From 3-7 August Avonside celebrated International Languages Week with lots of activities, finishing up with the International Assembly on Friday.

Thanks to the hard work and creativity of the International Council led by Renee Gilfedder and Olivia Hundleby, we enjoyed a fabulous International Languages week jam-packed with fun activities.

Every continent had a day of the week dedicated to it. On each day the bells changed to a song, a trivia question was put on the notices and lunchtime activities originating from that continent took place. Students were able to learn about a variety of other cultures.

Monday was dedicated to Asia, with origami, Japanese calligraphy and a timed chopstick competition taking place.

Tuesday was Europe day with a monument themed kahoot, where the winner walked away with a bag of Haribo gummy bears from Germany. There was also a French movie “Belle et Sebastien 3”.

Wednesday was Africa day with gumboot dancing, a dance originating from South Africa, taking place in the large theatre. Gumboot dancing is a dance where the dancer creates a rhythm using the sound of their gumboots by stomping and slapping them and clapping their hands. Students also had the opportunity to design their own kente cloth during ako time.

Thursday was Americas day with students creating paper senoritas, an ornament linked to Cinco de Mayo in Mexico, in the languages room.

The week concluded with an “all around the world day” with a multi-lingual interactive greeting board and a photo frame set up as well as the annual International Assembly. Numerous languages and cultures were showcased at the assembly, including speeches and dances from our diverse school community.

Also throughout the week Avonside’s competitive nature was put to the test with a Pou competition where the International Council challenged students to find and name the 16 flags they had hidden around the school. Cooper house won with the most participants, followed by Mansfield, Batten and then Sheppard.

Thank you to everyone who helped make International Week possible and to everyone who participated throughout the week.