Graduation at DAV Montessori

HOUSTON: On May 25, DAV Montessori parents, grandparents, friends, teachers, and staff celebrated their graduates. In special attendance was Elliot Gershenson, the CEO of Interfaith Ministry. The morning began with a beautiful satsang in which the 1st grade parents were blessed by Acharya Surya Nanda Ji, who then spoke of the two births we experience, the birth we have from our mother and then the birth we have when we learn from our teacher. After the religious ceremony, the guest speaker Acharya Gaurang Bhai Nanavaty, Director for Chinmaya Mission, delighted the audience and especially reached the students when he told them a story stressing the children to “make the world noble” as the school’s motto states. The children’s story, tells the tale of a rat who asks to become an increasingly more ferocious animal so that it does not have to fear its predator but in the end forgets that fear and instead becomes a predator. Acharyaji left the children and adults alike enthralled by the story. Arti Khanna, the lady behind the scenes, also known as the school director, graciously thanked all the teachers and volunteers who helped her throughout the year and showed a brief school slideshow. She also brought forward Acharya Praveenji who has still been teaching the children while his health has been recovering. Of course a DAV event can never be complete without the force behind the school Dev Mahajan, Devji as he is lovingly called.

The emcee Renu Jain gave congratulations to the teachers for the once again impressive IOWA test scores. The children out-ranked their peers once again. All tested at least 1 or 2 grade levels above their grade levels in all subjects and the average scores were 90 percentile. This was the first year that DAV had a 2nd grade classroom with the addition of Sandhya, who brought traditional classroom methods to the school. With this success, next year the 2nd grade class will have 12 students and the 5 2nd graders will move on to the new 3rd grade class. The continued successes of these classes are the reason that Devji committed to the parents that he will continue to pursue 4th and 5th grades for this school.

The best part of the day was the children’s performances. The itty bitty 2.5 year olds were simply adorable on stage doing what they do best—following the songs in their hearts. The pre-school and elementary classes were all so wonderful in their varied performances varying in themes from keeping India clean, to celebrating Gujarat who brought us our new Prime Minister Modi, to Indian diversity, to East meets West, to the students’ will to conquer the world. It touches the heart to watch the young generation participate in performances with songs, dances, and costumes that are from our Indian culture. With a curriculum that includes Hindi and yoga and extracurricular activities that include MonArt, Classical Indian Music, and Bollywood dance, it is no surprise these kids perform so wonderfully. DAV Montessori is giving the community a rare gift of an exemplary education with that beautiful dash of Indian magic.