Culture Fairs

I joined the PTO at the boys' elementary school earlier this year. They're always looking for people and I thought it'd fun to be a bit more involved.

In November we hosted a multicultural fair. Stevenson Elementary is surprisingly diverse considering its size and each year the school holds a culture fair to celebrate that diversity. There are parents and students from nearly every continent, and many of them volunteer to host rooms.

We had rooms dedicated to: India, Japan, Mexico, South Africa, China, Brazil, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Native America, Russia, Vietnam, and Sweden. (Though not officially a Swede, I felt Jenni and I could at least represent.) Each room had crafts, clothes, activities and most importantly food. As the kids and their parents entered the school, each child was issued a passport like you see on the right. After a presentation in the gym and some music, the kids took their passports to each room to have them stamped, have a snack and maybe do the activities. It was a great way for the kids to be exposed to cultures from around the world. There was clog dancing in the gym, henna tattooing in the cafeteria, and a virtual world tour in the library.

Living in a university town we have a lot of culture fairs and international festivals, but I'd have to say this was one of the best I've attended. The best thing about it was having parents volunteer and participate at the school. If you're more of a stay at home traveler, which we've become lately, this is a great way to share your knowledge and bring a bit of the world home.