Here’s a fun way for kids to learn more about the beautiful Raksha Bandhan holiday that we featured in 2014: a Rakhi Crossword Puzzle we prepared especially for kids.

Click here for the PDF. Print, share, do and explore!

ANSWER KEY:

ACROSS:  1. August / 3. protect / 7. Krishna / 8. lunar
DOWN:  2. sweets / 4. rakhi / 5. Tagore / 6. India / 8. love

The post Celebrate Raksha Bandhan first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

Happy Summer! See you all back in August!

The post Happy Summer first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

Tyagaraja is a legend in Carnatic music. He lived from 1767 to 1847 and is credited with as many as 24,000 compositions – with his first composition at the age of 13!

You can take a step back in time with P. Unnikrishnan’s Tyagaraja for Children – performed with a children’s chorus (so your kids can recite as well) and a special edition bonus karaoke CD with lyrics.

It’s amazing to fill your house with sounds of ancient India!

The post Tyagaraja for Kids first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

However you feel about our film-obsessed culture, it’s hard not to acknowledge that the Baahubali craze has the world talking about Indian cinema. Banking $81 million through its opening weekend, Baahubali 2 made a mark at Number 3 at the global box office as well as in the US – the highest-ever in North America for a foreign-language film.

With fans standing in 3km-long queues for shows as early as 4am, milk-and-flower abhishekams for movie posters, and a threatened bandh (strike) in Karnataka, Baahubali can officially be classified as a phenomenon.

But should you take the kids?

The movie happened to release on my son’s 11th birthday, and he’s been eagerly awaiting this movie for almost 2 years, so it was no question that we were going to the opening.  It was certainly a visual spectacular (and one that should be seen in the theaters) – with amazing graphics, settings, and stunts.  The (packed) audience in our local California town was very involved – with claps and cheers – especially for the laudable pro-feminist dialogues.  The positive portrayal of women is, in my opinion, a highlight of the film. However, given the level of violence, this film isn’t appropriate for kids under 10.  There were certainly many young kids in the audience, and the violence wasn’t senseless, but if you’re uncomfortable with kids watching, say, and English war movie, you should leave them at home.

The post Baahubali 2 Review :: Should You Take Kids? first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

This Bhu Devi Mantra has an important place in our hearts and in our home. The kids know it by heart and are reminded to recite it every morning because….

….it’s one of the first things they see in their bathroom lounge.  I had this custom canvas created, after which I then painstakingly hand-glittered the text.

#earthdayeveryday

The post Good Morning Mother Earth first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

Here’s a cool way to celebrate Earth Day with your kids: adopt a piece of the Earth through NASA’s Adopt The Earth Initiative. Nasa has divided the Earth into 64,000 parcels (approximately 55 miles wide), and each participant is randomly-assigned a section. You just enter your (or your child’s) name, and then you can print and display your certificate.

NASA’s goal is to have all 64,000 parcels “adopted.”

Of course, no legal rights are conferred; however, you do get a chance to view state-of-the-art climate data.

#earthdayeveryday

The post AdoptThePlanet with NASA first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

Her name is still Rapunzel, but she wears a bindi, jumkhas, and a sari and befriends a handsome yuvraj….

If you haven’t met Once Upon a World books yet, you are missing out on multicultural adventures. They take classic fairy tales and simply shift the settings: Rapunzel in India, Cinderella in Mexico, and Snow White in Japan.

Terrific board books for your preschoolers.

Available on Amazon

The post An Indian Rapunzel Story first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

Celebrate Shri Rama Navami tomorrow, April 5th, with our beautiful print featuring “Raghupati Raaghav Raja Ram” – a must-learn bhajan for all Hindu kids.

As you may know, this version of the Bhajan (some call it a dhun) was a favorite of, and popularized by, Gandhiji – and was reportedly sung during the great Salt March to Dandi in 1930.

The Bhajan of course extols the virtues of Lord Rama. (See here for a more in-depth explanation of the lyrics).

We have also created a unique Paper Learning Puzzle – a terrific, hands-on activity to help kids learn the Bhajan. Just print, cut, and have kids rearrange the lines in the proper order – reciting the lines as they do so. Careful! There are a few tricks, so kids have to really know the lines to get it right.

It’s a great way to celebrate Lord Rama’s birthday!

Available as a digital download for $5 in our Etsy Shop.

For $5, you will receive the following digital files package:
* 3 versions of our Shri Rama Bhajan Print: English, Hindi, and Hindi /w English
* Paper Learning Puzzle

Print, Learn, Recite & Enjoy!

Happy Shri Rama Navami!

The post Shri Ram Print + Puzzle first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

The Western Gregorian calendar has a leap day every 4 years to reconcile the Earth’s rotation around the sun, but did you know that the Hindu calendar has a leap month? ‘Cause we’re cool like that…

Many Hindus celebrate Ugadi/Gudi Padwa today (or yesterday by some calculations), which marks the beginning of the Hindu/Vedic New Year. This year starts on the first day of the Hindu month Chaitra – which, interestingly, closely corresponds with the coming of Spring – when nature comes to life and things begin anew.

The Hindu calendar is a lunisolar calendar. It’s not purely a lunar calendar. Lunar calendars count months solely based on moon cycles. If you do the math (29-30 days multiplied by 12, yielding 340-360 days), you’ll see that if there were no adjustments made, there would be years when you could be celebrating Diwali in February!

In order to reconcile the lunar months with the Earth’s rotation around the sun, the Hindu calendar adds an extra month about every 3 years. This allows Hindu festivals and crop seasons to no fall too far off schedule.

The extra, or “leap”, month is called Adhik Maas. The next Adhik Maas is in 2018 (May 16 to June 13, 2018 to be exact).

Happy Ugadi/Gudi Padwa!

The post Hindus Have a Leap Month! first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

This video produced for Indian kids is short, cute, and to the point:

The post Global Warming is Real Kids! first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

Word problems can be tricky. Add-in multiple steps and multiple operations, and it’s enough for many kids to throw down their pencils in frustration.

When my kids were struggling with math word problems, it became apparent to me that, although they may be great in doing arithmetic, they weren’t as strong with mastering conceptual math concepts. Kumon and Aloha weren’t the solution either.

I began researching various math curricula, and Singapore Math was praised by mathematicians and teachers the world over. More on Singapore later (we have 2 shelves of Singapore books!), but if you want to test and improve your kids’ word problem skills, I highly recommend Math Playground’s Thinking Blocks. Thinking Blocks mimic Singapore Math’s approach to world problems in many ways, and the online, interactive format is fun for the kids. For young kids, and as a warm-up, start with Thinking Blocks Jr.

The blocks method is much easier (and portable and practical) than pulling out 20+ peanuts from your pantry…

The post Master Word Problems :: Thinking Blocks first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

We’re celebrating World Water Day by focusing on India’s rivers. Check out this cute-and-catchy song by Karadi Tales that will have your kids singing 9 major rivers of India in no time:

Do note, the Sindhu is also called the “Indus” (and although it appears to be mainly running through Pakistan, it does flow through the northern tip of India). Also, the Saraswati is not pictured on the map. It’s such an important river to our culture, so where is it? Well, experts say that this ancient Vedic river actually dried up about 4,000 years ago. It used to run through present-day Indian states of Uttarakhand, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, and Gujarat.

Fun Fact! Just this past Monday, 2 judges in Uttarakhand ruled that the Ganga and the Yamuna actually have legal rights!  That means, in the eyes of the law, these 2 rivers are now to be treated the same as a human person! The judges appointed 3 people to act as guardians of the rivers. So Ganga and Yamuna can now demand that other people take care of them and not pollute them! More here…

The post World Water Day :: Learn India's Rivers first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

If you have never read Viktor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning, it is an inspiration for all of mankind. Dr. Frankl was a Jewish-Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist who was interned at Auschwitz and Dachau. He survives (miraculously) and writes, from a psychologist’s perspective, about the role and hope, meaning, and happiness play in survival.

Reflecting on his book got me thinking about similar books for kids – books that speak of positivity and hope – guidelines, essentially, on how to be happy. Of course as parents, what we instinctively want most of all is for our kids to be happy. But how often is this goal actually discussed or demonstrated with kids?

Here are 2 of my recommendations:

Unstoppable Me!: 10 Ways to Soar Through Life by Dr. Wayne Dyer .  Dr. Dyer presents 10 action points for kids and even has questions at the end of the book. This book is suitable for kids 5 and up.

I Think, I Am!: Teaching Kids the Power of Affirmations by Louise Hay is best for kids 8 and up.  She presents a series of vignettes showing kids how to turn negative thoughts into positive ones.

The post Teaching Happiness first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

Whether it’s sunny or snowy where you are today, here’s a little springtime cheer. Check out a cool little video courtesy of Blossom Type: click here for video

And if you haven’t noticed yet, show your kids Google’s Doodle today: Flash Mob Holi! (click on image below):

The post Happy Holi first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

Why do you celebrate Holi? What is Holi about?

Your kids will probably get asked these questions this week. If, like my kids, they are giddy with excitement in anticipation of the fabulous fun they will be having this weekend celebrating Holi with their Indian friends, it will be hard for them to contain their excitement in school. They will want to share, but they may hesitate if they are unsure about how to explain this holiday to their friends.

So make sure to arm them with an answer. (Of course at home, do recount the mythology and stories of Holi, but do prepare them with brief answer.)

Something simple is best – a short line such as, “We celebrate Holi to show that people of all colours are beautiful.” They can elaborate further: “We have a party with our family and friends and throw colours on each other. No matter what our skin, or hair, or clothes looked like in the beginning, by the end, we all look like rainbows.”

It’s a beautiful message, distilled so that Westerners can understand it.  Isn’t this the message Krishna was sending when he started the colour spat with Radha?

Let’s spread the lessons of Holi this season – the world needs to hear it!

image available for purchase via Fine Art Ameria

The post Lessons From Holi :: We Are All The Same first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

It’s that time of year again! HOLI time – coming up on March 12! Celebrate with our gorgeous Happy Holi Print, available as a digital download in our Etsy Shop.

We’ve paired the print with an exciting activity for kids to learn the names of colors in their mother tongue: a clever crossword puzzle with Indian-themed riddles for kids to solve!

What is the color of a lassi made with India’s national fruit? (Hindi answer: “naarangee”)
What is the color of Lord Shiva’s throat? (Hindi answer: “neelaa”)

Crossword puzzle is available in all of the 7 languages Gnaana supports: Hindi, Gujarati, Telugu, Punjabi, Tamil, Bengali, and Kannada. The puzzle is aimed at 2nd graders and up, but can be completed by younger kids with parental help. A terrific way to learn and reinforce color names.

For $5, you will receive the following digital file package:
* 2 versions of our Happy Holi print (8.5″x11″ & 8″x10″ for photo printing)
* Your choice of Indic language crossword puzzle
* English version of crossword puzzle.

As an added BONUS, if you purchase our Bindi Baby Colors Book, we’ll send you the above for free. (Files will be emailed upon purchase).

HAPPY HOLI!

The post Happy Holi Print + Colors Crossword Puzzle first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

As Hindus celebrate Maha Shivaratri today, we thought we’d ask where the world’s largest Shivalinga is. Do you know where it is? The Kotilingeshwara Temple in the Kolar District of Karnataka claims this title – with a 108 foot (33 meter) linga.

Not only that – but take a closer look at the temple’s name: “Koti” means “crore” – so the temple’s name translates to “Temple of Koti Lingas.” And true to its name, the temple is well on its way to completing installation of the 1 crore lingas.

How much is a crore (koti)? 10 million – 10,000,000! That’s a lot of lingas!

See the temple’s website here…

The post Largest Shivalinga in the World first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

Suno! Suno! Parents and teachers: Our A is for Anaar Teacher’s Guide is now available! This 7-page Guide is rich with supplementary information to enhance your A is for Anaar reading experience – complete with Reading Tips, Fun Facts about Hindi, About India, Discussion Questions and more!

Click on the image above, or download here…

The post A is for Anaar FREE Teacher's Guide first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

In his book, The Fisher Kind and the Handless Maiden, Robert Johnson writes: “Sanskrit has 96 words for love; ancient Persian has 80, Greek three, and English only one. This is indicative of the poverty of awareness or emphasis that we give to that tremendously important realm of feeling. Eskimos have 30 words for snow, because it is a life-and-death matter to them to have exact information about the element they live with so intimately. If we had a vocabulary of 30 words for love … we would immediately be richer and more intelligent in this human element so close to our heart. An Eskimo probably would die of clumsiness if he had only one word for snow; we are close to dying of loneliness because we have only one word for love. Of all the Western languages, English may be the most lacking when it comes to feeling.”

What are the many Sanskrit words for love? Here are a few we found on the web:

The post The Very Many Sanskrit Words For Love first appeared on Gnaana Blog.

Brass bling seems to be “in” thing in home decor stores lately. So we searched for some authentic Indian brass-ware. Check out the brass offerings at Gaatha – not only do they carry beautiful coasters and trinket boxes, but also diyas, agarbathi stands, puja items.

And make sure to read how Gaatha directly benefits artisans of this beautiful craft.

The post Beautiful Brassware by Gaatha first appeared on Gnaana Blog.