Students at Harry Hooge Elementary and Albion Elementary celebrated Diwali this week.
At Harry Hooge Elementary 25 students demonstrated traditional dances during an assembly where they also explained to their fellow students what the festival of Diwali is and how they celebrate it.
Diwali, or the Festival of Lights, is India's biggest festival and is celebrated by Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Buddhists, and Jains and symbolizes the victory of good over evil.
It is celebrated over five days where people light diyas or clay lamps, create rangolis or patterns on the floor with coloured sand or powder, light fireworks, give presents, feast, eat sweets, and visit with family and good friends.
Students practiced their dances for three weeks, giving up their lunch hours, prior to the assembly. Two groups – one intermediate and one junior – danced two different routines.
"Every year we are getting more and more students from other parts of the world, who celebrate different celebrations, who come from different cultures, who speak different languages," said ELL teacher Kawaldeep Ghuman, who organized the event with Grade 4/5 teacher Vibha Budshah. "It's a great way to introduce everybody to different cultures."
The students were so excited to perform in front of their peers, she said, many bought new outfits to wear.
The PAC supplied samosas for the students and staff to enjoy.
Some of the students don't even celebrate Diwali and they performed to be part of the festivities, said Ghuman.
One of those students, Elyna Ouldhamiche, a Grade 5 student at the school, said even though she doesn't celebrate Diwali at home, she enjoys celebrating special festivals with friends and family – and celebrating as family.
"I don't celebrate, but I came to help my friends, because I want to be with my friends and celebrate the country and help them develop their celebration," explained Elyna, whose parents are from Algeria, and who lived in Montreal before moving to Maple ridge.
Other do celebrate Diwali.
Ritbi Dantkeale, in Grade 2, likes the dancing and the lighting of fireworks at home. She also enjoys the sweets, her favourite sweet is laddu.
Grade 5 student Nishchala Shukla explained her family decorates the house with diyas and puts a diya in the middle of the rangoli powder.
"I like it because people give you gifts and you get to have sweets with your family, and it's lots of fun hearing stories about why we celebrate Diwali," she said.
Agam Singh Sandhu in Grade 1 enjoys dancing the most.
Kana Wiens, ELL teacher at Albion Elementary, organized the Diwali assembly with Terry Jung, Grade 4/5 teacher at the school.
"We felt like we wanted our students to have an opportunity to share their culture with the school and also share their talents," explained Wiens.
Two students performed a song using the tabla and the harmonium.
Then there were two groups of dancers, one did a Happy Diwali dance and the other a Bhangra folk dance.
"Even though we're celebrating Diwali today, it's really for all the students to show that it's important to celebrate cultural diversity and celebrations all over the world," said Wiens.
"I am very proud of my students and how hard they worked for this," she added.
"We are so pleased with how much work the kids have put into this performance," said Jung. "It's wonderful they are able to bring their traditions, their culture to the school."
