Navrachana School, Sama is committed to promote the rich legacy of India’s culture and heritage. This is demonstrated by the Activity Centre of the school designed by the renowned architect Lauri Baker, the rigorous yoga regimen, and the mega-event of Yoga Day hosted at the Laxmi Vilas Palace, Vadodara. 

The positive impact of a consistent yoga regimen in the school stretches far beyond the physical realm. Yoga asanas, meditation and pranayama can have a significant positive impact on a child’s academic performance. At Navrachana, yoga is a part of everyday classroom management and curriculum. Each class begins with five minutes of Pranayama and meditation. This helps in improving concentration and strengthens the mental faculties for better learning, conceptual clarity and clearer thinking. Another practice that is a welcome routine at Navrachana is that the counsellors at our Aadhar Counselling Centre use yoga and meditation for stress and anger management or simply for treating anxiety issues. 

Every year, we celebrate the International Yoga Day, but 2022 was special! It is with the idea of blending the architectural legacy of India, with the heritage practise of Yoga, we at Navrachana School, Sama, organised a mega yoga event at the heritage monument of Vadodara, the Laxmi Vilas Palace. The beautiful grounds of the Laxmi Vilas Palace were graciously lent to us by Maharaja Samarjeet Singh Rao Gaekwad, to organise the yoga session. 200 students and teachers enjoyed the serene atmosphere, the beauty of the magnificent façade of the palace and the wonderful sunrise, creating an aura of mental wellness and peace. 

Another heritage structure ensconced within the campus is the Activity Centre. The architect of this unique building was the famous Laurie Baker, a British-born Indian architect.  Throughout his career, Baker developed a signature style in designing and building low-cost, high quality, charming buildings, mostly for  the lower-middle class and lower class. He drew inspiration from pre-existing local culture and building traditions while keeping his designs minimal with judicious and frugal use of resources. For the School’s Activity Centre, he adopted local craftsmanship, traditional techniques and materials, and combined it with modern design principles and technology. As a result, local architecture retained its cultural identity and costs were kept low due to the use of local materials. While it was built as a hostel for the handicapped in those times, today it is the hub of throbbing activity in the school. Students throng the activity centre for their music, dance, orchestra and art classes and club activities. Here they create their best memories of school life!

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