Bala Vihar
Children are not pots to be filled, but lamps to be lit.
What is Balavihar?
The rich cultural & spritual heritage of India, including its teachings on moral values, is taught to children and youth at different levels, using the medium of stories, drama, arts, crafts, and discussion.
Balavihar classes have become models for teaching the fundamentals of Vedanta to the next generation.
Kids 9th grade & up become part of the Junior CHYK (Chinmaya Yuva Kendra), the Chinmaya Youth program. The JCHYKs under the guidance of the adult coordinators carry out activities like seva projects, workshops, fundraisers and many other initiatives that augment and strengthen their bala vihar learning.
"By improving oneself can only one hope to improve others around him."
The aim of Chinmaya Mission's program is to generate dynamic individuals inspired to make the world a better place.
Currently for our Balavihar and adult classes, we congregate at two locations
Location 1 :
Every Sunday 11:00 am - 12:30 pm at South Forsyth Middle School
2865 Old Atlanta Rd.
Cumming, GA 30041
Map/Directions South Forsyth Middle School
Location 2 :
Every Sunday 4:00 - 5:30 pm at Powers Ferry Elementary School
403 Powers Ferry Rd SE,
Marietta, GA 30067
Map/Directions to Powers Ferry Elementary School
Chinmaya Bala vihar program highlights:
- Learn Hindu culture & spiritual philosophy in a fun manner through stories, discussions, games, arts & more
- Build the understanding of Vedanta in structured and systematic manner as guided by spiritual masters
- Provide an enriching environment for children to meet, share a common value system and feel a sense of identity with the Hindu Culture & their spiritual traditions.
- Enforce building of character, strength & confidence needed for a positive & happy future
- Give a solid foundation of the Vedantic values needed for success in a multi-racial community
Enrichment Classes
Chinmaya Mission Alpharetta offers several enrichment classes to bala vihar kids like language, music, dance & yoga. These classes are optional and fees for these classes are charged separately.
Language Classes
CMA offers languages classes for Hindi, Telugu, Gujarati, Marathi, Kannada, Tamil, Malayalam, and Sanskrit.
These are offered only to registered bala vihar kids. Registration for language classes can be done along with the bala vihar registration. The fees for language classes covers all the materials – books, paper, white boards etc.
All teachers are volunteers who are well versed in the language being taught. Language classes mainly focus on conversational skills.
Currently language classes timings are every Sunday 9:45 - 10:45 am at the bala vhar location and since all languages are taught at the same time, each kid can only register for one language class
Music, Dance & yoga Classes
Kathak Classes: Currently Kathak classes are offered for kids age 9+ every Sunday from 9:45 - 10:45 am at the bala viihar lodation. The Kathak teacher, Leera Rawal has been trained under Kumudiben Lakhia & Birju Maharaj and has been practicing and performing for over 30 years. Leeraji has been a long time CM sevak in India and also recently here in Atlanta.
Tabla Classes: Tabla classes are offered for both kids & adults every Sat morning at our ashram. Tabla classes are conducted by Shri Shivprasad Kotagal from Param-Shikhar Academy of Tabla (disciple of Pt. K. Paramjyoti).
The course content though based on the syllabus recommended by Akhil Bharatiya Gandharva Mahavidyalaya Mandal, Mumbai.
Tabla class timings at the Chinmaya Gurukul are:
- Sat 8:30 am - Kids class 1
- Sat 9:40 am - Adults class
- Sat 10:45 am - Kids class 2
Music & yoga Classes: Vocal music & yoga classes for kids are held at the ashram.
Balavihar Competitions
CMA Balavihar conducts various competitions for all kids:
Gita Chanting Competition:Every year a specific chapter of Bhagavad Gita is chosen. Each participant is given the shloka sheets along with the learning audio CD. Different number of shlokas based on age of kids are decided upon along with other rules. Help and training sessions several months prior to the competition are given.The competition usually takes place sometime mid to end of March. Results of this year's competitions are posted here.
Writing, Elocution & Art Competitions:Every year CMA celebrates Republic Day of India by having writing & art competitions for kids 3rd grade & up. Speech competition is also held for kids in 5th gr and up. For details of this year's competitions see here. Results of this year's competitions are posted here.
Likhit Japa Competition:Likhit Japa competition takes place as part of the Mahashivratri celebrations. Kids are encouraged to write in languages other than English.
Bala Vihar service projects
CMA provides ample opportunity for bala vihar kids to do selfless service. Kids can serve every Sunday at the bala vihar location helping in tasks like parking, setup, cleanup, bookstore, ticket sales, food sales etc. based on their age. There are also opportunities to help at the ashram doing various tasks like cleanup, organizing, gardening etc. In addition to this, there are several service projects that are coordinated by CMA to help the outside community like MedShare, lunchbags for the homeless, Soup kitchens etc. as well as participating in toy & food drives that are conducted every year during Thanksgiving.
Balavihar classes at Marietta
Chinmaya Mission Alpharetta offers Balavihar and adult classes at Marietta. Open house is on Aug 12th at 4pm and Classes will be starting Aug 19th, 2018. Currently Enrichment & language classes are not offered at this location.Location Powers Ferry Elementary school, 403 Powers ferry road, Marietta, GA - 30067
Timings Sundays 4-5:30 pm
Schedule:
- 4:00 - 4:30 pm - Assembly (prayers, pledge, Gita chanting, aarti & announcements)
- 4:30 - 5:30 pm - BV classes for kids; Vedanta class for adults
Fees for Aug 2018-May 2019 is:
- $150 for family with no kids
- $300 for family with 1 kid
- $450 for family with 2 or more kid
- There will be a one-time fee of $50 for new families joining to cover material cost
If you are interested in registering your family, please do so here: MariettaRegistration
Questions/concerns/suggestions? Please Contact Sushmaji- 248 739 0572 or 248 739 0472
SFMS Balavihar Teachers classlist
| Class | Teacher Name | Room Number |
|---|---|---|
| PreK - Gajanana | ||
| PreK - Ganesha | ||
| KG - Lakshmi | ||
| KG - Saraswati | ||
| 1st grd - Vasistha | ||
| 1st grd - Vishwamitra | ||
| 2nd grd - Hanuman | ||
| 2nd grd - Lakshmana | ||
| 2nd grd - Sita | ||
| 3rd grd - Balarama | ||
| 3rd grd - Devaki | ||
| 3rd grd - Yashoda | ||
| 4th grd - Parashurama | ||
| 4th grd - Prahlad | ||
| 4th grd - Vamana | ||
| 5th grd - Abhimanyu | ||
| 5th grd - Arjuna | ||
| 5th grd - Sanjaya | ||
| 6th grd - Chanakya | ||
| 6th grd - Laxmibai | ||
| 6th grd - nameTBD | ||
| 7th grd - Aryabhatta | ||
| 7th grd - Panini | ||
| 8th grd - Sushruta | ||
| 8th grd - Vyasa | ||
| 9th grd - Chinmaya | ||
| 9th grd - nameTBD | ||
| 9th grd - Tejomaya | ||
| 10th grd - nameTBD | ||
| 10th grd - Tapovan | ||
| 11th grd - Shankara | ||
| 12th grd - Omkara |
Upcoming events
BV New teachers/backups orientation & sevaks pre session meeting
August 18 @ 8:30 am - 12:00 pm
18 th – BV teachers & backups meeting (8:30 – 9:30 am), Teacher training breakout sessions (9:30 – 10:30 am)…
Read more
First day of Balavihar - SFMS
August 19 @ 9:00 am - 12:00 pm
19th – First day at SFMS 9:45 – 10:45 am – All teachers session; enrichment classes signups 11-11:30 - (Ganesh…
Read more
First day of Balavihar - Marietta
August 19 @ 4:00 pm - 5:30 pm
First day of Balavihar - Marietta Balavihar
Read more
Regular sessions at SFMS (11:00 am - 12:30 pm) & Marietta (4:00 PM - 5:30 PM), JCHYK session kickoff
August 26 @ 9:45 am - 1:00 pm
26th – All Sevaks pre session meeting (9:45 – 10:45); JCHYK kick off session (10:45-11:30); Regular sessions at SFMS; All…
Read more
Labor day Holiday - Janmashtami puja;
September 2 @ 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
2nd - Labor Day Holiday; Janmashtami puja at ashram ;
Read more
Regular sessions at SFMS (11:00 am - 12:30 pm) & Marietta (4:00 PM - 5:30 PM); JCHYK session (10:45 – 11:30 am);
September 9 @ 9:45 am - 1:00 pm
Sept 9th – First JCHYK session (10:45 – 11:30 am); Regular sessions at SFMS (11:00 am - 12:30 pm) &…
Read more
Swami Ramakrishnanandaji's yagna
September 10 @ 7:00 pm - September 13 @ 9:00 pm
Sept 10th -13th – Swamiji’s yagna at Chinmaya Gurukul
Read more
Ganesh Chaturthi puja at ashram
September 12 @ 6:00 pm - September 13 @ 7:00 pm
Sept 12th – Ganesh Chaturthi puja at ashram
Read more