2017 Secondary 2 Week 17 Update

For both the children mid-year exams have begun. It will go on for almost two more weeks and then chill for a month or so before the next term starts.

Last week, one night after the children had been to bed, I got out of my room for something and saw the light still switched on in BB’s room. He was playing some game on his laptop when he should have been asleep. So I had a good talk with him about what he wants to do and how he will get there. He needs to do well in specific subjects this year to allow him to take pure sciences. He says all the right things to me, but the execution, well that’s something else. This week he brought back forms for two space camp home and they look really interesting. The first one is a generic one, but in the second one, they’re going to have a space scientist from NASA who will come over to talk to them as well as talks on NASA’s mars rovers etc. I think I am more excited than him for these camps. I am so thankful that the school/govt subsidies mean that we pay little to nothing for these extra activities!

GG has also been busy in school with exams. She is much more focused than BB, but her stakes are also slightly higher this year!

They both got the Hindi exam marks yesterday and GG, surprisingly didn’t do well. BB, well, the less said the better! I am quite disappointed with both, more with BB than GG as he just doesn’t get it!

Have a wonderful Sunday people!

In My Hands Today…

The Treasure of Kafur – Aroon Raman

18679802Hindustan, 1580 AD. The Mughal Emperor Akbar is at the height of his power, seemingly invincible. But twenty years of war have earned him many enemies, and rebellion is brewing, led by Asaf Baig, the tyrannical ruler of Khandesh. Baig has stumbled upon the knowledge that the fabulous lost treasure of Malik Kafur, that will guarantee victory to Akbar’s enemies, is known to an old woman called Ambu.

Baig kidnaps Ambu to wrest the knowledge of the treasure from her; but her twenty-year-old grandson, Dattatreya, escapes and flees across Hindustan to enlist the help of the one person who has the most reason to stop Baig – the Mughal Emperor himself.

Staying one step ahead of capture and death, Datta is swept up in a world of kings and warrior princesses, of uncommon friendships and an implacable evil; and a desperate race against time to save his grandmother – and the Empire.

Recipe: Moong Dal Khichdi

Moong Dal Khichdi 3This is one of BB’s favourite dishes. I too like to make this because this is a fairly easy dish to make and since it’s a one pot dish, you don’t have many dishes to wash post cooking. This is also good to make ahead and just cook it when you need to eat. It is also very versatile as you can play around with the ingredients, especially the vegetables.

Moong Dal Khichdi 4Moong Dal Khichdi

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup basmati rice, soaked in water for 20-30 minutes
  • 1/2 cup yellow split moong dal, soaked in water for 20-30 minutes
  • 1/2 cup raw peanuts, soaked in hot water for 20-30 minutes
  • 1 onion, sliced thinly
  • 1 tomato, chopped finely
  • 1/2 carrot, cut into 1 inch strips
  • 1 potato, cut into 1 inch strips
  • 1/2 cup frozen green peas
  • Salt to taste
  • 1 tsp red chilli powder
  • 1 tsp cumin powder
  • 1 tsp coriander powder
  • 1 tsp garam masala powder
  • 1 tsp grated ginger
  • 1 tsp grated garlic
  • 1 tbsp oil
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • 1 tsp fennel seeds

Method:

  • Once the rice and dal have been soaked for 20-30 minutes, drain them and keep aside.
  • Drain the peanuts and keep aside.
  • In a pan, heat the oil and saute the cumin and fennel seeds. When they pop, add the garlic and saute for a few seconds and then the ginger and saute for a few seconds.
  • Now add the sliced onions and let it brown. Once the onions start browning and start to become translucent, add the other vegetables one by one.
  • Now add all the dry spices – red chilli powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, garam masala and salt and saute for a couple of minutes.
  • Add the peanuts and let it cook for a few minutes and then the dal, followed by the rice, stirring in-between.
  • Transfer this mixture to a rice cooker and add 1.5 cups of water and cook till done.
  • If you are cooking this on the stove top, keep an eye on the water levels and add more water, if needed to cook the rice and dal to the consistency you like.

Moong Dal Khichdi 2This is a complete meal in itself with carbs from the rice, protein from the dal and fibre from the vegetables.

You can add other vegetables like cauliflower, broccoli, beans etc to increase the nutritive value of the meal as well as if you are planning to make for more people. The above recipe was perfect for a single meal for four adults.

This can be served with crisps or chips and a raita of your choice.

Moong Dal Khichdi 1

In My Hands Today…

Behind the Sun – Deborah Challinor

16211529Irreverent and streetwise prostitute, Friday Woolfe, is in London′s notorious Newgate gaol, awaiting transportation. There, she meets three other girls: intelligent and opportunistic thief, Sarah Morgan, naive young Rachel Winter, and reliable and capable seamstress, Harriet Clarke.

On the voyage to New South Wales, their friendship becomes an unbreakable bond – but there are others on board who will change their lives forever. Friday makes an implacable enemy of Bella Jackson, a vicious woman whose power seems undiminished by her arrest and transportation, while Harriet is taken under the wing of an idealistic doctor, James Downey. Rachel catches the eye of a sinister passenger with more than honour on his mind, whose brutal assault leaves her life hanging in the balance.

When they finally arrive on the other side of the world, they are confined to the grim and overcrowded Parramatta Female Factory. But worse is to come as the threat of separation looms. In the land behind the sun, the only thing they have is each other …

World Book Day

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On Sunday (April 23) we celebrated World Book Day. I’d not heard of this event till a couple of years back, but since then, I try to commemorate it in some way or the other.

I’ve blogged about it in detail some time back, so if you want to know more about why this particular day and what happens on this day, click here to find out more!

2017 is the 20th year that UNESCO is celebrating World Book Day.

book-quote-world-book-dayEvery year, books are chosen as special world book day books and the selections this year are:

  • Peppa Loves World Book Day (for pre-schoolers)
  • Everyone Loves Underpants by Claire Freedman (for pre-schoolers)
  • Where’s Wally? The Fantastic Journey by Martin Handford (for children aged 5-7)
  • The Famous Five: Good Old Tim and Other Stories by Enid Blyton (for children aged 5-7)
  • Horrid Henry – Funny Fact Files by Francesca Simon (for children aged 5-7)
  • Princess Mirror-Belle by Julia Donaldson (for children aged 5-7)
  • Butterfly Beach by Jacqueline Wilson (for children aged 7-9)
  • Blob by David Walliams (for children aged 7-9)
  • Island by David Almond (for children aged 11-14)
  • Dead of Night by Michael Grant (for children aged 11-14)

The World Book Day website has some really interesting resource packs for your child, be they in pre-school and nursery, primary school or secondary school. Click the link in the respective age group to access the resource packs.

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Every year, UNESCO and the international organisations representing the three major sectors of the book industry viz. publishers, booksellers and libraries, select the World Book Capital for the year, effective from 23rd April each year for an entire year. This year’s World Book Capital for 2017 is Conakry, Guinea on account of the quality and diversity of its programme, in particular its focus on community involvement as well as for its well-structured budget and clear development goals with a strong emphasis on youth and literacy.

Governments, schools and libraries across the world celebrate this year to encourage people to read more! So did you read something on Sunday? If no, don’t fret! Just read a book today and celebrate World Book Day today! Go on, read a book now…

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