This week, Gaynor students learned about Diwali, which fell on November 4 this year. The festival gets its name from the clay lamps people light outside their homes to symbolize the inner light that protects them from spiritual darkness. Diwali is a major holiday in India, and is celebrated worldwide by Hindus, Jains, Sikhs, and Newar Buddhists.
Orange Cluster students in Head Teacher Rian Axelrod and Assistant Teacher Kaylee Huntley’s class learned about Diwali from their peer Lokaya S.
Lokaya worked with Speech and Language Pathologist Gabrielle Kawalick on the presentation. Lokaya taught her classmates about what Diwali is, where it is celebrated, and the traditions. She also brought leis in for the other students in her class, so they could celebrate as well.
“She was very much leading the presentation,” Ms. Axelrod said. “She was so proud to talk about her culture. The other students were fully engaged and excited to hear her presentation.”
One Early Childhood class learned about Diwali from their Assistant Teacher Reshmi Nair. Ms. Nair explained what Diwali was to students, and then she read the book “Binny’s Diwali” by Thrity Umrigar.
After the read aloud, students decorated a patterned leaf cutout by using glue and colored sand to make it bright and colorful.
Through different multisensory activities, Gaynor students learned about and celebrated the festival of Diwali.
