Dressed in traditional Bosnian pants called dimija and wearing a blouse that her grandmother hand-stitched, 11-year-old Lejla Pavlovic was excited to celebrate her culture with her peers.
“It’s really fascinating to see everyone in their traditional wear and everything they eat,” Lejla said.
St Columban’s Primary School in Mayfield went all-out for Harmony Day this year, with kids donning their cultural dress and bringing plates of food before an afternoon of performances and crafts.
Lejla’s favourite part of her Bosnian heritage had to be the food.
“It’s just so delicious,” she said.
She brought in burek, a meat-filled pastry, and her grandmother brought in sutiljas, a sweet rice with cream.
The Newcastle school is the most culturally diverse primary school in the Newcastle-Maitland Catholic Diocese, with students’ heritages spanning from Asia to Pacific Islands and Africa.
Assistant principal Megan Neilson said they had around 34 different nationalities at the school, and every day was like Harmony Day.
“We all come from different parts of the world but we all work together towards a common goal,” Ms Neilson said.
She said the multicultural environment was one of the best parts of working at the school for the past 14 years.
“I think they [students] get more of an understanding of the world as a whole, they get acceptance of people that don’t look or appear to be the same as them,” she said.
The assistant principal said students were able to celebrate and share their culture with their school community during Harmony Day events.
The morning started off with a liturgy where students got to speak in their traditional language before an international feast was rolled out.
Religious education coordinator Ainara Alonso Mateos said they had over 20 dishes for students to share.
“We really want to embrace our diversity,” she said.
Midday performances featured dances from New Zealand, Samoa and India with afternoon crafts including weaving and totem poles, she said.
Nine-year-old Maita Muzhingi was from Zimbabwe and he said his favourite food was sadza.
“I don’t know how it’s made but it’s really fluffy, it’s really good,” he said.
“I really like Harmony Day because it teaches us that we’re not all the same.”
Zahil Grant, 10, was wearing a traditional skirt, top and necklace from Tonga.
She helped her friend give out a traditional drink called otai, which was a mix of watermelon juice, pineapple, mango and coconut flakes.
Her favourite part of Tongan culture was the dances and how people braided their hair.
“I really like how I get to see other people’s cultures and I get to see that people are from all different places,” she said.
