R2I-Returned to Bangalore

42 Responses to “Gaia Preschool and Childcare Center”

1. Chitra Aiyer | Gaia Preschool and Childcare Center, on March 24th, 2008 at 3:31 pm Said:

   […] Read more here. […]

2. Nirupama, on March 24th, 2008 at 5:45 pm Said:

   Hi Chitra,

   I have been a visitor to your blog for the past few months. I love your posts - very informative.

   It’s a great resource for someone like me looking to R2 Bangalore in the next few months.

   I was reading your post about Gaia preschool. I have 2 daughters - 3 and 1 and am looking for a place like this. But my husband’s office will be in whitefield and we are thinking of living in sarjapur road - ORR road area.

   Are you aware of any good montessori/childcare schools in that area similar to Gaia? Any input will be welcome.

3. Pradeep, on March 24th, 2008 at 6:16 pm Said:

   What’s remarkable is how specialised pre-school has become; how carefully teachers plan a child’s development, especially emotional.

4. Joanna, on March 25th, 2008 at 3:57 am Said:

   Hi Chitra,

   We tried emailing you, but the mail bounced.

   We ( www.chillibreeze.com ) recently noticed your blog topics on Schools in Bangalore – very helpful! Chillibreeze would love to have you in our network and write ebooks or presentations targeted to returning Indians and or expats. Your way of casually writing and getting feedback and sharing what you have learned from others is ideal for getting good information out.

   I am an expat from USA and went through a search for schools. You can read some of my articles at: http://www.chillibreeze.com/articles/ExpatMom.asp because there was so much interest Chillibreeze started a FREE newsletter called Bangalore Breeze http://www.chillibreeze.com/expat/NL-8.html - We have had a variety of ladies anchor the Newsletter and it is a great service to the community and those thinking of returning to India or the expat.

   Do let us know if you are interested in being part of our network and what ideas you might have.

   Joanna (you can contact us through our form so we can get your email id

5. Which Main? What Cross?, on March 25th, 2008 at 8:35 am Said:

   Interesting idea. However won’t everything you learn here be lost once the child enters a regular school ?

6. Chitra, on March 25th, 2008 at 4:19 pm Said:

   Hi Nirupama, I know that Neev is spoken of very well also and is in Whitefield. I do not know of any on ORR and on Sarjapur road. But you do have very good schools in that neighborhood that have pre-K and Kindergarten.

   Yes Pradeep, you are right. And I think it is for the better. The pre-1st standard education is extremely important, IMO.

   Thanks Joanna. Will take a look and let you know.

   Which Main What Cross, these days, “regular” schools are very varied and offer a wide variety in the way kids are taught. There are many non-traditional, new-age schools that cater to kids of parents who desire for a more one-on-one kind of interaction for their children with the teachers. The student to teacher ratio is considerably lower than before and the teaching methods are newer and different.

7. Sivabalan, on March 26th, 2008 at 8:40 am Said:

   Which Main? What Cross?, & Chitra
   A very important point has been brough up here about “losing learning”
   Indeed I have been caught in this aspect for last 2 weeks and stuck.
   I went to visit Gaia last week. I was fascinated. Thats a wonderful place for play & learn. Everything (place, people, facilitios) is great over there. I would also go further and state there meight no or 1or2 preschools like that in Bangalore. If I rate them 10, the next best I saw was 6.

   Chitra, as u mentioned in your blogs, this is absolutely a place to rave and feel happy about it.

   But then my concern was that how long should I put him here?

   Because bangalore schools actually start at differnt levels. Some from playschool, some from PreKG, others LKG and rest form 1st Std.

   So this brings in a dilemmas as to how long the kid stays in a play school like Gaia. I personally felt that it would have been good for my kid to stay here till the upper level, then move to a school for 1st std.

   So the dilemma I was caught in, was that the potential school I was looking at starts from PreKG. Which means If I try for 1st Std at that school, I have lesser chance.

   Besides I dont have much choice either , because I have zeroed in on CBSE and ruled out ICSE. If I have to put my kid at a montessori till UKG, then I should be open for a ICSE school as well.

   So IMHO, parents should frist decide on what board and school they want thier kid to go to. And then decide on the play school.

   And if someone wants to send thier kids to montessoru, please be aware that longer the kids spends thier time in montessori better the benefit (2.5 to 6 yrs). If you have to pull them out of a montessori/montessori based environemnt makes sure you follow montessori method at home ( check out IMC site)

   With all my hear and soul I want to send my kid to Gaia. But then the target school for kid starts admission at PreKG. Hence I have to pull him out next year. So I setlled for the another one which is not upto Gaia, but good.

8. Vinutha, on April 16th, 2008 at 9:59 am Said:

   Hi Sivabalan,

   Even i was looking at gaia pre-school. But same issues as you are facing, so i was think ign of putting my daughter in some other per-school, Can you suggest soem other pre-schools other then gaia.

   Regards
   VInutha

9. Sivabalan, on April 21st, 2008 at 9:44 am Said:

   Vinutha (Sorry the delay..was on a long vacation)
   I have admitted by son to Fun’n'Learn. This is situated near AMC in sultanplaya. IMHP this is good.
   Other options available near RT nagar are not so good. (I have heard that there is one good one near BDA complex, havent checked out)

   Ofcourse vidyasagar is there, but closed.
   CherryTree and on Cunningham road are good places.. Again closed for admission.

   When are you going to admit your kid?

10. Vinutha, on April 29th, 2008 at 3:24 am Said:

    I was planning to put her to pre-school this june. All that you have mentioned are pretty far for me, I stay in malleshwaram. Gaia the seats are full. But some how I felt the person with whom I have been i n contact in Gaia was not friendly and was also not intersted in telling anything about Gaia, which kind of put me in a deliemma.

    I found Neev is opening in Sadhashivnagar, but pretty expesnive..

    Need to look out for more.

11. Sivabalan, on April 30th, 2008 at 5:22 am Said:

    Vinutha

    During my exploration phase, I had visitecd Gaia in person. The contact person was so friendly and I found that the total environment was good (incl all staffs). It may be the tele - converstaiton that would have given a differnt impression.

    Am sorry I dont know any pre-school in Sadashivanagar. How about Buddhi (http://www.buddhischool.com/). I havent visited this place, but checked out the website.

    Btw, Gaia too would be too far for u, isnt it?

12. Vinutha, on May 6th, 2008 at 4:44 am Said:

    As you said, it may be true. My husband recently visited to register my daughter there, so that if any vacancies come up.. He had a good opinion. First time i had meet them personally.

    Buddhi school, seems to have a strict cut off age, My daughter would be loosing one year just by 8 days. But anyways I will check out that school..

    Yeah! Ofcourse Gaia too is far, but there are no good ones near.

13. Archaana, on June 6th, 2008 at 11:41 am Said:

    Dear Sivabalan,

    I totally agree with you for Gaia. However, admissions are closed.

    Where have you enrolled your kid? My son is december born and i get to hear from everybody that he is going to lose 6 months anyway..so can be enrolled next year also…

    Let me know about any other preschools..I have visited Eurokids and found OK. Also Foundations which is close to BDA is good however short of place and good ventilation.

14. Sivabalan, on June 7th, 2008 at 1:43 pm Said:

    Archanna

    My kid started going to Fun&Learn ( near AMC-Sultanpalya) from last week ( pre school).

    IMHO Foundation is small & I personally feel that kids should have a good environment ( something like Gaia)

    Another option is Bright Kid MOnts. But I would prefer Fnu&Learn over it on various points.

    Or you can consider First steps or Cherry Tree off cunningham road.

15. Lakshmi, on June 23rd, 2008 at 3:04 pm Said:

    Thanks for the info Chitra. Can you tell me if Gaia is close to Malleswaram? If not, do you know of any good ones in Malleswaram? I am looking for pre-shcool and extended day care for my 2 1/2 year old son.
    I really appreciate the time and interest you have taken to post information on your website.
    - Lakshmi

16. Anu, on July 6th, 2008 at 5:05 pm Said:

    Hi Chitra,
    I have a 7 year old daughter who is in Grade 2 now. I am not happy with the current school that she goes to. Could you please suggest a school in and around RT Ngr . She is a slightly hyper active child with a little attention Deficit.

    Please could you suggest an alternate school that will address her specific needs

17. Srini, on September 4th, 2008 at 11:27 am Said:

    Gaia is not really so good as people think, it has changed. You will find what kind of treatment is given to different kinds of kids there.

18. Swaminathan, on September 15th, 2008 at 9:45 am Said:

    Srini,

    Can u elaborate. We are in the process of deciding on the pre-school.
    Thanks for the advice
    k

19. nivedita, on September 23rd, 2008 at 4:50 am Said:

    well Chitra, I went to Gaia and realised that it is not only gaia but also bita “gaya-bita”……..there is no curriculum, the kids are wild, teachers keep changing everynow and then………………and the management is the worst…………….saw a woman named Indu………..looks like “cruella”……….is very harsh with kids….she letz the toddlers scream and cry just to make sure that their lungs get stronger……………the course structure is pathetic to be precise….kids of 4-5 yr old don’t even know to write their names…………the only USP of the school is that there are few foreigners who have a bitter tongue…………..i would never send my kid to such a school who pretend to be nice infront of parents!

20. Chitra, on September 23rd, 2008 at 8:00 am Said:

    Thanks Sivabalan for answering Vinutha’s and Archanaa’s queries. If you can elaborate your experience with Fun & Learn, that maybe of help to our readers.

    Lakshmi, Gaia is about 4-5 kms from Malleswaram 18th crs.

    Anu, I am sorry but I wouldnt really know what would fit well for your child.

    Thanks Srini, Nivedita, Swati for your comments. I am sure they will help the others who are looking at Gaia. I had only heard raving reviews. And have no personal exprience with the school. Thanks for writing to us here.

21. Bala, on September 25th, 2008 at 6:22 am Said:

    It is true ……..it is arificial, plastic smile, staff is bad, there is descrimination. It is run according to ones will and wish, no transparency. They never encourage your negetive feedback. There are few good things about this school initially, but overall more bad things takes over if you observe for a long time. You need to pay for all year at the start and bear if it is good or bad after.

    Swamynathan, I do not suggest Gaia personally, the tender years are important for a child….you checkit…

22. neelam, on October 4th, 2008 at 12:57 pm Said:

    i went to pupil tree, benton town today, found it good, hey parents, can u tell me more abt it incase ur kids have been there?

23. avantina, on October 4th, 2008 at 2:13 pm Said:

    i am still searching for a good playskool in an arounf R T Nagar, didn’t like Gaia at all, almost all kids have running nose, being in school for the whole day without shoes/socks didn’t seem a good idea, plus there is something really very artificial abt that skool. please help me parents, Neev is very costly………

24. Anita, on October 6th, 2008 at 1:43 pm Said:

    I went to gaia pre-school last week to enroll my child for Oct but they are completely full with many children on wait-list.

    I have registered my son for June 2009 as there are no more seats available for 2008. He will be 2yrs 4mths in June but I am prepared to wait till the next session in 2009. Maybe they will confirm by Feb 2009. There have fixed seats for each class and they follow good ratio.

    I spent full day and met many parents and staff of gaia pre-school and the atmosphere is superb and program is excellent. Children and parents are very happy and friendly. Mostly I liked the mixture of children coming from different parts of the world.

25. Rashi, on November 13th, 2008 at 8:44 am Said:

    Hi all, the above was a great read. I have also recentely moved to Malleshwaram in bangalore and have been pre school hunting. The above is of great help. What are reviews on Euro Kids and Kidzee?
    Also I recenbtely visited another new play school on Montessori pattern names as teh Earth School it is in St thomas town near RT nagar. It is new one must check it.
    Chitra,
    I have another concen I am a full time working mother my 2 year daughter comes from play school at 12 and after a nap needs more activity. Are there any play groups etc….

26. Shashi, on November 21st, 2008 at 8:12 am Said:

    Hi All,

    Am looking for a pre-nursery or a playhome for my daughter who will be completing her 2nd year in march in and around mathikere and malleshwaram area. Please suggest some of the good ones…………

27. Dan, on December 6th, 2008 at 4:36 pm Said:

    Ok, for all those folks who want to get a taste of Gaia first hand, read this. My son goes to Gaia, I am not a foreigner, I am a 100% Bangalorean and could have chosen any school of my liking, but I can tell all your doubting Thomas that Gaia is one of the very best out there. Looks like a couple of bloggers here didn’t like the smile of the staff, made a disparaging remark on Indu, and have one common crib, that of Gaia being for foreigners! See, that is precisely why I want my kid to go to Gaia, so that he can get a multi cultural experience of the world, learn to play with French Kids, eat with German kids and sing with the Italians and argue with the Americans! what better experience will you want for your kid then such a wholesome global experience in the heart of the city! Yes, sure my son does not know how to write yet, he is 3 plus, but who cares! he can sing and talk and creatively understand the world around him better than many of the by rote trained kids. My son has a respect for people from different parts of the world and is constantly inquiring since the curriculum ensures that the creative juices of your child blossom fully.

    Now let’s talk about the staff, see the support staff that is made up of 8-10 girls are simply outstanding. FOlks like Vandana, Mamata, Lalli, etc are very dedicated helpers who make sure that the kids are safe and treated very well. The teaching staff is good, Indu, Geeta and all the other teachers do their best and the head, the CEO/Principal is simply awesome. Neena who runs the school is the daughter of the eminent scientist Dr Raja Ramanna and she is a wonderful educator, a caring teacher and a genuinely warm human being. All this talk about the teaching staff being plastic and lean towards the foreign parents are all BS! My wife and I are very happy, my son is the most happiest, there is no pressure to learn ABC and 123, but the schools has instilled a joy in learning! that’s what you want. And finally, we love it so much that we are sending our 20 month daughter in Jan 2009!

28. Jyoti M, on December 14th, 2008 at 5:41 am Said:

    If you read between the lines it has become obvious that the bloggers who have been writing false accounts is actually one person writing under several names.

29. Dan, on December 15th, 2008 at 10:46 am Said:

    Jyoti, you are right, great catch. Bala, Niveditha etc are the same, looking at the way they write and their abysmal written communication skills, no doubt they want to send their kids to a better school then they went to…

30. Chitra, on December 29th, 2008 at 5:53 pm Said:

    Hi Jyoti, Dan - After further investigation I did find multiple comments originating from the same source (under different names).

    I have kept the original comment as is (in order to show the other point of view of the poster) but have deleted subsequent comments related to Gaia by the same poster.

    Thanks for flagging it.

    -Chitra

31. Archika, on January 8th, 2009 at 7:02 am Said:

    Hi,

    Thanks to all for the posts. Quite a lot of info. I am living on LR Bande Road and during our visit we definitely liked the school.

    However the main problem that cropped up was that of conveyance. It seems Gaia does not have any means of conveyance for children. Our office timings are such that we cannot drop and pick up our son. Can anyone help and suggest any means. It would be definitely appreciated.

32. sonali, on January 22nd, 2009 at 7:25 pm Said:

    hi!
    I know a playschool in RT Nagar….its Shemrock. It appeared to be good the principal and teachers were very friendly and courteous. The curriculum is good too. Unfortunately, we had to leave Bangalore before my son could start going to this place.

33. Anupama, on January 29th, 2009 at 10:39 am Said:

    hi frndz,

    how is eurokids,yelahanka n also sri sri ravishankar vidya mandir in vidyaranyapura??
    i live in yelahanka n my idea is to put my daughter in one single school till 12th…so plz suggest few gud schools….my daughter will be 2.3yrs by june

34. Anupama, on January 29th, 2009 at 10:43 am Said:

    hi frndz,

    how is eurokids,yelahanka n also sri sri ravishankar vidya mandir in vidyaranyapura??
    i live in yelahanka n my idea is to put my daughter in one single school till 12th…so plz suggest few gud schools….my daughter will be 2.3yrs by june…pls reply me asap…..thanks in advance

    cheers
    anu

35. Keshavaya, on February 8th, 2009 at 2:50 pm Said:

    I usually don?t post in Blogs but your blog forced me to, amazing work.. beautiful ?

36. Maneesh, on March 6th, 2009 at 10:25 am Said:

    Hi friends,

    I have a daughter, Dia who was born in Dec 2006. She went through the interview process at Vidya Sagar and has secured her admissions for June 2009.

    However, I have visited Gaia and feel that it is absolutely wonderful. The atmosphere, the open-ness, the intergrity et al.

    Our main reason for Dia to go to Vidya Sagar has been the admissions to Vidya Shilp subsequently. If not for that one criteria, we have been wishing deep down in our hearts that she go to Gaia. As far as I have done my home work, I think no one comes close to Gaia and Vidya Sagar (subsequently Vidya Shilp) are simply awesome.

    I am sure Dia will turn out to be a confident kid whether it be Gaia or Vidya Sagar.

    She does, however, go to Euro Kids - Basaveshwaranagar. Though she is reluctant in going to the play school every morning, once she is there, she grasps everything that is taught during the 2+ hrs at Euro and keeps humming/repeating the same at home and it is amazing how much most of these kids are learning.

    Be it Euro Kids, Gaia, Vidya Sagar or any other school - one thing that we believe in is that involvement of the family will decide the upbringing of the child. So folks, join in and have fun with your kids. You will be amazed to know how much you don’t know.

    Maneesh and Purvi

37. Manorama, on November 9th, 2009 at 10:53 pm Said:

    Hi Friends
    Can some one help me exact age to get admissions in Vidya Sagar & would appriciate what are cut of date for applications and are there any thing to get prepared for interviews?

38. Deepa, on March 5th, 2010 at 7:18 am Said:

    Hi Chitra,
    Today when I started to look for good pediatrician in Bangalore, I came to know about your blog, it is very informative. Thanks to you for sharing such wonderful information. For all parents you are like a knowledge base. I need one info. My son is now 2 and half years , I am planning to put him to school. I am living in Cox Town area, Is there any good schools nearby to start from LKG. I want to put him in one school from LKG onwards. And I heard that it is very difficult to get seats for boys if I want to admit him to schools from 1st std. So I am planning to put him from LKG in the school, so that I dont need to struggle or search for schools when he is going to 1st std. Please help me. Thanks in Advance.

39. Mona Talwar, on March 18th, 2010 at 3:42 pm Said:

    In reply to Deepa.
    Hi Deepa… regarding LKG in cox town try Eurokids.
    A nice approach to learning also they have senior kg .
    A yr costs roughly 35000/-
    My child is currently graduating from there Sr KG next week
    contact 25496173

40. Annie Thomas, on March 19th, 2010 at 8:29 am Said:

    Hi,
    Was overwhelmed by the no of posts by parents on good schools, Was wondering if i cud also get some help in this area. Am a resident of msr nagar(near ramaih hospital) . Was wondering if there is any good playhomes ard this area. Since i work long hrs, i wanted some place close to my home so that ny daughter will have travel minimal distance(am a little wary of getting a 2 yr old to travel by school vans)

    Request suggestions and help

41. Praveen, on June 9th, 2010 at 10:11 pm Said:

    Hi,

    Chitra this a great blog about schools and nice forum for parents to interact/share their view and experiences.

    I particularly want to draw attention to post #6 by Sivabalan. would it be a good idea to list out schools under.
    1) CBSE - who start from LKG
    2) CBSE - who start from Pre-Kg/Nursery/Mont-1
    3) ICSE - who start from LKG
    4) ICSE - who start from Pre-Kg/Nursery/Mont-1

    Also, while I was going through the posts I see questions on CBSE Vs ICSE. I wonder which would be a good board and what it takes to decide. Is it Scoring factor or the Knowlede factor. Or is it the percentage of students who go to elite institutions like IITs etc.

    I want to confess I find it extremely difficult to get first hand answers to these questions. I do’nt want to believe those hordings/websites of schools posting Kids photos to attract admissions. I would make humble request to share your opinion.

    Thanks
    Praveen.

42. Rajesh, on June 11th, 2010 at 6:37 pm Said:

    Praveen,

    Check out Zeeksha.com . Some parents have shared their experiences there that you may find useful. Bangaloreschools also has some information.

    Rajesh

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