Shishu Vihar
Q. What is Shishu Vihar?
Shishu Vihar is Chinmaya Mission’s newest creative idea, a spiritual platform where parents and children under the age of five, come together to learn, experience and exhibit the values and the teachings of Vedanta and the Hindu culture.
Q. What is the purpose of the Shishu Vihar classes?
The early years of a child’s life are the formative years, when a child absorbs information and develops the values to shape their character in years to come.
Sowing the seeds of spiritual wisdom in young hearts, this is a unique class for toddlers and pre-school children attend with their parents and/or grandparents.
The basic main idea is to ‘catch them young’.
Q. What is the structure of a Shishu Vihar class?
Shishu Vihar classes follow a modern structure of playgroups where babies and toddlers learn through stories, songs, yoga and craft.
They sing cute Bhajans set to the tune of nursery rhymes, play games to develop motor skills and participate in arts and crafts that foster mental growth and coordination in a fun-filled atmosphere.
The class starts with chanting the smallest but the most powerful prayer – ‘Om’ followed by little songs and Bhajans.
The kids are then encouraged to stretch and move around a bit while performing child-friendly yoga exercises.
Midway through the session, kids are given a short break to go to the bathroom or enjoy their favorite snack.
They come back all charged up to enjoy the story, share giggles, showcase their curiosity and ask silly questions.
The class ends with an arts & craft activity, a closing prayer and distribution of a nut-free Prasad.
Q. How do teachers address the limited attention span of children at such a young age?
Shishu Vihar teachers are trained to compassionately acknowledge the limited attention span in children at such a young age. Keeping this in mind, the Shishu Vihar classes are limited to a time of 45 minutes to an hour with a 10-minute break in between. The class activities are rotated every 10 mins to grab their attention and to keep the little ones from losing focus. In any event, parents are free to step out or take a break from the class and return when desired.
Q. What is expected of a Shishu Vihar parent?
A Shishu Vihar parent is expected to accompany their child at all times during and after the class, try to be present on time and enjoy and play along. Parents can also volunteer or take turns to bring Prasad for distribution after the class.
Q. What do the kids learn in a Shishu Vihar class?
The kids learn about one Hindu god a month. For example, the month of September is usually dedicated to learning about lord Ganesha which would include stories, shlokas, songs, yoga poses and activities. The other gods that the kids learn about are Shiva, Vishnu, Devi, Rama, Hanuman and Krishna.