This semester Foundation to Year 4 students have been exploring how Japanese people celebrate the New Year, with a special focus on the daruma, a traditional and symbolic Japanese toy that holds great significance during this time of year.
The daruma is a “roly-poly” doll that always returns to an upright position, no matter how many times it’s knocked over, symbolising perseverance and resilience.
In Japan, it is customary to colour in one eye when setting a goal at the beginning of the year, with the second eye only being filled in once the goal has been achieved. Our students embraced this tradition by reacting on their own personal goals and colouring in one eye of a daruma picture. In another lesson, as seen in the photos below, Years 2 to 4 students crafted origami daruma dolls, using split pins to demonstrate how, like the Japanese proverb “Fall down seven times, get up eight,” their daruma always bounces back. Alongside this cultural learning, students also explored how God encourages us to “be strong and courageous”, not only because perseverance is valuable, but because “the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9). OSHC for the Pupil Free Day Friday 30 May is a Pupil Free Day. OSHC will be open from 6:30am to 6:30pm, and bookings are essential to ensure sta-to-child ratios are maintained.
Delicious breakfast options will be available, with pancakes and hash browns priced at $2 per item. For lunch, students can enjoy cheese toasties and noodles, also available at $2 per item. We hope students were inspired by this unique cultural tradition and the meaningful message of goal setting, determination, and God’s unwavering presence in our lives.
Darren Sweet
Primary Japanese Teacher
