Vanar Year - Pre-primary School ( Playgroup - Kindergarten)

Seema Upadhyaya, Head - Pre-Primary School

Seema Upadhyaya is the Head of Primary School. With a post graduation in Business Management, Hotel Management and corporate experience, she moved on to connect with progressive education in 1998.
Her passion to understand and learn more about children and education led her to undergo the Waldorf Teacher Training Programme. She worked as a Waldorf teacher and later associated herself with the Sri Sri Vidya Mandir Schools.

The journey with Shikshantar began with its inception. Through her experiences at Shikshantar, she has deepened her understanding of experiential learning, classroom practices, curriculum and teaching methodologies. She has grown here from a teacher to a Curriculum Coordinator, Supervisor and now the Head of Primary School.

Putting down her musings as an educator interests her and she contributes to her blog whenever the urge to share her observations and learning grips her. “My learning has been in the road taken to travel so far… and I continue to walk.”

Jyotsna Chandan, Curriculum Coordinator, Nursery and Kindergarten

Jyotsna began her journey at Shikshantar in 2007, as a group facilitator. She is a Postgraduate in History and a Bachelor of Education. She also holds a Diploma in Montessori school training.

Engaging with children during her years as a facilitator, she was fascinated by their curiosity and willingness to explore and learn. Through her experiences, she gained an understanding of the world as lived by children. Her organic growth in Shikshantar from facilitator to coordinator has helped her unlearn and learn about different aspects of education. That, along with her whole-hearted belief in the principles embodied by Shikshantar, she works closely with teachers, guiding, planning and implementing curricular experiences that respond to children’s interests, innate need to explore, and keen sense of enquiry.

In her spare time, Jyotsna likes to read, cook, travel, and learn more about the world around her.

Shruti Singh, Curriculum Coordinator, Playgroup

Having done her graduation in Psychology and Masters in Mass Communication, she worked for 9 years in the field of PR and Corporate Communication. She then took a break from the corporate world to spend time with her children.

She initially joined the Shikshantar family as a parent in the year 2007. In 2014, she became a part of the Pre-primary team as a facilitator. Her ability to sensitively connect with children has helped her build an understanding about their world. Her experiences of progressive education at Shikshantar have helped her to create a learning environment that encourages children to observe, explore and make new discoveries.

Reading a wide variety of books helps satiate her need to develop her linguistic skills. However, it is listening to and narrating stories to children that bring her immense joy.