The Yellow Train Family. The Family of Teachers.
Teachers are society’s heroes.
India is a land and a culture where the place of the teacher was held sacred. Bringing back the reverence for the teacher and the task is something that inspires us at the school.
Revitalising the social identity of the Teacher and discovering passionate and talented teachers has been our pursuit. The school has an eclectic community of teachers from all walks of life – artists, doctors, dentists, healers, architects, engineers and various other professionals who have relinquished their careers to discover a teacher in them. The school offers various developmental programs for teachers and people aspiring to be teachers.
The school works to serve the children who come through the door to meet us each day. And at the heart of this endeavour, stands a circle of teachers, bearing the deepest conviction that they are supported by the spiritual world. And they, stand there, with an ability to intuit what the times are asking of the school today.
Teaching as a Spiritual Task
We have close to 50 teachers across the kindergarten to the Senior School who are deeply committed to this calling, who see this task of being a teacher, as a spiritual task. Apart from helping children develop deep connection with various subjects, the teacher also deeply looks into the emotional and social well being of the child. It is our firm belief that both these aspects contribute to their development as free thinking and yet responsible young adults.
Imbue thyself with the power of Imagination
Have courage for Truth
Strengthen the feeling for the responsibility of the soul
The Inner life of the Teacher
A teacher works at many levels, from the most physical to the most mysterious. Sensing what is appropriate for each occasion is vitally important. A teacher’s inner work energizes the curriculum and makes Waldorf education stand out from other educational philosophies in that every subject is related to the evolving human being. The spiritual preparation of the teacher can include whatever is found to be deeply meaningful. When we connect with our hearts, we create more peace in our classrooms and nurture the inner lives of the children as well.
A simple practice
Take a few moments to picture the day ahead inwardly, along with the true being of each child. One can picture from the day a joyful moment for that child. To feel a restfulness is then a prelude towards giving all that up to all the invisible beings, to continue what has been begun through the day , into the night The mysterious world of sleep then takes over the work.
On awakening, give some moments of attention to any new thought, insight, feeling, which has "come out of the night" (for example, a realization about a child, especially one that has been a puzzle, a way forward towards a new step for one who has a difficulty). Then, picture each child, followed by a review of the day to come.
Teachers have 3 loves : love of learning, love of learners, and the love of bringing the first two loves together. Scott Hayden
All visitors who walk into our school notice two things: laughter in the face of children and joyful presence of the teacher community. ‘Happy Teachers can Change the World,’ a declaration borrowed from Thich Nhat Hanh, is what our school believes in and embodies.
The Sangha
Every day at Yellow Train starts with the Teachers’ Sangha - invoking the new day with mindful presence and gathering collective energies to fulfill our promises to children. We sing, we read and take part in activities that ground us. It is a few minutes of centering ourselves before we start the day with the children.
My mind can go in a thousand directions
But on this lovely path I walk in peace
With each step a gentle wind blows
With each step a flower blooms
Who is a teacher?
The teacher is invested in the development of the child – academic, social and emotional.
The teacher shares a deep love for children and is passionate about the subject.
The teacher is able to impact learning through pedagogy, curriculum , and methodology.
The teacher is a thinker, researcher, doer, innovator, problem solver and anchor.
The teacher has capacities for imagination, creativity, joy, understanding and connection.
The teacher is the unwritten curriculum for the children.
Every teacher whether in the kindergarten leading the children in their fold through imitation or in the high school holding multiple roles in the interest of the adolescent children, is bound by one common sacred thread, our love for children and the school . Besides their committed responsibilities, teachers are encouraged to ‘Rise and Shine’ and push themselves beyond their comfort zone to learn new skills. Growth and fulfilment go hand in hand in the developmental journey of a teacher at Yellow Train.
Training and Development
“Good teaching cannot be reduced to technique: good teaching comes from the identity and integrity of the teacher”
The school believes in the philosophy of ‘Who we are is more important than what we teach’, we therefore facilitate multiple training forums to enable personal inner development of the teacher as well as professional subject expertise.
New Teacher Induction
Every teacher irrespective of their individual caliber, experience or subject expertise goes through intense training when they join Yellow Train which initiates them on their journey. They are oriented to the school, its philosophy, culture and practices besides looking at core curriculum and methodology. The teacher is given opportunities to shadow a senior teacher who becomes their Mentor and also work with the class they are going to be mapped to.
The Teacher’s Journey
An in-house course designed to re-awaken one to the sacred and monumental task of being a teacher and support the teacher with various tools to further their work.
It involves,
Knowledge of Child Development – Developmental Stages, Temperaments, Behaviours
The Teaching Learning Phenomena - Pedagogy and Curriculum
Building Capacities as a Teacher - Qualities, Inner Life, Skills
The Classroom – Management, Culture, Relationships, Tools
Organizational Skills – Professionalism and Work Ethics
The program enables the teacher to then
Look at ‘the child’ in new light and have greater understanding of their needs,
Have greater awareness of various stages of child development,
Have a broad perspective of curriculum delivery, methodologies and the Learning Process,
Gain insights and ideas on how to develop individual capacity as a teacher,
Understand what encompasses classroom culture and dynamics and how to influence it.
And develop a sense for participating effectively in an organizational context.
Summer Intensive Training
Every new academic year begins with a summer training conducted by the in-house team, which prepares the teacher both inwardly and trains them in all essential skills needed for class room work. The work serves to review, renew and refresh the teacher towards the upcoming year inwardly and outwardly. Throughout the year the training continues as reading circles, presentations, deepening subject knowledge and specific skill-based workshops which keep learning and growing as an active part of the teacher’s life.
Mentor Visits
Throughout the year, the school invites mentors to offer training modules designed around Waldorf education, Anthroposophy, professional skills and personal development.
A teacher striving to learn brings depth, liveliness and vibrancy into the classroom. Our Mentors visiting from all corners of the world help us do just that by sharing the wealth of knowledge and experience with utmost generosity. All through the year we are engaged in a robust and deep learning process through workshops, seminars, class room observations and one-on-one interactions.
Weekly Faculty meeting
“True Faculty work requires that we develop means of helping the children which go beyond our individual talents, abilities and efforts.” ~ Rudolf Steiner
Once a week the entire body of teachers across KG and Senior School meet with a mood of sharing, caring and learning from one another. Each teacher shares their experiences from the classroom, so that each one learns from the other. In addition to this the faculty meetings is a forum that witnesses conversations and consultations that are directed towards the well-being of the school, the children and the community.
Reading Circle
To read is to grow
The teachers read in the sangha, in the classroom, in the faculty meeting, in the training sessions and even for joy. Reading, review and discussions of books on a variety of topics from Education, to the child, to the subject matter and spirituality is encouraged and an integral part of the Yellow Train Culture.
Circle of Light
The role of ‘Circle of Light,’ the inner core committee, within the community of teachers is best described by this quote from Rudolf Steiner “It is our duty to see the importance of our work. We will do this if we know that this school is charged with a particular task. We need to make our thoughts very concrete; we need to form our thoughts so that we can be conscious that this school fulfills something special. We can do this only when we do not view the founding of this school as an everyday occurrence, but instead regard it as a ceremony held within Cosmic Order.”
The Circle of Light members observe, sense and pay attention to various small pockets of the school and all its community members while relaying it back to the school leaders. Rudolf Steiner described the College of Teachers as follows : ‘it will, like the heart, sense what is happening in every part of the organism. It will know how things are throughout the school.’
The Circle of light is the heart of the school that senses and nourishes . Dreaming, thinking , creating, envisioning, decision making, mentoring, holding and supporting are some of the important roles performed by its members. It enables the school to effectively engage with and meet the requirements of not just the children but also the social needs of the current times.
We are capable, empowered and happy Teachers. We belong to the Yellow Train Family.
School Leaders
Aparna Shastri
“I believe that imagination is stronger than knowledge. That myth is more potent than history. That dreams are more powerful than facts. That hope always triumphs over experience. That laughter is the only cure for grief. And I believe that love is stronger than death.” - Robert Fulghum
A space where every nook and cranny is filled with dreams, laughter and love. That’s Yellow Train to me. 15 years ago, I had my first encounter with the Yellow train as Santhya walked us through the school where there were puppets, tree houses, attic spaces, dolls, doll houses and loving teachers waiting eagerly, every single day, for the children to arrive. I boarded the Yellow train on that day and the journey continues to be just as magical now as it was then.
A Software Engineer with a Masters in Software Engineering, I worked with a leading IT Multinational for 9+ long years and 2 years part time as a Senior Manager for an IT firm from Australia. I have always wanted a change in our education system and soon I chose to “Be the Change I wanted to See” and joined the Yellow train journey to lead the Kindergarten team.
Not long after, I found myself in the thick of all things I love working with – from taking leadership in curriculum design and delivery across the grades, to working with the team of passionate teachers supporting their growth, to my work with children from Kindergarten years to the Senior school years serving them as their teacher. It’s now been a decade since I joined the team and I feel exactly the way I did on that first day – filled with hope, trust and love for the work that we do in this world.
As Henry Thoreau said, When more time, care and space is given for the root, the stronger will be the tree. I’m glad to be in the service of the children who have come to us to grow into sound and healthy human beings.
“The more slowly trees grow first, the sounder they are at the core — and I think the same is true for human beings”.
Mayura
Soar, eat ether, see what has never been seen;
Depart, be lost, but climb!
This has been my journey at Yellow Train. Having done my Bachelors in Biochemistry and Masters in Management, I worked in Shipping and Logistics for a few years before becoming a full time mother of two girls. I spent over a decade in London unfolding life and discovering myself.
Yellow Train was and still is like a homecoming for me. English, Math, movement, the arts, music ... all things dormant in me found life again. Everything to do with children; to connect, to teach, to watch them learn, play, interact and be mischievous and the moments of laughter and togetherness shared, give me great pleasure and fill my bucket. The fulfillment from being the change and seeing the change is immense. What started as a contribution, led to discovery of a passion and is now a mission with deep conviction and invested energy - to make childhood worthwhile for the children in our care, to prepare them to meet the world.
Guiding and supporting the team of teachers- my ‘Motivational office’, has demanded great strength, versatility and growth . Believing and sharing in the dreams of Yellow Train for over eight years, holding the bigger picture at heart with a deep sense of pride, is the core of my being and offering.