United Nations Day at IPS: How and Why We Celebrate
The celebration of United Nations (UN) Day is a tradition at The International Preschools (IPS). IPS was established in 1963 for UN-affiliated families who were new to the United States. The school (then called a “Play Group”) was a place for these parents and children to come together and connect with each other.
In previous years, IPS commemorated United Nations Day with a school-wide sing-along and an international potluck. Families and children dressed in clothing that represented a multitude of countries. The sing-along consisted of songs in languages from around the world. Each family also contributed a dish for the international potluck, which was enjoyed with fellow families.
UN Day is a time-honored tradition at IPS and is looked forward to every year. For 2020, however, there will be some changes. Due to social distancing guidelines, we won’t be able to invite our families into school as we have in the past. We won’t be able to enjoy the delicious potluck as in previous years. We are planning to host a socially-distanced sing-along for our students; parents and families will be invited to join us via Zoom. Our celebration will look different this year, but we are confident that it will still be just as fun!
Next week’s topic: how the children at IPS learn about UN Day in their classrooms.
Want to take a peek into the IPS classrooms? Visit our website gallery by clicking here.
The observance of holidays from around the world has long been a tradition here at The International Preschools. This week, each of the three locations commemorated Lunar New Year with school-wide celebrations on Friday, January 27th. The holiday, celebrated in most Asian countries, is also called Chinese New Year and honors a different animal in a 12-year cycle. 2017 is the “Year of the Rooster.”