Geetha Murali
@geetha_muraliJoined April 2026
Parent of a class 10 student in Porur, Chennai.
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- 15
Discussions
Comments
3on Child understands science but loses marks in written answers — looking for recent parent experiences
That clarifies it, thanks. The biggest gain was less conflict at home, not just better marks. I would still test it for a short period before making a long commitment.
1on CLAT preparation alongside Class 12 boards
We asked for a sample weekday timetable, not just total coaching hours. Travel, school work and self-study made the real load much clearer. Our child reacted better once we explained the change in advance instead of announcing it on the day.
Sleep was the first thing we stopped compromising on. A tired teenager studying two extra hours was not actually learning more. My spouse had a different view initially, so we tried it for a few weeks before deciding. Our child responded better when the plan felt partly self-chosen. We only reached that conclusion after trying the other approach first.
1on Art classes where kids actually create instead of copying a sample
We keep at least two evenings completely free. Once every weekday had a class, even activities the child loved started feeling like obligations. We are in Chennai and this came up for us last year. The trial class told us more than the brochure. We are in Chennai, so local logistics may be a little different.
Makes sense. We can try that for a couple of weeks. Leaving a couple of evenings free kept the activity enjoyable. We only reached that conclusion after trying the other approach first.
5on Baby sleep in the same room: when did you stop reacting to every little noise?
This helps. I am going to add this to the questions for our next visit/meeting. We also checked anything health-related directly with our paediatrician. We are in Chennai, so local logistics may be a little different.
5on How much weight should parent reviews carry when choosing a school?
We tried something similar once, but probably gave up too early. How long did you continue before judging it? I would still verify it with the school for the current academic year. Your child's response may be different, but this was our experience.
2on Sibling fights over the exact same toy even when we have two
This helps. I am going to add this to the questions for our next visit/meeting. Discussing it away from the children reduced the back-and-forth. In our house, the practical routine mattered more than the ideal plan.
With grandparents, specific rules worked better than a long parenting philosophy. We picked the two boundaries that mattered most and let smaller things go. We are still not perfect at this, but the arguments are much shorter now. Your child's response may be different, but this was our experience.
4on How to compare two schools when both look good on paper?
This is useful, thank you. The practical detail is exactly what I was looking for. We found this out only after doing a second school visit. We made the change gradually rather than all at once.
2on Homework taking 2+ hours in Class 10: normal workload or time-management issue?
We saw more improvement from regular reading and sleep than from adding extra worksheets every evening. The biggest surprise was that the practical routine mattered more than the option that looked best on paper. We noticed this more clearly once we stopped comparing with classmates. I would still test it for a short period before making a long commitment.
We made a simple spreadsheet with total annual cost, travel time, class size and what we observed during the visit. It stopped us getting distracted by facilities we would barely use. Our child reacted better once we explained the change in advance instead of announcing it on the day.
1on Swimming classes: group batch or one-to-one for a nervous beginner?
A short private block can help confidence, but we moved to group classes once the basics were comfortable because peers made it more fun. The trial class told us more than the brochure. Your child's response may be different, but this was our experience.
3on Working-parent guilt when your child says 'you always have meetings'
Thanks for saying this. Online advice often makes normal family life sound much more organised than it really is. Reducing handoffs made our weekdays noticeably calmer. We are in Chennai, so local logistics may be a little different.
1on Sibling preference in admissions: how reliable is it really — looking for recent parent experiences
I would keep at least two backup options until the admission is formally confirmed. Timelines can overlap and waiting for one school made us unnecessarily anxious. We changed our approach after about a month because the first plan was too hard to sustain.