Plaistow pupils celebrate cultural diversity with International Week events

Curwen Primary schoolchildrenshow off some of the items displayed in the International Week exhibition at Curwen Primary School.

Melissa York, Reporter Tuesday, March 12, 2013
1:16 PM

Pupils brought the world into their classrooms by hosting a bundle of activities for International Week.

Plaistow North Cllr. Joy Laguda with Hafsa, left, Luciana, Halima and Helen, who all received a "Proudest Curwen Citizen" certificate as part of the International Week at Curwen Primary School.

Curwen Primary School in aptly-named Atlas Road, Plaistow, celebrated the cultural diversity of their children by holding a series of events last week.

They held an exhibition featuring artefacts, holiday photographs, and foreign money collected from the local community.

A visiting storyteller also dropped by to bring British stories alive by engaging the children in a theatrical production - and a lucky Year Six pupil was invited to dress up as an old King of England.

Mr Paul Harris, the headteacher of the school, said: “We take pride in our cultural heritage at the school.

“This event explored and developed everyone’s understanding of where we have come from and how that affects who we are.”

In the afternoon, each class showcased a country and the pupils travelled to each one, learning about their culture and customs, using their passports.

The Cultural Officer from the Trinidad and Tobago High Commission even dropped by to show how impressed he was with the concept of International Week.

On Friday, staff and parents attended a mock British Citizenship Ceremony held in front of the whole school honouring the proud citizens of Curwen Primary School.

Cllr Joy Laguda, representing the Plaistow North ward, was the special guest of honour at the ceremony and she spoke about her desire to extend the Curwen way of celebrating cultural diversity into the local community.