The best, most beautiful, and most perfect way that we have of expressing a sweet concord of mind to each other is by music! Keeping alive the spirit, St. Xavier’s High School, Gurugram hosted its first Inter School Carol Singing Competition EMMANUEL: A Musical Consonance, on the 22nd December 2017.

The event reflected the vision of the school of nurturing and encouraging constant learning through competitions, thereby developing the skills and competencies its students and preparing them as future citizens. The event commenced piously with a psalm followed by the school song. The zestful performances of all the school left the audience spellbound. . Each performance was full of vim and vigour and the event sailed exuberantly with the buoyant and upbeat performances followed by the echoing claps of the audience.

The event was graced with the benign presence of the dignitaries of the Management, Chief Guest Dr. Aman Bathla, Honourable Judge Mr Jacob, and Rev Solomon. Dr. Aman Bathla who has earned the title of "The Piano King" has been awarded with the Haryana Ratna and the Bharat Gaurav Award in the category of art and culture of our Nation. And Mr. Jacob S Thomas, the Director of Open Strings Music Works has made significant contributions in the field of music and was indeed a great source of inspiration for all the participants. Rev Solomon, the Guest of Honour, graced the occasion with his blessings and wishes.

This annual extravaganza witnessed the zealous participation of a number of schools from Delhi and NCR. All the participants performed exceptionally well but in category A (Grade V – VII) the winners were DAV Public School, Sec - 49, Manav Rachna International School, Sector 51, Gurugram and Manav Rachna International School, Faridabad. They bagged first, second and third positions respectively. In category B (Grade VIII-X) the first position was bagged by Amity International School, Saket, the second position was shared by St. Xavier’s High School , Gurugram and Eicher School, Faridabad and the third position was won by DAV Public School, Sec 49, Gurugram.

The day was a great experience in the life of all the students. Various students from different classes devotedly performed as volunteers. They indeed did a commendable job in facilitating the flow of events. Participants took this opportunity to put their best foot forward and won laurels for their respective schools. Their commitment to excellence was showcased wonderfully. Principal,   Mr. Nicholas Gomes congratulated the winners for their exceptional performance and felicitated them with certificates and trophies.

The day’s celebrations ended with words of wisdom by the chief guest and a vote of thanks by the Middle School Headmistress Ms. Geeta Kanwar. As the curtains were drawn, ‘We wish you a Merry Christmas’ was the only hymn which was on everybody’s lips.  The event once again proved that music is the universal law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and charm & gaiety to life!

The Christmas bells have been jingling in St. Xavier’s High School since a week. In Pre-Nursery classes it started with the ‘story of Christmas’ using prop followed by ‘Cooking without Fire’ on Monday, 18^th December. Children dipped biscuits in chocolate sauce and prepared ‘Chocolate cookies’. What a sheer delight was it to see the little ones licking their fingers!  Christmas is all about decoration and lights and warmth of the season so on Tuesday, 20^th December the children decorated the ‘Christmas Tree’ making it more beautiful. And how can we celebrate Christmas without Santa Claus? The children made Santa Claus masks on Wednesday, 20^th December. We went to the Epiphany Church on Thursday, 21^st December to pray. The children donated biscuits, wafers and other eatables to the kids in the Church thus learning ‘the joy of giving’. The Christmas week culminated with grand celebration in the school. The ‘Secret Santa’ gave gifts to the little ones bringing smiles to their faces.

“Prepare yourself so that you can be, a Rainbow in somebody else’s cloud.” - Maya Angelou

Paying a rich tribute to an African American author and a poet Maya Angelou a thought provoking assembly on the topic “Be a Rainbow in someone’s cloud was conducted by the students of grade IV B on 14^th December 2017. The children presented a soul-stirring thought that made everyone realise that it takes so little to brighter someone else’s day. Yet it can leave them feeling happy for a moment an hour, a day or give them happiness for life.

The assembly commenced with the Lord’s Prayer followed by the mesmerizing recitation of the poem on the topic. The young Xavierians highlighted the reason why should one become a rainbow to brighten the other’s life. Something done for someone with a pure heart and selflessness can go a long way in making someone feel happy, worthy and loved. It takes so little on our part; yet, it will leave a memory to cherish forever along with the sense of gratitude that they will have you feeling much happier and content by such acts of kindness.

The assembly was well synchronized with stellar performance by the choir on the song “Carry your Candle”. The Principal and the Headmistress appreciated the effort put in the by the class teacher and the enthusiastic students. The assembly concluded with the beautiful message “Stand up for someone who is in need so that it will build confidence in you to stand up for yourself at times when required.”

St Xavier’s High School, Gurgaon strongly believes that Social Skill Development is a lifelong process and is a crucial part of our success in life. We strive to create a diverse community that fosters mutual respect and social responsibility, enhanced by a strong partnership between home and the school.

In continuation to our efforts, St. Xavier’s High School, Gurgaon organized a Workshop on ‘Social Skills’ for the students of Grade I from 11^th December ’17 to 18^th December ‘17. This workshop was conducted in a one hour session - section wise, to enhance social skills amongst our young generation. Workshop was conducted by the School Counselor Ms. Manpreet Sandhu.

The School Counselor mentioned social skills are the abilities we use every day to interact and communicate with others. They include verbal and non-verbal communication, such as speech, gesture, facial expression and body language. She also highlighted some of the prerequisites for effective communication, including: good speaking volume, pronounce words clearly, body language, self-confidence, eye contact and showing interest in the other person’s conversation, with the help of various role playing activities. She guided students to respect yourself - stand up for yourself and don't let yourself be talked into doing things that you know is wrong or makes you feel uncomfortable in any manner. She also asked a few students to volunteer and demonstrate some examples of effective social skills such as facing the speaker while talking, answering questions in a polite manner and using ‘magic words’ for better clarity on the concept. It was an enriching learning experience for students as they understood the power of good communication skills in one’s lives. 

"Educate the girl and empower the nation." Following the quote and theme, the students of grade IV A of St. Xavier's High School, Gurugram, presented a class assembly on December 12, 2017. 

The assembly began with the morning prayer followed by news headlines and thought for the day. Education for all is a fundamental human right. So is equality of women and men. Girl Education, the topic for the assembly, itself lit the spark amongst the audience and made them inquisitive about the entire show. 

The world suffers a lot not because of the actions of people but because of the silence and ignorance of people. The theme of the assembly was beautifully portrayed by a skit. All the students were extremely confident and handled the stage very well. 

With the help of a street play, the assembly highlighted the gender sensitive approach towards education. Every bit of the performance was exquisite and therefore bagged applauds and appreciations from all.

The assembly came to its finale with the students presenting a mesmerising dance performance on the song ‘School Chalein Hum,’ followed by an amazing propshow showcasing the quote "Let's Change the World". 

The entire assembly was undoubtedly a result of the immense effort put in by the students. It was once again proved that when students work together as a team they can surely create masterpieces..

A fully loaded Overnight Camp for the students of grades I-III was organized by the St. Xavier’s High School on 9^th December’17. This fun loaded camp was full of adventure& activities that were aimed at self –management and direct learning which had a sequence of 16 adventurous tasks throughout the day such as –Zip Line, Hamster Wheel, Tug Of War, Cross Fire, Commando Net, Dragon Move, Burma Bridge, Magical Maze, Laser Beam, Zorbing, Sport Climbing, Hippity Hop Race, Hop Scotch, Body Zorb and Camel ride etc. Children participated in all of them with great zeal and zest. This Over Night Camp was packed with delicious meals along with having fun around the bonfire and Dj.

Children had an amazing camping experience which was indeed filled with lots of fun and frolic with the unbeatable gala experience of staying with friends and teachers overnight in the School Campus.