Cultural Diversity Week @ ENPS

Throughout Harmony and Cultural Diversity Week, we had the wonderful opportunity to celebrate and honour the unique family backgrounds, cultures, and perspectives that make our school community so special. Inspired by this year’s theme, 'Culture connects us all and Everyone Belongs', each event from vibrant cultural displays to meaningful discussions, reflected our shared commitment to embracing diversity and developing intercultural understanding.

A proud moment was the beautifully decorated bodies created by our proud ENPS families, each one a heartfelt reflection of cultural identity and belonging A special thank you to Miss Morgan, Jodie Elliot, and Sandra Magro for helping Mrs Mac put up the school mural in the gymnasium. Coming in at 7:30am is no small effort, and we truly appreciate your time and support! Wow! The mural looked absolutely amazing! We are so connected!!!

Countries of ENPS

At ENPS, we are proud to have a diverse community of families who speak a wide range of languages, including English, French, Greek, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Croatian, Macedonian, Serbian, Albanian, Persian, Arabic, Turkish, Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Tulu, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Marathi, Nepali, Punjabi, Sinhalese, Urdu, Vietnamese, Thai, Indonesian, Tagalog, Filipino, Chinese, Cantonese, Mandarin, Malay, Japanese, Korean, Oromo, and Somali.

Countries of ENPS provided an interactive and engaging learning journey, during which students explored different countries within their class cohort. We extend our sincere thanks to the parents who generously volunteered their time to lead and support teachers in implementing learning experiences focused on diverse cultures and traditions. It was a joy to celebrate the rich and diverse talents within our school community, as students proudly shared the knowledge and learning they had developed, creating an experience that was both uplifting and entertaining.

Below is a snapshot of the wonderful learning and experiences shared.

Foundation

During Countries of ENPS we "travelled to" Germany and Vietnam. As part of our exploration of Germany we learnt how far it is from Australia, how to say hello in German, the country's flag, traditional clothing, and the importance of (and made) cuckoo clocks! Our Vietnam learning included the flag, Tet (New Year), making a lion mask, and the most popular form of transport and headwear. 

Year One

During our Countries of ENPS morning, we explored the United Kingdom and New Zealand. We discovered the history of the UK, the many Kings and Queens and old buildings such as the Tower of London and learnt about Māori legends of New Zealand. We enjoyed making crowns and drawing our own island that Maui might have fished up.

Year Two

Through our Countries of ENPS explorations we learnt some new facts about Ireland including location, symbols, superstitions, and how to perform the fun Heel and Toe to the song Lord of the Dance. We also discovered lots of interesting facts about Iraq, including Ancient Iraq (one of the oldest civilisations), early writing systems including Cuneiform and Clay Tablets, Iraqi food and a special “cup” used to drink tea, and drawing and painting a date palm tree.

Year Three

Our Year Three students have been excitedly “travelling” to Italy as part of their ENPS countries, learning, exploring the language, food, culture, traditions, and famous landmarks. As part of this journey, students learned about the Sistine Chapel and the incredible work of Michelangelo, including how he spent four years painting while lying on his back or craning his neck. Inspired by this, students took on the challenge themselves! Paper was taped under their desks, and students lay on their backs to create their own masterpieces, just like Michelangelo. Their artworks beautifully captured Italian-inspired themes and showcased both creativity and perseverance. 

During our exploration of Iran, students learnt about Persian New Year (Norouz), Haft-Seen tables and discussed similarities between Easter and Norouz. They also discovered Persian traditional dance, along with the traditional instruments Daf, Tonbak, Setar and Tar. Students thoroughly enjoyed listening to these instruments, and were excited by the opportunity to play some of them too!

Year Four

Students have been excited to explore the countries of Colombia and Thailand with the support of our wonderful parent helpers. While learning about Colombia, students had the opportunity to learn a traditional dance, and for Thailand, they created Tung flags to celebrate the Songkran festival. In our Geography lessons this term, we have also been investigating our neighbouring country of Indonesia, comparing similarities and differences between life there and here in Australia. By exploring Indonesia, we are broadening our horizons, and learning about different cultures helps to deepen our understanding of the world around us.

Year Five

During our Countries of ENPS explorations we enjoyed learning about Spain, Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos), and creating our own masks. We also discovered wonderful facts about Vanuatu, including sand drawing, Bislama Language, traditional sports, and how to open coconuts.

Year Six

The Year Six students have been exploring the diversity of people around the world through reading short stories in the Amnesty International text, Free. In the story No Trumpets Needed, two children used kites to communicate messages of peace across two countries in civil unrest. The Year Sixes explored symbols of peace and words of peace in a variety of languages to assist them create their own kites. During the Harmony Day assembly, students raised their kites together as a symbol of hope and a visual reminder that everyone belongs. During Countries of ENPS we travelled to India and learnt about the key geographical features, cultural traditions and that chess was invented in India. We also travelled to Italy and discovered fun facts, The Story of Arlecchino (a cheerful and playful character from Italian carnival traditions), and decorated our own carnival masks inspired by the colourful masks worn during Carnevale celebrations.

Last week also marked Persian New Year, and the United Nations' International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (21st March). Many of our ENPS families have now also celebrated Eid al-Fitr, known as the ‘feast of fast-breaking’, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan, and is celebrated by feasts and gift-giving among family and friends. We wish a Blessed Eid (Eid Mubarak) to our Muslim community. 

Nowruz (the New Day) is the Persian New Year and the first day of Spring in the northern hemisphere, falling on the March equinox. In Persian it is called New Day or No-Ruz whereas the spelling in English may vary (Noruz, Nowrooz, Norouz). Thank you to students Anisa, Maya and Milan for sharing the cultural heritage and the significance of the Persian New Year celebrations at assembly on Friday, and to Soren's family for sharing photos of their Norouz Haft-Seen tables with us again this year.

We are incredibly grateful when our ENPS families share their cultural celebrations with us and invite you to do the same. Please contact us at essendon.north.ps@education.vic.gov.au if you wish to share your cultural celebrations in our newsletter throughout the year. 

Lunch Club

A big thank you to our wonderful Education Support staff, who organised and facilitated a variety of fun, engaging, and culturally rich Lunch Club craft activities for students throughout the week in celebration of this special occasion.

Staff Lunch

Our staff also celebrated diversity together by sharing a special lunch last Wednesday. Everyone was invited to bring a cultural dish for others to enjoy, and we loved sampling foods from the many cultures here at ENPS! 

Special Assembly

Friday’s school assembly was an unforgettable event, hosted by our passionate School Captains, Ethan and Georgia.

Ethan's Anecdote about Harmony Week:

The purpose of Harmony Week is to celebrate the benefits of Australia’s multicultural society. It was first celebrated in Australia in 1999 and that’s 27 years ago! Harmony Week is about creating a strong sense of belonging for everyone, no matter their background.

 

The colour orange is the official colour of Harmony Week, symbolising social communication, respect, and meaningful connections. Nearly half of Australians have at least one parent born overseas, and more than 250 languages are spoken across Australian homes highlighting the rich diversity of our nation.

 

At ENPS, this is part of the fabric of who we are, and we proudly embrace all cultures within our community. We believe that being different is what makes each of us unique and beautiful. By valuing and celebrating each other’s cultures, we continue to build an inclusive, respectful, and connected school where everyone feels they belong.

Georgia's Anecdote about Cultural Diversity Week:

This week marks the beginning of Cultural Diversity Week. The 2026 theme, Culture connects us all, highlights how sharing intercultural stories and experiences fosters understanding, belonging, and connection. We are an extremely multicultural community, with 43 different languages spoken at our school and that’s a lot of different cultures!

 

We are so lucky to have such a diverse school community and the privilege to learn about different cultures, traditions, and celebrations. This was clear during our successful “Countries of ENPS” journey experience this morning. Students moved between different classrooms, each representing a country, where they engaged in a variety of fun and interactive learning activities. It was wonderful to see students so enthusiastic, curious, and respectful as they explored different cultures. Take the time to understand where your friends and classmates are from, because we can learn so much from each other.

At Essendon North Primary School, we respect and value people of all cultures, backgrounds, and ethnicities. We believe that everyone belongs and deserves to be treated with equality, peace, and harmony. As part of multicultural Australia, we recognise that we stand on sacred land and are enriched by the many diverse cultural backgrounds that make up our community and diversity that we proudly embrace and celebrate.

A sincere thank you to our special parent guest speakers. Manmeet shared his personal journey of exploring his family heritage and introduced his picture storybook, Where the Mustard Fields Meet the Southern Cross. We also thank Susan for sharing her perspective on personal connections and how a sense of belonging is developed through cultural traditions.

Another highlight was Evie G (4CT), who showcased her Irish dancing skills. She was so brave, talented, and passionate about her craft, entertaining us with energy and enthusiasm. Following her performance, our skilled, enthusiastic, and energetic Lunch Dance Club members took the stage. Wow! They truly know how to entertain while connecting with each other and the audience. Mrs De Angelis does an amazing job teaching and encouraging the students to have fun while exploring different cultural dances.

One of the most special moments of the assembly was the entire school community coming together to sing “One World”. The assembly concluded on a positive and connected note with an uplifting song, “Harmony Day”, led by our talented Year Six students Lara, Ebony, Jordana, Yuvee, Nicole and Zara.

Cultural Diversity Week has been a wonderful opportunity to celebrate our unique traditions and stories, while embracing the differences that make each of us special. At ENPS, we value and celebrate diversity, recognising that it strengthens our community and fosters a global mindset by bringing together a rich tapestry of cultures, traditions, and perspectives.

Thank you for being part of our vibrant and inclusive community. Let us continue to celebrate our differences and grow together.

Warm regards,

The ENPS Community Engagement and Intercultural Inclusion Team