In my journey of being an Editorial Head for ‘Valley Spirit’, I have come across many incidents which have left me at a loss of words, albeit in a good way. I am constantly amazed by seeing the zeal and enthusiasm of the kids to put out these magazine editions one after the other tirelessly. When I am reviewing the articles written by my students, I am always awestruck by seeing their fresh, unadulterated, and unbiased perspectives about things and I feel that it is my privilege to witness this all and be a mentor for them in the process.
Valley Spirit provides a great platform for these kids to unleash their inner creativity and talent. Students contribute to it by writing articles, drawing pictures for the “art corner”, clicking photos for the “photo gallery”, writing poetry, conducting interviews for the visiting faculty – noting down its excerpts and so many more things. I believe that these all are life skills which shape an individual’s personality. Academics is one part of life’s story but having and cultivating these interests and hobbies is equally important and acts as a stress buster. I can personally vouch for it because I myself love to sketch and paint and it acts as a major mood lifter for me.
This magazine is published school-wide and has the works of all students from Junior KG to 10th grade. It is a good way for the kids to get recognition. Even if the kids haven’t contributed to the magazine, just by reading the magazine and seeing the work by their peers can motivate them to contribute, and I have seen this happening in my tenure as an editorial head. Parents also come to know about the various activities going on in the school through “campus news”, “Teachers’ views” columns of the magazine.
Building on the concept of Valley Spirit magazine, I started a yearly initiative with my class. We have been doing several activities like “Magazine Mania” – which was a smaller version of ‘Valley Spirit’ where each one of my class kids had participated and contributed. There was a “Space Calendar” – which talked about various space events of significance, their dates. This was very informative and at the same time kids enjoyed this activity a lot, as all the kids are fascinated and intrigued with space adventures. Another one was a “Literature Calendar” – calendar on Great Poets, Writers and their works. Other activities included “Leaf zoo” – different drawings and structures made by leaves, “Acronym poems”, “I AM” poems – where kids had to describe their qualities using each letter of their name. This was a good vocabulary learning for them. We also printed out the activities done, so that it would remain permanently with the kids as a cherished memory.
I would like to thank the editorial team of students who work round the clock tirelessly and proactively to format and edit the content. Keep up the good work kids!
I would like to thank our beloved Principal Ma’am Nalini Sengupta and our energy powerhouse Ipsita Ma’am for all your support.
Lastly, always remember that “there are no limits to what you can accomplish, except the limits you place on your own thinking”
Thank you,
Pallavi Surana
PS: Click on the below links to enjoy reading Valley Spirit Issues and LiT Fest Magazine.
