Physical Distancing During the COVID-19 Outbreak

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the new Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) as a pandemic in March 2020 and warned all the countries to plan and prepare for this outbreak. This disease has spread through communities in around 198 countries so far and has infected lakhs of people, with thousands of them becoming critically ill. As of now, we can see many countries have implemented social distancing as a preventive measure to minimize the spread of this contagious virus. The Heritage School North Campus, best School in Dehradun, believes if people maintain physical distancing, then the COVID-19 transmission can end soon.

What Is Physical Distancing?

Physical distancing is a way to minimize the transmission of the coronavirus from an infected person or contaminated area to another person. This method is implemented to keep up with treating those who need care, and fewer people get sick at the same time.

Depending on how many people in the region are sick, physical distancing methods can be different and may include:

• Lockdown of schools, movie theatres, shops, restaurants, or places where there are mass gatherings.

• Working from home and shutting down offices.

• Not going outside the house.

• Restrictions on public transportation, including buses, trains or taxis.

• Not visiting stores unless necessary.

What To Do?

While the coronavirus is spreading, it is better to follow the guidelines provided by the government and local health officials such as:

• Keeping your family and loved ones at home by staying away from others as much as possible to reduce the transmission of the virus, as people who look healthy can still spread the virus.

• If one has to go out, make sure to maintain a distance of 1-2 meters away from people.

• If you’re caring for someone who is infected with coronavirus, take all the recommended precautions as suggested by the healthcare services.

The Heritage School North Campus, top CBSE School in Dehradun, recommends everyone to maintain physical distancing until the outbreak ends.

Source: WHO.int

Guidance for School Administration to Plan and Prepare for COVID-19

The guidance is intended for school administrators who oversee the daily operations of childcare programs to prevent the spread of COVID-19 among students and staff. The Heritage School North Campus best school in Dehradun aims to plan for the continuity of teaching and learning if there is community spread of COVID-19.

COVID-19 is a respiratory illness caused by Coronavirus for which there is currently no vaccine available. The best way to keep people safe and healthy is to avoid being exposed to the virus that causes it and stopping transmission of the virus through everyday practices.

The most important thing that the schools can do now is plan and prepare. So, we are sharing guidelines for schools that have not yet identified COVID-19 in their community.

• Prepare Emergency Operations Plans (EOPs): Ensure that the EOPs include strategies to reduce the spread of infectious diseases such as seasonal influenza and emphasize common preventive actions for students and staff like staying home when sick, cleaning frequently touched surfaces, and washing hands often.

• Information-sharing Systems: Schools and communities should develop information-sharing systems for day-to-day reporting and disease surveillance efforts to detect and respond to an outbreak by partnering up with local health officials.

• Monitor Absenteeism: Review and monitor the absenteeism patterns at your school among both students and staff, and alert local health officials about a rapid increase in student and staff absenteeism. It is recommended to discourage the perfect attendance awards and incentives and determine what level of absenteeism will disrupt the continuity of teaching and learning.

• Establish Procedures and Protocols: Ensure that the students and staff who become sick at school or arrive at school sick are sent back home and keep sick students and staff separate from other students and staff members.

• Perform Routine Disinfecting and Cleaning: One can prevent and kill the harmful microorganisms by cleaning frequently touched surfaces such as doorknobs and light switches with disinfectants and cleaners routinely. Also, provide disposable wipes to the students and staff to clean commonly used surfaces such as keyboards, desks, and remote controls.

It is advised to coordinate with local health officials to be updated with the latest information to share with the school community. The Heritage School North Campus is the top CBSE school in Dehradun that follows the guidance received from health officials.

Time Management for Exams

To reach the full potential in exams, one has to manage their time really well. Exams seem the most dreadful thing to a student as there is so much information to grasp and retain. Exams are fundamentally testing your ability to make the most of the time available to recollect the information from your mind and apply it where it is required the most.

The Heritage School North Campus, one of the top CBSE schools in Dehradun has gathered some top tips on how to finish your exam on time:

1. Perfect Your Writing

One of the worst things about exams is the ache you get in your arm, wrist, and hand after intense writing. Choose your pens wisely as they can make a huge difference. Practice your writing ahead of exams so you don’t end up wasting your time perfecting your writing in the exam. 

2. Don’t Waste Time

In exams, no one has time to waste, especially in language paper where you get essay questions. It is advised that don’t look here and there and just focus on your paper. Look down and focus on what you need to write. 

Always make a point to visit the washroom before your exam reporting time as you would not want to waste time during the exam.

3. Practice Past Papers 

Once you are thorough with the syllabus, find last year's question papers to solve. Set the timer and take mock tests. Mark the timings when you have completed the paper and how many questions are left (if any). The record will help you to know where you are lacking.

4. Make Plan

Once the question paper arrives, make sure you give a thorough read. Answer the question first which you know by heart. Ask for new scripts before you need them as it saves time and makes you panic less. Also never spend more than 7 minutes on essay-based questions.

5. Keep Track of Time and Divide it

Keep your watch to not lose track of time. Structure and divide your time in a way giving priority to the questions which carry the highest marks. Leaving early seems irresistible but sit and re-read what you have written. You would not want to realize that you have missed an important point or you wrote something wrong.

The Heritage School North Campus, CBSE school in Dehradun provides you with these efficient and effective tips for your upcoming final exams. Complete your exam on time and pass them with flying colours. 

5 Strategies to Enhance Reading Skills

Why are reading skills essential? Reading is one of the most profound habits that one can harness to achieve excellence and wisdom. Yet, most of the students in their young age struggle from reading efficiently and comprehending. Most of the students find reading textbooks or books interesting to read because they are of their interest. Still, as the child goes to college or for higher studies, he might have to read the materials that are not interesting or hard to comprehend, and that is where reading skills become of utmost importance.

No matter how skilled a student is in reading, there is always a room for improving reading skills. Heritage North Campus School, one of the top CBSE Schools in Dehradun brings in five techniques or strategies that can be used by teachers to help students improve their reading skills.

1. Provoke Questions: Guide students to generate their questions after reading the text or comprehension, such as what has just happened or what might happen in the future. It will increase engagement in the material and help them focus on the main ideas.

2. Highlight Text: Teach your students to highlight important and valuable information while reading and adding an annotation to a particular passage helps in understanding things better.

3. Empathize: Help students in comprehending by associating the texts with current events or real life. It will increase their understanding level and is also an excellent practice to develop empathy.

4. Encourage making reports: Asking students to write an essay or a report after reading a chapter or passage can help in increasing the understanding level of the students. It is the responsibility of a teacher to prepare the students for college and writing summaries and reports is the best way possible.

5. Thinking while Reading: Urge students to think while reading rather than reading continuously. Teaching students to stop and ponder over what they have read might lead them to seek answers to the questions that arise from the context of the chapter.

A teacher’s role cannot end with a simple reading assignment. Poor reading skills lead to lower comprehending level, more frustration, low self-confidence and poor grades. So, part of a teacher’s role is to infuse the passion for reading in students to make them lifelong reader and learner.

Heritage North Campus School, one of the schools in Dehradun CBSE, instils a love for learning among the students and promotes infusion of  passion for reading in students to make them lifelong reader and learner.

Boost Young Minds with Brainstorming

Brainstorming is one of the most useful techniques and strategies that are used to boost creativity and problem-solving skills in every sphere of life. It is based on the cognitive theory that develops creative thinking. Both brainstorming and creative thinking aims to develop creative problem solving skills.

The purpose of brainstorming session is to open up the possibilities and break down the incorrect assumptions about the problem. Every participant needs to take care that other ideas are not criticized or rewarded. Brainstorming as a teaching strategy is built on the aim of fostering communication skills, thinking and decision-making skills as well as respecting different viewpoints and opinions.

Referring to the Importance for Students, Brainstorming:

·         Helps students to become better problem-solvers

·         Helps students to generate ideas and think creatively

·         Helps students to assess the views of others and build relationships with their thoughts and ideas

In education, brainstorming is conducted by forming a small or large group of activities that encourage students to generate ideas by focusing on a single topic. How it is done?

1.   Teacher proposes the topic or question at the beginning of the session.
2. The teacher then asks the group to think about the problem or topic and find solutions to the problem. Students then share their ideas or relevant thoughts without hesitation.
3. Every student’s contribution without any criticism or judgment is summarized by the teacher on a whiteboard.
4. The ideas discussed in the brainstorming session is examined in the end.

Let’s look at some of the Brainstorming Ideas to get you started:

•  What things you can do with (marble, ball, blanket, stick, etc.)?
•  Identifying different colors and patterns.
• How many things you can think that is sour, sweet, bitter, and salty?
• How many games you can play with a ball?
• What if there were no traffic lights?
• What if there is no way to go out of town?
• How many insects, trees and animals you can name?

Brainstorming sessions are both exciting and easy and it is not a hard thing to comprehend. All you need is a word, problem or situation to start with. The Heritage School North Campus, Dehradun Schools CBSE aims to nurture tender minds by developing creative problem skills among students.

Select The Right School For Your Child

Sending your child to school for the first time might be a concern for most of the parents. Every parent wants their child to get the best and right education for their child to become successful and happy in life.

 We are discussing the top nine questions to ask before admitting your child in the school.

1. What vision does the school have?

 It is important to ensure that every student is being educated in a way that meets the mission and vision of the school.

2. Does the school curriculum support your child’s learning needs and styles?

 Make sure that you know what and how your child is going to learn and how it is integrated into the classroom at different levels of education.

3. What is the teacher to pupil ratio and size of each class?

 The class size matters a lot. Teacher to pupil ratio infers more personalized attention, differentiated instruction, and student’s engagement in the class. Does the school provide individualized learning and tailor instructions to meet the unique learning needs of children.

4. What type of extra-curricular activities they do schools have on their curriculum?

 Ideally, many schools include activities such as lunch clubs, sports, art and science programs and community service opportunities. You’ll want a school where the focus is on extra-curricular activities as much is it on classroom teaching.

5. What kind of facilities and infrastructure does the schools should have?

Good level schools include various facilities such as smart classrooms, interactive classes etc. Moreover does the school have ample playing space.You would want your child is educated with the latest trends and knowledge with a healthy and fit lifestyle.

6. How does the school measure student’s progress?

 It is crucial to know how your child is performing and also what criterion does the school follow to assess and evaluate.

7. How do schools involve parents?

 Get to know about what kind of programs school conduct for the parents and teachers to get involved in the child’s education and what kind of events takes place to involve parents.

8. How much is the tuition fee, and what does it comprise of?

 The structure of tuition fees will allow you to know the essentials which are included or if you have to pay extra for things such as textbooks, field trips, uniforms, and other things.

9. How is the culture in school?

 It is vital to understand how your child is going to spend his time in the school as student life is part of education. Explore about the school and find out as much as you can about student life by interacting with the students by making sure that your child gets developed socially, emotionally and intellectually.

Heritage School North Campus, best school in Dehradun, makes sure that every student gets the right education and possesses the strong character to become successful in life.

Importance of Parent-Teacher Meets

Parents and teachers are the guiding lights of a child’s life. A child always needs someone to guide him/her at all stages of his/her life to learn new things. Their assistance will help the children in realizing their core competencies by keeping into consideration their interests, strengths, and weaknesses which the child might not be aware of. To achieve this, what is needed is to create a school-home integration for the child. The Heritage School North Campus, one of the best CBSE Schools in Dehradun, strongly believes to achieve this level of balance, it is of utmost importance to have a healthy interaction and maintain a level of cooperation between the teachers and parents.

Creates a Clear Picture

Parent-teacher meetings enable the teachers to understand the behavior of students at their respective homes. On the other hand, it enables the parents to know how their child behaves in a social arrangement where they have to interact and coordinate with their peers.

Exchange of Ideas

Both parents and teachers collectively have a common goal i.e. to work for the betterment of the child’s intellect and future. These meetings serve as a medium to put forth ideas that can be implemented for the development of the child.

Tracking Progress

When both parents and teachers interact well and frequently, it becomes easier to track the progress of the child. When dealing with toddlers, it is very important to observe their behavior. It also keeps the child in line and helps the parents to monitor their child’s activities and behavior closely. 

The Heritage School North Campus, one of the top CBSE Schools in Dehradun, understands how important the insight of parents is and hence, conducts parent-teacher meetings frequently.