Heritage Festival, Kent School District, Panther Lake
In today's world parents have very little time for their children. A child spends a lot of time at school. Education must, and should teach about diversity. Kudos to the Kent School District Panther Lake which successfully celebrated the 5th year of the "Heritage Festival". Suzie Newberry and Amy Abrams said, "We feel children will be better able to see where they’re going by knowing where they’ve been (come from). It’s a time to celebrate diversity and grow to understand that even though we’ve come from very different places, we are all the same."
Surely it took a lot of effort both on the part of the staff and the students. I, as a parent could see the involvement and pride. My daughter, Rania H. Kaur, who studies in the 5th grade was feeling very proud to be a part of this festival. The slides that she prepared on the computer were awesome. I must admit even I had to research my personal library to find answers for her questions. Each teacher had their students study their own heritage after a unit on explorers. As a result, the students studied their heritage with a focus on cultural and family traditions. When their projects were completed, the parents were also invited to share in their celebration and to share a piece of their heritage through food. The parents and other family members were requested to wear the traditional clothes. We had 5 different continents represented at the festival and over 20 countries. Every 5th grade student provided food from their heritage country and each 6th grade student brought a dish from the country they were assigned to study. The library with books and computer slides on diversity was remarkable. And I can't forget the sight of the cafeteria, as the traditional clothes and the tasty dishes from various countries leaves a lasting impression.
Six classroom teachers helped organize and implement the festival. Miss Newbury and Miss Abrams said, "We started planning at the beginning of the year, and then began to meet and discuss plans more regularly, about a month before the festival. On the day of the festival we were aided by a multitude of kind-hearted volunteers from the school. This is a huge festival and takes a lot of people to make it work. We are thankful we have such a supportive community. Everybody loved it! It was well received! Parents, students, teachers, community members all love it. The students often come back and say this is one of the most powerful things they’ve done all year. It makes a huge impact on their lives both now and in the future. It’s a great time to come together to celebrate our lives and our cultures!"
- Sarab Singh