TK students started off the 2015/2016 school year with Uniting Nations Week and a celebration of Who We Are. A schedule full of events promoted intercultural understanding and respect, a goal of the IB mission statement, and gave everyone an opportunity to see just how diverse the TK community is.

Monday began with a burst of colour and music, as students took part in the Parade of Nations. As an opening event, it really showcased the diversity of who we are as a school community and where we collectively come from, as over 50 nations were represented. The parade opened with our youngest Kindergarten students waving their flags and smiling broadly, followed by Grades 1 to 6. These students, with faculty, entered nation by nation to cheering and applause from our audience. The parade ended with our hosts, our Singaporean staff and students, who sang along to the 50th anniversary song. This event was streamed live around the world so extended families could take part and join in our celebration.

In the beginning of the week in the afternoons everyone had an opportunity to get up and dance! First, students welcomed a Bhangra dance group, which combined lively music, acrobatics and some great dancing. Everyone enjoyed the opportunity to get up on their feet and move to the music Bhangra-style. A group of risk-takers, made up of staff and students from every grade even went up to the stage to share their best moves with the audience. The following day was a Malay dance performance, with a chance for students and teachers alike to learn more new steps and enjoy an entertaining performance. Our guests ended their visit with a Dikir Barat where everyone learnt to both sing and dance in traditional Malay style.

Our final event, the Food Festival was as usual an absolute highlight of Uniting Nations Week. The TK PTA coordinated parent groups from over 20 countries to offer delicious samples of food from their nations. The aroma as you walked into the gym was nothing short of mouth-watering. Our students enjoyed everything from mussels to dumplings to waffles, and personified the IB Learner Profile trait of risk-takers. No one left the gym hungry. Many had a new favourite food or at least something they would like to taste again.

Throughout the week teachers joined other classes to share an element of their own culture, whether it was a game, a story, a song or some photos. Several times it was discovered that the song or the story was familiar but known by a different name or had different characters. This served to further reinforce the idea that Uniting Nations Week is not just an opportunity to celebrate our diversity, but also to celebrate our similarities.

An event like this is the result of great collaboration. Many thanks to the TK PTA, the UN Week committee and all the departments for making Uniting Nations Week 2015-16 a huge success!