International Day
November 29 marked the celebration of International Day at the Doha Montessori and British School (DMBS). This was the school's way of recognizing the various nationalities that consist the DMBS community. As of this term, it is said that the school's population comprises of students from over 50 different countries. In Philippine schools this is like United Nations Day.
On this day, the children were asked to dress in their national clothes/ costumes. Luckily I was able to borrow a "baro't saya" from a friend of mine whose children go to the Philippine School Doha or else it would have been impossible to come up with a National costume on such short notice. That's why on our next vacation, we will definitely get a costume for Xiane. In addition to this, the children also had to bring samples of food of their country.
As part of the celebration, each child also had to tell an interesting fact about his or her country. Xiane had her speech about the Philippine flag and here's how it goes:
Hello everybody! My name is Xianelle Rueda San Juan. I am from the Philippines. This is the Philippine flag. The blue represents peace. The red represents love for my country. The 3 stars represent the 3 big islands in my country named: Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. And the sun represents hope. Salamat po!
She had two days to memorize it. Her dad made the speech while I taught her how to deliver. We were worried that she might forget her lines but thankfully, she didn't. That same day when I came to watch the parade in the school grounds, when a Filipina assistant teacher from a different class approached me. She asked if I was the mother of Xianelle. Then she started saying that Xiane really did a good job delivering her speech at the assembly, attended by the Reception-Year 3 Classes. I didn't have any idea that there was going to be an assembly. Then later that day, I got the same nice feedbacks from Xiane's teachers. A few days after the International Day, I also got nice comments from another assistant teacher from another class. It was truly an amazing feeling hearing those wonderful things about Xiane. I am also thankful for people who show their appreciation for the things that she does.
