On Friday, 31st March 2023, students and staff at Northampton Academy celebrated our annual 'My Culture Day'. Every year, we join together to celebrate the character and diversity of our school. 'My Culture Day' was a celebration of students and staff from nearly every continent speaking over 60 languages. This year's theme was You, Me, Our Community: Our Differences Unite Us."
As a school, we believe that character education means more than just following a specific course of study; it is also about the support and development of our students as individuals, putting our 'Pillars of Virtue'; Respect, Determination, Ambition, Tolerance and Integrity at the heart of this.
The day's first lesson introduced the concept of identity, exploring what makes up our identity, how it is created, and the role it plays in the feeling of inclusion. Following this, students learned about possible barriers to being their best selves and ways to overcome them.
During break time, students had the opportunity to sample different food from around the world and to see some of the colourful cultural dress that was worn by many.
Then came a virtual guest speaker, Mo Walker, a professional player from the Leicester Riders Basketball Team, who talked about how determination, resilience and ambition enabled him to overcome various obstacles. He spoke of how a serious injury in his first year at university nearly put an end to his dream and how he overcame it and was able to pursue a successful career in Basketball.
Lunchtime saw a fashion and cultural dance show hosted by Sixth Form students performed to a packed assembly hall. It was a joy to see the feast of colour, music and dance, reflecting the true character and vibrance of our school.
The last lessons of the day were entitled 'Our Community' and 'Symbols of our Identity'. Students learned about different communities, languages, traditions and cultures from around the world during an interactive lesson. Then how different symbols, including cultural dress, flags, symbols or tattoos, can be used to represent different identities. Armed with what they had learned, students were encouraged to design their own flags to include five things that reflect their identity. These will be used to create an inclusion graphic for display in our courtyard area.
A great day was had by all, and it was a fitting way to end a very busy term.