Finding good school for your kid

Finding a good school for kids is every parent's nightmare. One of my friends asked me what did I do/what insights I gathered while finding a good school from my kid. Here are the points that might help you as well...

1. Do not neglect any school, try to get and fill as much forms as you can
2. Timeline for availability of forms . Notices are published in leading news papers(Express/ Sakal etc) around November so start tracking it.
• Gurukul : Nov 1 week
  
• Sevasadan : Dec 1 week
• Abhinav: after 15 Jan
• New India : After 15 Jan
• Symbiosis: Early Jan (I guess it was around 18 Jan but not sure)
• Bal shikshan : Late Dec/Early Jan
3. Consider following points while deciding the school
• Distance of school from your residence
• Co-education
• Fees
• Board/exam pattern (SSC/CBSE etc)
• Importance of studies vs extra-curricular activities
• How the teachers behave with children (I did not like it at Rosary, and liked a lot at Gurukul). Students were not afraid of talking to /reaching out to teachers at Gurukul and I did not see a single teacher shouting at the students while I was at the premises at different times.
4. Be prepared to shell out around Rs. 50K at short notice.
5. Send your kid to crèche for at least 6 months before you send him/her to proper school
   so that (s)he gets some social (survival) training.