Apni Shala

15/10/2026

In our efforts towards Building Peaceful Schools gathering in Jan 2027, we start by listening to what peace means to our young people.

We asked them, what's peace for them. And their answers reminded us that peace is not just big words. It is lived in small moments. Here's some of these voices from Khoj, Apni Shala's wellbeing-focused school for you.

What's peace for you? Tell us in the comments.



With Reniscience Education, Seeds of Peace India and The Peace Collective.

10/10/2026

On , we invite you to consider - what is wellbeing? And what it is not?

For example, it is NOT always smiling. It is NOT having no problems. It is NOT only counselling.

Then what is it? And how does it look like in our schools?

Swipe to see what wellbeing is, and what it is not, from our classrooms.

What is one small way you responded with ease and compassion today? Tell us below.

05/10/2026

"मैं मेरे बचपन में साइबर कैफ़े में घंटे के हिसाब से पैसे देकर इंटरनेट चलाता था, आज मेरे स्टूडेंट्स 'Santosa' में उतरकर 'Booyah' करते हैं," Kisan Salbul बताते हैं।

वो कहते हैं, "यही तो जनरेशन गैप है। पर ये गैप दीवार नहीं, पुल भी बन सकता है - अगर हम एक-दूसरे को जज करने की जगह, समझने की कोशिश करें।"

पूरा आर्टिकल पढ़ने के लिए इस लिंक पर जाएँ: https://apnishala.wordpress.com/2026/10/05/जनरेशन-गैप-या-एक-पुल-लर्नि/

आपने क्लास में ऐसा गैप कब महसूस किया है? हमारे साथ कमैंट्स में शेयर करें।

02/10/2026

02/10/2026

What are we learning from research on educator professional development (PD)?

Major studies by Darling-Hammond et al. (2017) and Sims et al. show that effective PD shifts instructional practices and improves student learning when it is content-focused, active, collaborative, job-embedded, modeled, sustained, and supported by coaching and reflection.

How does this look at Apni Shala?

We mirror these insights through a year-long PD structure for our educators and mental health workers. Through PD weeks, supervision, classroom observations, debriefs, and exposure visits, our team engages in pause, reflection, and growth.

NEP 2020 says every teacher should participate in min. 50 hours of PD each year. Our team does 5x more - about 250-300 hours (why is that? Ask us, and we will share some insights :) ). And, much of it is peer-led and supported by ecosystem partners.

Here’s a glimpse of last month’s PD week: planning lessons together, learning from stories and data, practicing mindfulness, exploring SEL and language learning, discussing safety at work, creating art, and laughing, dancing and eating together.

Thank you to Pallavi & Pravin from Ummeed Child Development Center, Sali from Art from Akanksha (The Akanksha Foundation), Shashank, Anshika & Meghana from TrustIn, Aman & TEACH team for space, and Rohini Nilekani Philanthropies, SVP India, Wipro Foundation and our individual / CSR donors for supporting our growth over the years.

What does professional development mean to you? Share in the comments!

15/09/2026

Chai & Charcha on School Transformation

"School transformation" - we hear it everywhere. But what does it really mean? How does it happen?

Join us for a facilitator's view with Purvi Vora.

Purvi brings 2 decades in teaching & instructional leadership, PhD from Teachers College Columbia University, is former school leader at Akanksha Foundation, and is the co-founder of City as Lab and RENISCIENCE EDUCATION LLP.

Purvi and Sangita Kapadia (co-founder of Reniscience) have supported 3,000+ teachers and school leaders across India, Bangladesh, Dubai, Kenya & Tanzania and for the past 6 years worked with 30 Dawat schools on whole-system transformation.

In this charcha, we will hear from Purvi and facilitation of transformation with diverse schools. The conversation will be moderated by Rohit Kumar from our team.

Where? Apni Shala Foundation, 61/C, Kamgar Nagar, Kurla (E), Mumbai (Location Map)

When? 2:00 to 3:30 pm, Mon, 28th Sept, 2026

Language? English and Hindi

How to join? Free, but seats are limited. Please sign up here to confirm: https://forms.gle/8ks5tVSkEU7uVDDX6

11/09/2026

08/09/2026

This , we're reminded: Literacy starts at home, long before school.Research is clear: a strong Home Literacy Environment is one of the strongest predictors of early literacy success. Books within reach, reading together, talking and storytelling.But what happens when poverty systematically prevents these practices?

At Apni Shala's Khoj School, we spent the last few years building literacy partnerships with families. This year, we launched Home Libraries - a small, co-designed kona where children keep their books and learning materials.

Together, we have created 380+ home libraries. 💛

And this took a village.

Thank you to Sangeeta & Kahaani Tree for curation, to Mallika, MIV Investment Services, Path Foundation, RTT Advisory, Divya Sharma and all our book donors, and to Just B and GetLitt! for nurturing a love for reading. This is what community-powered literacy looks like!

It's just the beginning. Sustaining it is the real work, and we're building joyful ways to keep it going. And you can help us too!

Swipe through to see what research says, what our families built together and how you can help.👉

03/09/2026

SEL (Social Emotional Learning) is not about making students always happy.

It's one of the most common myths we hear. So what is it then? Swipe to know more.

What myths about SEL do you often hear? Comment below.

सोशल इमोशनल लर्निंग का मतलब स्टूडेंट्स को हमेशा खुश रखना नहीं है।

ये एक बहुत आम गलतफहमी है जो हम अक्सर सुनते हैं। तो फिर ये असल में क्या है? जानने के लिए स्वाइप करें।

आपने SEL के बारे में और कौन सी ऐसी बातें सुनी हैं? हमें कमेंट में बताएं।

01/09/2026

कैसा होगा अगर स्कूल ऐसे कम्युनिटी हों जहाँ एडुकेटर्स और अभिभावक (केयरगिवर्स) मिलकर हमारे बच्चों की परवरिश करें?

अगर स्कूलों को ख़ुशहाली का एक केंद्र बनना है, तो यह जरूरी होगा की हमारे स्टूडेंट्स के अभिभावकों के साथ स्कूल की एक साझेदारी हो। और यही प्रयास हम मुंबई के १५ स्कूलों में, करीब ४००० स्टूडेंट्स के परिवारों के साथ मिल कर करने की कोशिश कर रहे हैं।

चाहे वो मंथली मीटिंग्स में हो, कम्युनिटी विजिट के दौरान हो, केयरगिवर्स के साथ १:१ बात-चीत द्वारा हो, या स्टूडेंट्स को कुछ मज़ेदार SEL वाले होम एक्टिविटीज द्वारा हो, जहाँ वे अपने घर वालो के साथ भावनाओं और रिश्तों पर बात कर पाएं।

और ये सब इस उम्मीद में, कि एक साझी ख़ुशहाली की कल्पना की जा सके।

What would it be like if schools were communities where educators and parents (caregivers) come together to raise our children?

If schools are to become hubs of prosperity, it is essential that schools have a partnership with the parents of our students. And this is what we are trying to do in collaboration with the families of about 4000 students in 15 schools of Mumbai.

Whether that's at monthly meetings, during community visits, through 1:1 conversations with caregivers, or by giving students some fun SEL home activities where they can talk about emotions and relationships with their loved ones.

And all this in the hope that a shared happiness can be imagined.