‘6 kids in my joint family study at this school’

What does a parent do when six kids in the joint family that she lives in study at Apeejay School? No prizes for guessing the right answer. For Priyanka Aggarwal and her entrepreneur husband, sending their son, Kanishk, to Apeejay was a foregone conclusion.

“I live in a joint family and there are six kids. All of them are students of Apeejay. There was no reason for me to look at another school when it was time for my son to start his education. My daughter, Lakisha, also studies at Apeejay and has recently gone to class V at Apeejay School, Model Town. But all the kids in our family started their schooling from Apeejay Rhythms Kinderworld,” Priyanka said, who is a homemaker.

Excerpts from the interview?

How are your children doing in school?

My daughter is doing very well. There was a time when she was struggling in Hindi and Punjabi but in her exams, she had done well in both the subjects. The good part is that she does self-study. She also ensures to get her doubts cleared from her teachers all the time.

My son, who has just gone to class I, on the other hand, is struggling a bit. I blame COVID-19. My son’s education was hampered and because of that, he is struggling in English. However, he is good at Math. So that is a relief.

Do your children participate in school activities?

Yes, all the time, especially my daughter. If the school organises 100 activities, she is there in 95. The five times she is not there is because we have had prior commitments. My son lags. He started speaking late as well. So, it depends on his mood. One time, he was keen to speak and performed well. Another time he refused.

How are the teachers?

They are excellent. The class teachers of both my children are very good. Saloni ma’am is very good and extremely supportive. My daughter’s class teacher is just as good. A child’s learning hastens if the teachers are good. Both my kids are lucky.

What is the teaching methodology?

It is a mix of fun learning with academic learning. This has made it easy for my son to pick up speed in learning. My daughter also completes her studies in school. So much so that I don’t have to supervise her study time. This is possible due to the teaching methodology at Apeejay.

What about parent-teacher meetings?

They are held regularly, even during COVID-19. All the parents had numbers of the teachers and that made it easy to coordinate or ask any questions. Both are addressed at the earliest. My daughter’s class teacher is very happy with her because she keeps asking questions; this means that she is studying and paying attention in class.

Is it important for you that your children participate in school functions?

Yes. I believe that activities like Declamations, festivals, poem recitation, and storytelling give the child the confidence to speak and get over the fear of the stage. I don’t care so much about marks. For me, my children’s all-round development is paramount. They get to learn so many things from these activities that would otherwise prove to be boring to read from a book.