25: Peace and Diversity

 “So powerful is the light of unity that it illuminates the whole world.”

Friede,

Paz,

平和 (heiwa),

Barış,

평화 Pyeonghwa,

和平 Hépíng,

ความสงบ,

Rahu,

Kapayapaan,

Hòa bình,

Vrede,

Peace.

There are currently 8 billion people on earth. Each one is different from the other, and no two are exactly alike. Our diversity doesn't just make the world colorful, it helps us to survive and thrive. Ecosystems are the perfect example of how diversity is needed for a community to flourish, as it cannot live with just one species. It needs a variety of plants and animals to survive. This is the same for people. Our differences help us contribute our gifts, beliefs, skills, and ideas to make our communities better, and collectively stronger. 

In the IB, our goal is to foster international-minded students who are advocates of a peaceful world through acceptance and respect of our differences as a people, and who value our common humanity. Peace is such a complex concept to grasp, but for kindergarteners, sometimes it's as simple as sharing one's toy or welcoming a new friend. 

This week, we celebrate peace and diversity in DSKI through our International Book and Culture Week. 

The whole week, we had a chance to showcase our diversity through our clothing. 

On Monday, we came in our silly hats and socks. 

On Tuesday, we went to school ready to sleep in our pyjamas!

On Wednesday, we dressed up as one of our favorite book characters.

And on Thursday, we wore our traditional clothing from our countries.

Peace and diversity can also be learned from literature. The beauty of books is that you don't have to go anywhere to travel to different parts of the world and learn universal lessons from different places. This week, we were very lucky to have the chance to listen to books of different languages, read by parents, teachers, and even students! 

Thank you to Veronica for teaching us in Spanish about one's capacity to build and create.

Thank you to Emi for teaching us in Japanese that a little bit of silliness makes a gloomy day so much brighter.

Thank you to Marie and Nami for teaching us both in German and Japanese that helping someone in need (even if it's as simple as looking for their underpants 😆) makes a big difference in someone's day.

Of course I also took the opportunity to read a book in Filipino about the importance of finding fun in simple things and making others feel included.

I was also lucky to have had the chance to listen to a story read in Japanese by Tamaki during our Library time.

 We can also learn peace and diversity through our first hand experiences. 

We went through different activity stations to learn about cultures from all over the world through art and games.

I used this chance to also teach the children about a game from my country called Tumbang Preso that I used to play as a child.

Apart from these, we also got to enjoy the displays and dioramas that showcase the different cultures from all around the world.

For young children, their first teachers of what peace truly is are their family and community. 

To end the week, we celebrated together as a whole school community. 

Diversity truly is beautiful.

It was a wonderful week spent learning about our cultures, languages, and traditions. 

It underscored what is truly essential: that our differences make us beautiful, and together, we are stronger. 

Have a wonderful Spring break, everyone! Here's to peace on earth.

Your Kindergarten teacher,

Pam

P.S. It was also Sarah's last week in DSKI. We will miss you, Sarah!