I joined Valar Tamil Nilayam in 2014 and I started in Grade 1. The teachers have taught me a lot and I think my language has improved since going here. Due to COVID-19 we have moved to online classes and this is proving to be very good and I think it is very helpful that we can learn during these times.

The first time I attended Valar Thamil Nilayam in Rooks Heath was in 2014 to enrol my sister so that she could start her Tamil learning journey. At the time, I was new to London and I felt like I was too old to carry on studying Tamil as I could not complete grade 8 previously due to lack of teachers where I lived. However, to my surprise, I saw few older students at Valar Thamil Nilayam. This gave me hope in restarting my Tamil learning journey.

In fact, the headteacher Mrs Malathy Pirabakaran was very welcoming and gave me her full support to carry on my studies from where I left off. Not only this, but she saw my potential and advised me to take the Tamil GCSE examination as well. Even though I was quite scared and not very confident at the time, with the immense support from the members of staff at Valar Thamil Nilayam, I was able to achieve high grades such as "A*" and "A" for these examinations.

After this, I was preparing to get into university. Again, Mrs Malathy Pirabakaran encouraged me to take the Cambridge A-Level exam in Tamil. The amount of effort and dedication that she put into helping me to master my Tamil knowledge, made me fall in love with my mother tongue even further. As she saw my growth and constant involvement within the school, she gave me the opportunity to be a part of the administration team and to help younger classes in their studies. This was a very prideful moment as I was so happy to be an example for our future gems and to be a part of the students’ life in embracing their Tamil roots.

Although I had to concentrate on my studies, I was fully involved with the school. I gave my full support in planning and helping the students with their performances and competitions during our annual cultural events. I regularly attended the staff meetings and seminars offered by Valar Thamil Nilayam which allowed me to grow both personally and professionally.

Due to Covid19, the school has moved to online classes. Even though I haven’t been able to be a part of this change, I have seen my sister’s improvement who is currently studying in grade 6. I was quite shocked to see how fast the teachers have adapted their teaching and how much effort they have been putting in ensuring a full 360 learning for all the students. I am hoping that the school receives the deserved support from parents and students to keep operating and keeping our Tamil culture alive.

I also want to take this opportunity to thank the Valar Thamil Nilayam for creating such a positive environment where the students can learn and grow on a regular basis. Each event cannot be successful if it wasn’t for the strong collaboration and support amongst staffs, students and families.

வாழ்க தமிழ் வளர்க தமிழ் !!
Raxana Kanagasabai

Mathusan Nageswaran- year 8
I’ve studied thamil at Valar Thamil Nilayam since I was a child. Before I joined I wasn’t able to read, write or speak thamil. After having lessons at Valar Thamil Nilayam I can understand Thamil and use Thamil to communicate with other using my voice and my writing. It has been very helpful in many ways in my such as the yearly program the school hosts. The students perform in Thamil themed plays and the program is celebrated with rewards for everyone.

நான் தமிழை ரூக்ஸ் ஹீத்தில் உள்ள வsர் தமிo; நிiலயத்தில் ஆறாம் ஆண்டு படிக்கிறேன். வsர் தமிழ் நிiலயத்தில் உள்ள ஆசிரியர்கள் எமது பாடத்தை மிகச் சிறப்பாக விளக்கி ஒரு புதிய பாடத்திற்குச் செல்வதற்கு முன்பு நாம் அனைவரும் அதைப் புரிந்துகொள்வதை உறுதிசெய்கிறார்கள். ஆசிரியர்கள் எல்லோரும் எங்களுடன் அன்பாக பழகுவார்கள். எங்களுக்கு விளங்காத பாடங்கள் எல்லாம் எங்களுக்கு சொல்லி தருவார்கள். பாடசாலையில் வைக்கும் போட்டிகள் எல்லாவற்றிலும் நான் பங்குபெற்றுவேன். பாடசாலையால் நடாத்தப்படும் போட்டிகளில் பங்குபற்றுவதால் எமக்கு மனஉறுதியும் நம்பிக்கையும் ஏற்ப்படுகின்றது. ரூக்ஸ் ஹீத் வளர் தமிழ் நிலையத்தில் படிப்பதால் நான் தமிழை நிறைய படித்து வருகிறேன். நான் வளர் தமிழ் நிலையத்தில் தொடர்ந்து படித்து தாய் தமிழாம் தமிழை வளர்க்க விரும்புகின்றேன்.
ரக் ஷிதா (Raxitha Kanagasabai N.)

I recall it was September 2014. I had just finished my higher education waiting to commence my first year of university. This was when I had the remarkable opportunity from my Tamil teacher, who had taught me since I was 5 years old, and tutor/guide 'Mrs Malathy Pirabakharan' to teach Tamil for preschool children at her newly established school ''Valar Thamil Nilaiyam', built on sheer hard work and effort.

Having been born and bred in the UK, I found it to be one of the most enriching experiences to teach others my mother tongue Tamil. The motive being to ensure that our roots do not get lost down for generations to come, including the beauty and intricacies of the Tamil language from its complex grammar and classic Tamil literature pre existent for thousands of centuries as being officially classed as the oldest language in the world. There was no joy in comparison.

Notably, native parents were eager to bring their children to this school to this Tamil school to educate and learn this language innately alongside other classical arts. For the preschool children, aged 3-7, they were taught the beginnings of this language through means of pictures and figures.

Valar Thamil Nilaiyam comprises of classes tailored ranging from pre-school to university students. To establish the higher principles and standards of teaching, regular seminars formed of talks given by profound teachers were conducted. These continue to prove to be useful. Trophies, awards and medals were presented to children overachieving in every niche of their studies whether it was conducted Thirukkural competitions, classical poetry or Tamil speech competitions.

I hope they continue their hard work in running this school for many more years to come, given their pure intention to develop the awareness of this language and instil in young children with their focal societal needs. Hoping in good will that their service to the community continue and expand in reflection of their sheer determination and passion of their language.

I’ve been studying at Valar Thamil Nilayam for around 5 years now. I’m currently studying in year 10 after finishing my A-Level a couple of months ago and I’m extremely proud of where I am in the subject Tamil today - thanks to the teachers. I’ve been encouraged to be better at Tamil every time by all the teachers. The teachers here are very passionate to teach the language to as many children as possible and help the language continue to grow. Here, we aren’t only taught Tamil but we are also taught to follow our cultural attributes, the good habits, the skills we need for life etc.

Throughout the academic year, learning my mother tongue was made more fun with the competitions. For example, there are spelling contests for all year groups. The winners receive trophies and medals when events are held, which are very motivating for the students as it pushes them to do more and better. Even when the students don’t receive any prizes, they still feel appreciated by the cheerful words said by the teachers. On top of that, there are term and yearly assessments to test the knowledge of the students, which lets us (students) reflect and progress. Each year, there’s an event when all the parents and students dress up in the cultural outfits. On this day, the students perform various performance – showcasing their special talents. Last year, I participated in a historical play and I played the character of a Portuguese man. I had no idea I could play that character in front of the audience because I felt shy and discouraged. I also said I didn’t want to take part in this but my two teachers encouraged me to do it and because of that, I built my confidence. Their pleasant words meant a lot to me.

When I was learning all the ancient books, stories, songs and poems for my A-Level exam, I learnt so many things about life, human nature, how to deal with certain situations and most importantly, how to be a human. These teachings will stay with me forever and it has made me a better human being - making me feel proud to be Tamil. Throughout my journey with the centre, my love for Tamil has grown; I managed to build on many of my skills, such as: reading, writing and speaking; I understood the importance of learning Tamil and following our ancestors’ footsteps. In conclusion, I have been enjoying learning at Valar Thamil Nilayam and don’t regret a single day. It has helped many students in many ways.

My name is Varshmi Yasotharan. I have been attending Rooks Heath Valar Thamil Nilayam since for 5 years and I am now currently in grade 6. I began learning Tamil as I wanted to further broaden my knowledge of my mother tongue and our culture. This Tamil school has aided me in growing as a person through the loving support of the teachers as they helped me read, write and speak Tamil.

They hold various events in which we showcase our talent in Tamil through drama productions, speaking competitions and much more. I am enjoying my Thamil classes every week and I learn lots of new thing every time.

Valar Thamil Nilayam Review
I am Amsena Krishnaruban, my first time joining Tamil School, I was excited to learn, read and write my mother tongue. In 2014, I joined Tamil School, when I was 6 years old. I firstly learnt Tamil and practiced how to write them. Then I had learnt new words in Tamil and was taught how to write sentences. Now, I am in Year 7 in Tamil School which I am proud to be in, as I have almost thoroughly learnt my mother tongue. I was delighted to study this language and with the help of the teachers in Tamil School, I have learnt the importance of our mother tongue and, how proud you should be of learning Tamil.
During Tamil School, I had participated in competitions such as Thirukkural and Spelling. It was good because you would be able to improve your writing and speaking whilst competing and, winning trophies, medals and certificates. I would also join vocal and keyboard lessons in Tamil School and would take my grade test. Every year, there was a festival which was called Swaraswathi Poosai, this is celebrated in our culture that we would celebrate in Tamil School and play music on the keyboard as well as do vocal. Moreover, there is English and Maths tuition which I had studied in, this had helped me to learn how to write proper PEE paragraphs in English and I had learnt how to do Pythagoras’ Theorem. At the end of each year, we would do an annual festival, where we act a play on stage which we had practised during our Tamil lessons and say thank you to our Tamil teachers for teaching us this year.
Nowadays, we are learning Tamil School online which is going well as the teachers teach us the same as we would at Tamil School. In addition, they give us breaks which I like because you get a time off the screen. Furthermore, they share screens to help us spell some words.
I like to go to Tamil School because I enjoy learning Tamil and it is nice to know another language.

My name is Lithikga Gobi and I have been learning Thamil at Valar Thamil Nilayam since I was 5 years old. Today I am in Grade 10 for Thamil as well as preparing for A-level. From my experience, Valar Thamil Nilayam is an excellent institution. From a young age, I have been supported by many kind teachers and over the years I have developed skills in reading, writing, listening and speaking - something that will forever be one of my greatest skills that I know will benefit me greatly in the future. I first began learning in order to know my mother tongue and the long experience and loving nature of all the teachers, including the headteacher, made me feel very welcome and enjoy pursuing what is now such a large part of my life. The resources used (reading and writing books) are always very informative and are the right ability for different grades, allowing us to learn new grammar, stories and about our culture. Through the term tests and end of year exams, students like myself are given the chance to check our progress which is both useful and motivating. This institution teaches the language in an engaging way by holding competitions every year to push the students and make them more eager about learning Thamil. For example, there are thirukkural competitions for students of all ages to learn couplets from a classic Thamil language text and recite them by heart in hopes of being one of the top three, as well as essay writing and spelling competitions. These events have a very exhilarating atmosphere as the students are always enthusiastic about taking part, and receive so much appreciation and uplifting words for giving the competition a shot, regardless of whether they come out with a prize. Not only this but the institution teaches about culture and religion - celebrating Thamil festivals such as Thai Pongal as one big family, which I believe is one of the best parts about these lessons as the knowledge we learn is not limited to just the language. We are all encouraged to wear traditional clothing and the families bring traditional food for us to eat and enjoy, building up our knowledge and appreciation for our wonderful culture. However, the highlight of each year I have taken classes here is the Aanduvizha (end of year celebration). Teachers and students all work together to put on Thamil dramas, tell stories and perform speeches, dances and songs in front of a large audience. This celebration not only brings together the Thamil community but it gives the students the chance to learn traditional Thamil stories and exhibit their excellent linguistic skills, in a memorable way. I remember being very scared the first time I performed a drama due to the daunting audience, however, this has allowed me to build up my confidence and last year, performing an old Thamil drama alongside my friends, was an experience I will always treasure and it opened the door to perform at an external event too, which was very exciting. All in all, I have thoroughly enjoyed learning here and would recommend it to anyone. Valar Thamil Nilayam's Thamil classes are exceptional, teaching the students in engaging ways and making all the children proud to be able to say that they Thamil.