Today is Harmony Day across Australia. It’s the same day, 21 March, each year when Australians celebrate their cultural diversity and share what we all have in common. From the diversity and social cohesion program, “It's a time to reflect on where Australia has come from, recognising the traditional owners of this land. It's also about community participation, inclusiveness and respect…”
The colour orange is worn on Harmony Day because it is a colour that inspires celebration. Harmony Day coincides with the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination which also uses the orange ribbon as its symbol of awareness of racial tolerance or cultural diversity.
Girls Grammar is celebrating Harmony Day. The students were invited to wear an orange accent with their uniforms such as a ribbon or hair piece. Of course, my girls went with the bold and beautiful. Students were also invited to bring an artefact from their cultural background to share with the class or to display in the library. Anabella is very proud of her Russian heritage (from her father) and chose the refrigerator magnet of the Russian church.
I am really happy the school is participating in this important day. As a school with a high number of international students and its International Baccalaureate Program, it provides a wonderful opportunity for the children to celebrate different cultures and learn acceptance. The celebration of events like these will have a positive impact on the children's educational experience. It reminds me how fortunate my girls are to have this opportunity to live in another country meeting children from all over the world and learning beside them.
Harmony: Agreement in feeling or opinion
great blog! informational and memorable. This was a good thing to blog about. Half the time I 'miss' a great blogging opportunity because I don't appreciate them as 'blog worthy'. Time to pull out the gratitude journal and stop taking things for granted!
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