Mrs Cruse (Head of Years 7 and 8)
Over the last couple of weeks, the Years 7 and 8 students have engaged in Diversity and Inclusion day programmes, which have involved various enriching activities and open discussions.
On Thursday 28th June, Year 8 spent the day examining the Black Lives Matter movement, the Stephen Lawrence Murder and the impact both of these have had on society. They thought about the idea that diversity and better integration will help further in promoting respect and tolerance and building a better community cohesion. To help them express their thoughts and feelings they examined the art work of Chris Ofili, in particular his portrait of Stephen Lawrence’s mother, ‘No Woman, No Cry. They also looked at the artist Jean-Michel Basquiat whom Ofil was heavily influenced by.
During the afternoon, the students watched the very powerful film The Hate U Give. Using extracts from the novel, they penned reflective and imaginative poetry, which showed a powerful understanding of the day.
The Year 7 Diversity and Inclusion Day on Monday had a different focus. The day started with a Cultural Dance experience led by students, Aleena Azam and Narayani Joshi. They showcased a South East Asian dance, which they had choreographed themselves and taught it to the entire year group.
The focus then changed to children’s rights and the significance of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The students discussed how some children had taken a cause they believed in and developed it into a campaign. Some of the children they researched included Chaeli Mycroft, who won the Children’s Peace Prize in 2011. Chaeli was born with cerebral palsy; she does not see her disabilities, she focuses on possibilities rather than limitations. In the afternoon, the students watched, He named me Malala. Malala Yousafzai won the Children’s Peace Prize in 2013. After the film, the year group discussed Malala’s reason behind telling her story: “I tell my story, not because it is unique, but because it is not. It is the story of many girls.”
Aleena Azam reflected: “Our diversity and Inclusion day was a way to express our culture and also learn about how some children don’t have the rights they should and how passionate people such as Malala make the world a better place, telling their story on behalf of them themselves and girls around the world. I thoroughly enjoyed choreographing the South Asian dance and performing it, thank you for the opportunity. The documentary was incredibly interesting and I really felt I was put in Malala’s shoes, thinking about what she’s gone through. I hope we have another diversity and inclusion day, it was very enjoyable. Thank you to Mrs Cruse for organising the day!”
