Issuu

T h e

J A N U A R Y ' 2 2

E d i t i o n

EUNOIA ISOLATION

Mental Health & Covid Feature Article by Dhivya Iyer

Mouth-Watering Cinnamon Rolls

A Recipe Tried and Tested from Lockdown

Recap of Last Year's School Events

Senior School Events By Pranet V. Prabhakaran

And More Inside!

S O S B

O a k H U B

i s s u e

# 1

JANUARY 2022

ISOLATION

eu·noia noun Derived from the Ancient Greek word meaning: A well mind; beautiful thinking.

The Editorial Board Devanshi Panigrahi Dhivya Iyer Karan Reddy Mihir Talati Mrinalini Harish Navika Natarajan Pranav Vishwas Pranet VP Varshini Gopinathan

In This Edition 1. From The Principal's Office Sailaja Vittaldev

2. Events Here At Silveroaks Pranet V. Prabhakaran

3. Coronavirus Corner Mrinalini Harish Navika Natarajan Dhivya Iyer

4. Artist Spotlight Nihitha

5. Worded Woods Jiyana Niragha Srinikitha Dhivya

6. For the Love of Food 7. It's Puzzling

From The PRINCIPAL'S OFFICE Exercise regularly, eating good nutritious meals, When we set our goals high, the sky is the limit. It's proper rest, and regularity in sleep gain physical heartwarming to see the efforts of the Team to bring energy because it builds the capacity to do things. out this unique magazine. The school creates opportunities to build skills amongst the acorns. It Most importantly, finding time to relax. Mind gives us immense pleasure when our acorns take the represents mental sharpness, our ability to make a good decision and think clearly. We regularly initiative and bring out such excellent work. reflect, learn, plan, and organize to avoid I am glad that you highlighted mental wellbeing as a cluttering our minds. The heart represents the core point for the magazine. Incidentally, January is a quality of our relationships – take time out to mental wellness month. We all go through frequent spend time with the people you love by making emotional ups and downs, but what we do about it daily deposits into the emotional bank accounts of determines how we can face them with courage. A our family and friends. Like our culture to live says, study on inter-and intrapersonal skill development feel good, look good and do good. And finally, shows that how you engage with your thoughts may spirit. Spirit represents your inner self. It means your deepest convictions and values and your matter more than how you engage with others. source of purpose and meaning in life. We can Sean Covey says that we all have to invest in our renew ourselves by spending time in nature, a daily private victory. Life can be challenging, and it short walk all by ourselves or meditation with will test and stress us sometimes. Even push us to our soothing music in the background. breaking point, and sometimes beyond, with all the demands that we have to juggle, it's easy to become imbalanced and stressed out or even feel empty inside. If we don't give ourselves our ME time every day for renewal, we won't have the capacity, strength, energy, or insight to deal with life challenges. Trying to live without renewing ourselves each day is like trying to cut a piece of wood with a dull saw.

Sharpening the saw each day in each of the four dimensions is called the Daily Private Victory. Let's practice this to achieve better mental wellbeing for ourselves and for the people around us. Let's commit ourselves to the four aspects of wellbeing as our focal point and work towards it consciously.

You laid the foundation for a great beginning, and now you have miles to go. I hope that we will all He further says that to gain strength and to face life's continue bringing such lovely initiatives together challenges, you must make time each day to sharpen as acorns and teachers. the saw. It is about preserving and enhancing the single greatest asset you have, which is YOU! It I am wishing you all to find more opportunities to means regularly renewing and strengthening the four sharpen your saw! critical aspects of your life: your body, mind, heart, and spirit.

- Sailaja Vittaldev, Principal

Events here at Silver Oaks!

Sources suggest events can definitely leave people feeling inspired and happier. They’re natural playgrounds for creativity and new ideas, and they help foster new connections with like-minded people. These elements of human connection and positive experiences make events a splendid vehicle for improving happiness. For the same reason, at Silver Oaks, we conduct various events which simulate imagination among children while enhancing and developing their organisational and collaboration skills. One of the most important events we conducted recently was the introduction of the house system across all Silver Oak branches, creating a new competitive spirit among our acorns. The houses which were introduced were Tigers, Hawks, Whales, and Tuskers. The school formed each house considering the unique and commendable attributes of the animals; for instance, the Whales are renowned because they are friendly, compassionate, cooperative, and innovative. Tigers are typical examples of decisiveness, affirmativeness, and chivalry. Hawks are known for their swift flight; greater heights do not frighten them and they fly in the sky with utmost fearlessness and the Tuskers are role models of wisdom and usage of power. A ‘Sorting Ceremony’ was arranged to sort our acorns into houses, filling the atmosphere with anticipation and excitement.

During the health month organized by the IBDP students as part of their CAS projects, a sense of competence and perseverance was evoked in the students and our acorns indulged themselves in various challenges, such as burpees, running and diet control. An inspiring morning session by mental health speaker, Kanak Katariya, motivated our students.

In addition, we also had virtual Independence Day celebrations, where several classes from PYP to DP played an active role in various events, from dance, music and skits to speeches and a conference by DP students. These events stroked imagination and were good learning for the viewers. They also included a wide range of experience sharing, which further added to their productivity. The magic which the French National Day events created has to be commended. Our junior acorns and senior acorns both played a marvellous role in livening the event, giving us a glimpse of French tradition, culture, language, and the people of France themselves. The students truly set the event in the atmosphere of a French street and walked us through that local charm. We got to expand our horizons and knowledge by playing a fun quiz on French culture and traditions organised by the French students on Kahoot. On ‘Kannada Rajyotsava’, the recitation of poems and speeches by our beloved Kannada language educators enlightened us, making us feel a sense of pride in being in Karnataka. These festive events allowed acorns to develop their communication and information literacy skills by sharing their experiences of the festival, and dressing up in festive attire, giving us a glimpse into the festival in special assemblies. When the school reopened, there was a child-like enthusiasm amongst our acorns and the teachers. We organised events such as the basketball tournament, the origami competition, and the rangoli-making competition; which marked the start of a new beginning, as well as allowing us to reconnect with physical school. Through the course of the basketball tournament, we got to witness everlasting enthusiasm and determination from our seniors and juniors. The Tuskers won the senior tournament, with Whales being the runner-up. The Tigers secured the first position in the junior tournament, with Tuskers winning the second position. While the tournament was happening, there were stalls set up by DP and MYP students whose funds went to Coins for the Country. -Written By Pranet Vaishnavi Prabhakaran

Coronavirus

corner As of 11th December 2021, 86% of India’s eligible population has received at least 1 dose of the vaccine. Worldwide, 56% of the population has been given at least 1 dose. In the course of two years, India has had over 3.47 cr covid cases and 4.76 lakh deaths. The past two years have been devastating with the drastic loss of human life. Worldwide, we lost 5.32 million to the virus. In addition to the threat to public health, the pandemic has also caused major economic and social discord.

The pandemic has affected different communities differently. With schools and other educational institutions shifting to a remote mode of learning, students had to adapt to the online mode of learning and face the various challenges that come with it. Although online learning can’t replace or provide the same experience that physical school does, students who did not have access to the internet or electricity in their households, got the shorter end of the stick. In a country like India where only half the nation has access to the internet, this only increased the already existing digital and learning inequality between students due to a disparity in access. This affects female students disproportionately, according to a brief published by the RTE (Right to Education) Forum in 2021, January, over 10 million girls could drop out of secondary school due to the pandemic. With mass layoffs and families experiencing financial distress, many families aren’t keen on spending on the education of girls.

Although the pandemic presented us with a plethora of challenges, we as a society have come together with solutions and services to mitigate the damage caused by the pandemic. Some noteworthy initiatives taken include- :

Once again proving the resilience and indomitable spirit of the human race, we can see people returning back to a different normal. With Covid cases on a steady decline, as of November 1st, classes have opened for all grades. It is important for us to still follow covid safety guidelines and remain precautious. And as a community, lift each other up in these unprecedented times. Written By Mrinalini Harish

The NalandaWay Foundation, an educational charity, delivered over 27000 learning kits to students under the age of 10. They also have a helpline for students’ mental wellbeing and factual queries and doubts Teachers throughout the country started taking lessons through a loudspeaker, following social distancing for students who don’t have access to electricity or the internet. Various NGOs like eVidyaloka, Smile Foundation and Miracle foundation have worked to provide children with gadgets required for online classes and educational resources.

Covid-19 And its new variant

- Written By Navika Natarajan

Found first in China, Covid-19 is a virus that attacks the lung . Some of the common symptoms are : fever, cold, tiredness , loss of taste and smell, sore throat, headache, red or irritated eyes while the more serious symptoms include: shortness in breath , loss of speech or mobility and chest pains. Currently India has the second highest number of Covid-19 cases in the world, with Maharashtra having the highest number of cases with the number of 6,638,778 state vise.*1 The new variant of Covid-19 has created panic amongst people. On November 26 the WHO (World Health Organization) identified a new variant of SARS-CoV-2 called Omicron virus , being named after Greek letters. This variant was first reported to WHO on 24th November from South Africa. So far this variant has been detected in 57 countries It is not certain how severe this new variant is, scientists and doctors have suggested than this variant is more transmissible that the delta variant. Omicron has over 30 mutations in the spike protein compared to Delta , which only has 18 mutations in the spike protein. Therefore, the scientists don't know if the new variant is immune to the vaccine . Though the vaccine has been successful in lessening the severity of the illness, people who have received both the doses of the vaccine are still prone to this new variant. Companies that have manufactured vaccines have come forward to claim that they will tweak the Covid -19 vaccine according to this new variant. It is in our own interest, as we are a nonvaccinated bunch, to follow Covid Appropriate Behavior (CAB) such as ; maintaining social distancing , washing or sanitizing hands regularly , wearing a mask and avoiding going into crowded places. If you are showing any of the symptoms, even a common cold, then it is appropriate to get yourself tested, because at the end of the day we are in this together.

*1 - as of 10/12/2021

The pandemic and the corresponding lockdown have led to many challenges; some of the toughest ones being the internal struggles people have with their own mental health. The pandemic brought about an abrupt change, with no indication of when things might return to our conventional routines. Many people were cut off from our friends and family, and children weren’t able to go to school. Most of our hours were spent staring at a screen. Even simple things such as going to the supermarket are now different; we wear masks and are scared of making any physical contact. Our daily routines shifted to something we now think of as normal. This tremendous change, along with the fear of COVID in general, and the sickness and deaths it causes, have obviously had an impact on our mental health. Reality is now bleak for many people, and no one knows when things may return to normal. It’s not all bad, however. The lockdown gave people time to relax and reconnect with themselves; the pressures of everyday life alleviated. A large amount of the population finally found the time to explore new hobbies, deepen their knowledge on their original interests and get back in touch with themselves.

Life before the pandemic was a constant rush, with the cycle of work-home-work being repeated over and over. There was no time to pursue our passions comfortably, as the burden of an ordinary workday was overwhelming. The lockdown removed a considerable amount of that burden and made life, in some ways, easier.

The lockdown impacted our mental health in countless ways. It cut us off from our social life and changed our world unexpectedly, while also easing the demands of our typical lifestyle. Hopefully, with physical school resuming, we’ll be able to address COVID’s consequences on our mental health and work towards a better year ahead for all of us.

p o S t t l i g s i ht t r A

W D E O D ODS R O W

The pandemic definitely left a wound on people. I mean, wearing masks whenever you want to buy a piece of gum? Having to awkwardly stare at a rectangular screen just so you can talk to people? Or being alone for twenty-four hours a day, for an entire year, isn’t necessarily everyone’s dream. Though, even with all the challenges that everyone had to face throughout the year, it was also an opportunity to try something new, and spend more quality time with yourself; at least, it was for me. Throughout the lockdown, I was bored. Things that I would usually like to do, were now put behind bars and restricted for the sake of being safe. Don’t get me wrong, this was perfectly reasonable, and it was all done to protect people. But, you can’t deny the fact that peoples’ favourite hobbies were just not doable anymore. So, after about a week of moping around and having nothing to do, I finally decided to start doing something which would keep me busy. I tried my hand at origami, and it was fun at first. I made all sorts of things; a frog, a boat, a bookmark, and a flower. I really enjoyed these activities, and they kept me from stuffing myself with snacks for a while. But, I got bored of it soon. Later on, I found out about this thing called “Diamond Painting.” It is a mix between “Paint by number,” and “Crossstitch.” Except, this time it is with tiny beads called diamonds. I ordered a large painting of a mermaid, and it took me about two weeks to finish the entire thing. My favourite part of the experience was probably the huge wave of satisfaction you get after you have completed painting a picture using small beads! Throughout the pandemic, I also found that it was useful journaling my thoughts. But, instead of using a real journal, I decided to use a google doc (the wonders of technology!) Mainly because it would be much easier to write things down on a computer rather than an actual journal. I found that and writing down my thoughts really helped during the pandemic. I was also able to make notes and better cope with being isolated in my house (even if I was stuck with my family). I have two turtles, and a fish with a giant head, so taking care of them added a little bit of a responsibility, and it was good to check in on them every day. Even though the pandemic forced us to be stuck at home, I still think that because of this, I was able to discover a lot of new things, and I hope you did too! - Jiyana, M2, Nikola Tesla

The coronavirus hit us by surprise and consumed the majority of the population of the world within months. Nobody predicted that it would kill so many people, force countries to lockdown, shut schools and public places, and put lives on hold. It hit us and now it's everywhere. It made the whole world bleed and spread like wildfire. Lockdown is meant to prevent the spread of infection from one person to another, to protect ourselves and others. This means, not stepping out of the house except for buying necessities, reducing the number of trips outside, and ideally only a single, healthy family member making the trips when absolutely necessary. During this chaos, we realize the weight of humanity, the implications of our actions, and how we all are connected. While we wait for borders to be opened so that we can go back home in the comfort of our bed, we hear the shouts of refugees louder, we 'empathize' with those who have been uprooted from their home, and forced to flee, we understand their pain and suffering because we know how it feels. The hard part of all this is realizing how utterly alone a person is. You realize that COVID has become a good excuse for some to write others off. It has become an excuse for so many to avoid people, including those you thought you meant something to. To go along in life thinking you have a fairly good, not popular by any means, but a good handful of people who care about you, and then you realize no one misses you. No one cares how you are doing. There is such a lack of compassion in the world today, but when you realize it is knocking at your door - it is a horrible horrible feeling. The world is changing, it is healing, there is light at the end of the tunnel. Pollution is being cleared off, the equilibrium is being restored, and at the end of this, the world will heal. There are so many lessons of humanity to take on from there: racism, health, love, and how to embrace uncertainty and make something out of it

- Niragha, M3, Picasso.

choice /tʃɔɪs/ noun An act of choosing between two or more possibilities

Day 1 Mom says writing helps with processing our feelings. She got me a journal a while back, but I haven’t even looked at it yet. Goof bit off the wrapping and the journal is currently being used as his pillow. How it’s comfortable, I don’t know. Anyways, that’s why I’m typing this out. From what I know of journaling, you write down what happened over the day and your feelings on it. So, what happened today? Nothing, basically. It’s only been the first day of this lockdown and I’m already bored out of my mind. The only interesting thing that happened was Goof saw a pigeon and tried to eat it, but it was on the railing of the balcony so when he leapt for the pigeon, he nearly fell out. Idiot. I can’t believe I love him so much. Day 3

I read somewhere, "you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone". And I never got that, until now. I miss being dragged out by my friends to perform on the streets. My guitar’s laid untouched for a few days, and the most I’ve done with my music is written down a few notes for a new tune.

I miss my grocery runs, for god’s sake. I miss fighting with that old lady over the last few apples. Something about this lockdown is making me miss the most mundane things. Gah.

Day 6 I don’t know what I’m feeling. Over the past week, I’ve been browsing the net, seeing what others are up to in the lockdown. They’re all being so productive. Like this hasn’t turned their whole life upside down. Hundreds of people have started blogs, learnt a new language, started baking, teaching their pets new tricks, reforming themselves, working out every day, and so much more. It makes me feel… angry? Useless? Bitter? All I can do is sit at home and do nothing while everyone else is treating this as an opportunity. I think anger works. I’m angry this isn’t affecting me like everyone else. I don’t have the spoons to pick up my guitar and play a few chords, sing a few notes. I haven’t washed my dishes in three days, and my clean clothes pile is really small. Why can’t I do something? Day 8 Read something that made me feel a little better. Keyword: little. I still don’t have the spoons to do anything. Been eating only leftovers. I’m going to go crawl back into my bed and watch Goof try to reach my bookshelf from the cupboard. Stupid cat’s the only thing keeping me sane.

Day 9 I know I wrote yesterday as well, but I’ve been thinking. Before the lockdown, I didn’t go out much, compared to anyone else. My friends had to pull me out of the house, I hated grocery runs, and occasionally, I went out for a jog or to the movies. But I guess I liked knowing I had a choice; if I wanted to go out, I could. Now, though, I don’t. And everything’s been a little off-kilter since I realized: no choice.

-Dhivya, M4

I hadn’t had too much social interaction during the covid phase. Honestly, at the beginning of the lockdown, I had hopes that we could be able to go back to how we were before covid, the “normal”, but it is only now that I realize that this is our new normal, and the only thing that can be done is to progress on with our daily lives but also remember that we are still under the pressure of catching and being affected by the virus. During the pandemic, I didn’t really meet anyone except for a certain set of people who I knew were not affected by the virus. This however started to change when we started to lose sight of whether or not we’ll be able to attend physical school, and the concept of online learning started. The little social life that I had slowly started to change and adapt itself to online, which still took me around a full year or so to have a proper friend group with people I know that I can trust, and that properly developed with the start of physical school. Despite me not meeting many people during the beginning of the pandemic and lockdowns, by no means were my so called isolations periods boring. I discovered the world of anime, binge-watching shows, music, hanging out with friends on meet-ups, chatting with friends online, and a few things that I could’ve never imagined myself doing, or even remotely understand what doing those things ment. We had quite a few calls with covid-19 as well. One of our close relatives was affected by the virus, and sadly, they passed. My father had to help the patient(s) recover, and do the funeral rights for the deceased. This was when he had to stay in a 14 day self quarantine, which was an interesting experience. Despite the pandemic being one of the darkest periods of the 21st century, my lockdown was something that was filled with fun, food, and plenty of time to discover new things and hobbies.

-Srinikitha M3

F o Mo r ut h

d oo Rolls

v e o o L f e F C g h i n n i r n t Wate am o

ie n t

s for 12

i v r Se

s g n

DOUGH 2 cups whole milk(480 mL), warm to the touch ½ cup sugar(100 g) 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted 2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast 5 cups all-purpose flour(625 g), divided 1 teaspoon baking powder 2 teaspoons kosher salt FROSTING 4 oz. cream cheese(115 g), softened and cubed 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted 4 tablespoons of milk 1 teaspoon vanilla extract FILLING 1 cup powdered sugar (120 g) ¾ cup light brown sugar(165 g)

12 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

Preparation 1. In a large bowl, whisk together the warm milk, sugar, and melted butter. The mixture should be just warm, registering between 100-110˚F (37-43˚C). If any warmer, allow to cool slightly. 2. Sprinkle the yeast evenly over the milk mixture, stir, and let sit in a warm place for about 10 minutes until the yeast has bloomed. 3. Add 4 cups (500 g) of flour to the milk mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until just combined. 4. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour, until nearly doubled in size. 5. Generously butter 2 9-inch (23 cm) round baking pans and set aside. 6. To make the filling: In a medium bowl, combine the brown sugar, butter, and cinnamon. Mix well, then set aside. 7. Remove the plastic wrap from the dough and add the remaining cup of flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir well, then turn out onto a clean surface. Leave a bit of flour nearby to use as needed, but try not to incorporate too much. 8. Knead the dough for at least 10 minutes, adding more flour as necessary, until the dough just loses its stickiness and does not stick to the surface or your hands. The dough should be very smooth and spring back when poked. 9. Roll the dough out into a large rectangle, about ½-inch (1 cm) thick. Fix the corners with a bench scraper or a spatula to make sure they are sharp and even. 10. Spread the filling evenly over the dough. 11. Starting from one short end, roll up the dough into a log and pinch the seam closed. Place seam-side down. Trim any uneven ends. 12. Using unflavored dental floss, cut the log into evenly sized pieces, about 1½ inches (8cm) thick. Place the cinnamon rolls in the prepared pans, 1 in the center and about 5 around the sides. Cover with a towel and let rise in a warm place for 35-45 minutes, until expanded by about half of their original volume. If you’re saving the cinnamon rolls for later, cover with plastic wrap and freeze for up to 3 months. 13. Preheat the oven to 350˚F (180˚C). 14. Bake the cinnamon rolls for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown. 15. While the cinnamon rolls are baking, make the frosting: In a medium bowl, whisk together the cream cheese, melted butter, milk, and vanilla extract until smooth. Gradually add the powdered sugar and whisk until homogenous and runny. 16. When the cinnamon rolls are finished, let cool for about 10 minutes. 17. Drizzle the frosting over the cinnamon rolls, using the back of a spoon to spread if desired.

It's Puzzling CROSSWORD #1

SUDOKU MEDIUM

EASY

HARD

The crossword's answers will be revealed in the next issue!

The Editorial Board Design Team Varshini Gopinathan Pranav Vishwas Devanshi Panigrahi

Editorial Team Mihir Talati Dhivya Iyer Navika Natarajan Pranet V Prabhakaran Karan Reddy Mrinalini Harish

Picture Credits: Josh Nuttal, Aljioscha Laschgari, Grégoire HervéBazin, Christian Lue, Sarah Kilian, Cathryn Lavery, Annie Spratt, Alexas_Fotos, Theodor Vasile [Free to use under Unsplash License]