DL's Patchwork of Cultures - Harmony Day 2017

DL's Patchwork of Cultures

Navitas Distance Learning students have made a Patchwork of Cultures for Harmony Day. During the week of Harmony Day students enjoyed sharing their culture online with their teachers, at work and in their community. Following Harmony Day many DL students worked very hard to write comments, reports on festivals and interviews to share insight into their festivals and culture. In doing so they have created a virtual Patchwork of Cultures. Click HERE to view the slideshow.

Teachers Sonia and Barbara

DL teachers enjoyed their multicultural lunch together, the most unusual dish being Antarctic Seaweed Salad. Teacher Barbara
demonstrated how to wrap Vietnamese rice paper rolls which all agreed were delicious. Lisbeth and Johanna shared photos of their traditional dress, while Sonia lived up to her promise and wore a lovely orange 'Salwar Kamiz'.

In the slideshow students express their thoughts on how they keep their culture alive in Australia and how they feel about life in Australia.

Thitaree from Thailand wrote:
'After I read Sonia's story I liked some words she said. These are my ideas. My life is like making a hand-made embroidery. I have a colourful and wonderful life but I have to work very hard at it. Like embroidery we have to do a little bit at a time and join it together, but sometimes, we have to re-do it. Sometimes I can't find the right colour thread so I stop what I'm doing and feel sad that I can't finish it. This is similar to my life and its ups and downs.'

Thank you to all the students and teachers for your contributions to the DL Patchwork of Cultures slideshow.

What did you learn by reading about your fellow students' festivals?

How do people in different cultures celebrate Easter?

How do you cope with life's ups and downs? 

Harmony Day- Our diversity is our strength!

Harmony Day is on Monday 21st March and it's a time to celebrate Australia's diversity. We celebrate that people, who are from many different cultures, live in Australia. We are all different and that is great! This diversity makes us strong. Our diversity is our strength!
DL Virtual Restaurant
We are going to celebrate our diversity by sharing our favourite meal. On the Events tab are activities for you to do with your teacher. You can write a recipe, then send your recipe to your teacher. Your recipes will be shared on the blog in the DL. Virtual Restaurant. You will be able to sample the menu by reading DL students' recipes and try cooking a meal from another culture.

Food is memory
Cooking and sharing meals and recipes helps us to connect to our culture. Each dish has a special meaning. So with your recipe you can also write how it's important to you. One of our students, Paweena wrote: "Every dish brings me back to my childhood. Every bite takes me to my home. Food is memory! Sometimes it makes me cry from happiness, but it heals me from homesickness too."
Everyone Belongs
Sharing food helps us to connect to others and feel like we belong. Last year on Harmony Day, DL students wrote their thoughts on belonging. Here are some of their thoughts.

Belonging is:

......"Knowing Australia is a multicultural country, they accept people from everywhere in the world, so it is not strange for me anymore." I think that is what  belonging means.”-Shirley

........"when I am not isolated and lonely- I am part of the community. I feel there is a very large community outside of my home so I belong to it as an individual to build it up." -Maryam

........."feeling I belong to my community because I know my neighborhood. ..I am willing to contribute to the community by attending multicultural activities and sharing my culture."- Lifang

.........."cooking Aussie food (barbeque), learning Aussie slang (G’ day Mate) and making Aussie friends (my neighbour)."- Kataai

Go up to the Events tab to start the DL Virtual Restaurant Activities