Multicultural Festival at Grădinița Răsărit

The Multicultural Festival is one of the projects specific to Neohumanist education, held annually, in which children learn about a particular country, and the approach is holistic, so that the little ones develop inclusive attitudes toward all human beings.

Multicultural Festival 2022

This year, in the “Multicultural Festival: Russia” project that we carried out in our kindergarten, we tried to help the children deeply understand the customs, traditions, dances, foods, games, stories, people and culture of Russia, so that over time they extend their principle of equity and inclusiveness, accept and celebrate diversity in all its forms, and cultivate attitudes based on justice, empathy, tolerance, morality in peace and respect for the inner dignity of all human beings, regardless of country of origin, language spoken, skin color, ethnicity, religion, disability or level of ability. In short, to look at everything in a Neohumanist, universal and multidimensional manner.

We, the teachers, tried to give the festival a multicultural note, so that from an early age the little ones form their own ideas, free of prejudice or stereotypes, gradually forming solid principles based on modeling respect and appreciation for what is different, cultivating various friendships and nurturing respect and appreciation for existing differences, tolerance, empathy, peace and universal love, while giving the children the opportunity to meet, understand and love people different from themselves, inviting guests into the classroom to provide real and positive experiences of diversity.

Activities during the festival

The children of the groups “Buburuze,” “Albinuțe” and “Fluturași” were very delighted with everything that Russia signifies, showing real openness and embracing diversity in all its splendor. This was also evident from the interactive discussions with Evgeniya, our friend from Russia, who shared with us classic stories, childhood games, favorite dishes, beloved songs and more. We also had fun doing a Romanian-Russian “word exchange.”

The children also showed a positive attitude and a desire to learn the Russian dances – Cazacioc, Kalinka, Katyusha – and curiosity in tasting traditional Russian foods – “blinciki s vareniem” or blini (pancakes), salad, borscht, and also typical Russian tea.

To consolidate the theme of diversity, in addition to all this, we used the “persona dolls” method, an ideal educational tool for promoting diversity, stimulating empathy and developing emotional intelligence. Bearing the names Ilici and Svetlana, our friends who arrived all the way from Moscow and Saint Petersburg brought life stories, games and new experiences, interacted with the group of children and took part with them in happy events.

The Multicultural Festival ended in a cheerful atmosphere, with Russian music and dances and with the hope that gradually the children will show universal love, peace and acceptance for all the cultures of the world.

Article by Gini Nistor, preschool teacher, Middle Group: “Fluturași”