to oblige.

Thanks once again! :)

Warm Regards
Srilakshmi and Maninder

Letter to Teacher

Dear Ma'am,

First and foremost, THANK YOU Pathways for making my children Sameera and Manav feel important and confident within a span of few days .

I would like to share my experience of the Middle School Form Evening with you which took place on 24th of January'10. This concept of form evening was something new to me. We received a very warm welcome by the Principal herself and then she led us to the cafeteria for tea and snacks. In there, we interacted with other parents which built a healthy relationship between all of us.

The form evening started with the presentation by the co-curricular activity teachers and that was really interesting. Pathways lays a lot of focus on sports, music, dance, drama,art unlike other schools which gives children a chance to experience life beyond the academics. The evening was then carried on by the subject teachers presenting the past course they have covered and what they are planing for the future. Then children too gave a commendable presentation towards the end which reflected their confidence in the system. After this we could interact with the Director, the Principal and the form tutors. The whole of Pathways family lend us our ears and helped us solve problems which we face with our children. They're open and are honest about the counselling which is very important for the child, as well as the parents and teachers. They make us feel like family members, and treat us very kindly and hospitably. The communication between the teacher and the parent is very easy and effective. I am really happy with the school and I am glad that my children are nurtured under faithful hands.

Thanks
Regards,
Puja Khurana

Letter to Aneesha Balwani

Dear Aneesha,

It was really nice speaking to you on the phone yesterday. We are really grateful to you, just because of your help Arnav has started interacting with people he meets. As you know he was quiet a shy boy but nowadays he comes up with sensible replies to the questions he is put up with. We really feel proud and delighted seeing him cross-questioning us and showing an awareness about the things surrounding him. The best thing is also the fact that he has started speaking in English and tries to answer in that too with confidence. His communication skills have also shown a remarkable improvement. He now does not hesitate to speak out his mind and in case he sees something which according to him is wrong he points out that with full confidence. In the last six months he has changed for the better and whole credit goes to you.

Thank You so much for always being there to help us out and being always available even on mobile and internet. We would be really obliged to be in touch with you in future also.

Regards,
Bindu Sangal

Letter to Ms. Megha

Dear Ms. Megha,

We are indeed very happy and thank you for encouraging Neha. The title you have given her is a wonderful compliment.

Neha's grand parents were overwhelmed with the love and affection showered upon them by the kids and you, and touched after reading your mail yesterday.

We are indeed sure that we have planted our darling sapling in the right garden and will one day make us all proud by blooming into a sensitive & responsible citizen.

In a lighter vein please be warned we are sending Neha's younger Sister your way next year to take care of.

Looking forward to many successes with you & the school.

Regards,
Ashima Gupta

Letter to Aradhana

Dear Aradhana Mam,

Amazing work Aradhana and Lakshmi! I can't tell you how happy Kritin is when he discusses these things at home. He does not get much time to read at home, but the way concepts are handled in the class, I'm sure he completely understands them. Especially, UOI on Migration has been handled so well. This is exactly how learning is made fun for the kids.

Regards,
Renuka

Letter to Pratiti

Dear Pratiti,

I and my husband, would love to thank you for taking such good care of Samarth and all the other kids and also shaping their personalities beautifully. Everyday Samarth comes home and tells us something new that just startles both of us at home! Some of his words like “Mumma is a girl and Papa is a boy” just left us bewildered. Today he’s been telling us sentences, beginning with ‘This is a …’, like ‘This is a car’ and ‘This is a new shirt’. We both are rolling with laughter and swelling with pride while Samarth is busy answering the same boring question, “What is this?”… Coming from a 2 year old, it surely is a reflection of your hard work. Thank you once again for being a part of Samarth’s growing up days. We wish you all the very best with these naughty little fellows!

Warm Regards,
Vandana and Satish

Letter to Teacher

That day walking out of school with me he told me its my fav school and i will love it for a long time, for thousand numbers. He is really happy in your school.

Regards,
Antara (Parent of Ishant Dave, Kindergarten)

Letter to Ms Sana

We all sat and played around with the different websites/tools you've been teaching Anjali in class. Very cool stuff.

Regards
Ellen Peterson

Letter to Sunanda

Dear Sunanda,

Thanks to your intervention, Orkojeet had three memorable days in Pathways. Please convey my gratefulness to the Director too. It was a pleasant surprise for me  to see him walk out confident, happy and chirpy after his first day of school. I then realised that he has outgrown his reticent self. My mind was put to rest. But this was not all. When I went to pick him up on the second day, The headmistress junior wing and his form teacher Megha met me and were all praise of him. Indeed it was a proud moment.

He found the classes interesting, loved the homeworks and enjoyed the cafeteria and made friends who wanted him to stay back. I am not divulging much as I hope to see him write it in his blog soon.

These three days has changed my perception about him. To a child who found new classroom a challenge a few years back, pathways friendly and encouraging environment slipped him into its way without any hitch.

Will meet you when we come back for the orientation.

Regards
Srabani

Letter to Ms Lamba

Dear Ms. Lamba,

I must thank you for the wonderful form day – so very well organized by you and your staff. I really appreciate the commendable job which is done by you all and really hope that all these kids bloom under the umbrella of personal warmth and affection.

My very best wishes with you to maintain the same standards and personal touch to everything despite the continuous enormous growth of the school – which definitely is going to do good to everyone.

Regards,
Shefali Gupta
Mother of Agastya and Advay

Appreciation Letter - Grade 4

Dear Ms. Vandana,

I had been meaning to write back to you since I got this report and thank you for the same.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank you and Ms. Anuradha for helping Mitakshi settle in so well. Moving from a different country, I had my initial apprehensions as to how soon and how well she would settle in. However, she took to Pathways like a fish to water right from the first day. Though she was already quite independent and confident, I’m surprised to see that in just a span of a month not only has she gained new skills, but also a much higher degree of confidence, independence and maturity.

She’s clearly enjoying the way the lesson plans are conducted, and as a parent I can see that how each assignment and lesson is aimed to teach students not only academic content but also essential life skills.

Thank you both for making the class such an exciting place for my daughter.

Regards,
Tejal Mathur

Appreciation Letter - Grade 3

Dear Aruna Ma'm

Thank you very much for the interesting snapshots of the weeks that have gone past. 

Aditi is enjoying every bit of the learning, sharing and doing processes the school so gently encourages and nurtures. She is gradually progressing in her friendships too. She even shares her eating successes with me -- narrating how she tried a new dish or enjoyed a different taste--simply because her teachers encouraged her to try. 

I thank you for you kindness, patience and calmness in dealing with Aditi. She has developed great regard and respect for you as opposed to overt love as a smaller child would. She feels proud and accomplished when she carries out your instructions independently and completes tasks with very little help or cajoling or reminders!! For the first time she has recognised authority in a teacher and appreciates the cordial yet balanced relationship she shares with you. 

Thank you for always making Aditi feel welcome and assured. 

Regards,
Ganga