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Happy Diwali!
शुभ दीपावली Happy Diwali Tamariki ma! Last week we celebrated Diwali at Best Start Newmarket. Diwali is a famous Indian festival celebrated every year. Diwali symbolises "victory of light over darkness, good over bad and knowledge over ignorance. Children and teachers came with their traditional costumes to celebrate this special day. We discussed with the children the importance of this festival for Indians and the story behind it. They watched the animated story and was very curious about the characters they saw. Children tried "Bindi" on their forehead.
"Bindi" is a coloured dot worn on the centre of the forehead, originally by Hindus and Jains from the Indian subcontinent. They were so interested to do henna designs on their hands and were patient enough to let it dry before washing it off. They made their own version of Rangoli using different colours of paint. Rangoli is an art form, in which patterns are created on the floor or the ground using colours and it is thought to bring good luck. It was also great to see the children dancing to Indian songs and having fun. Some of them had their favourite hindi songs and we were happy to play it for them. They made diya using playdough. The lighting of diya forms a part of celebrations and rituals of the festival. They also made paper craft diyas. It was great fun to float them in water decorated with fresh flowers.
Through Diwali festival children experienced and learnt the diversity of culture experiencing various activities such as Diwali music with dancing, tasting Indian food and doing lots of art activities. Living in a multicultural society helps children to develop their understanding of different cultures and respect the different ways of life. We will continue to celebrate different cultural festivals and keep encouraging children to experience and learn the diversity of cultures.