CANORA - A great way for students to learn is by sharing their research with members of the general public. During the Grade 6A International Bazaar on June 13 at Canora Composite School, students visited with visitors and shared their newfound knowledge of their chosen countries among Canada’s Atlantic neighbours.
A big focus of the event is to broaden the worlds of these young scholars, according to Jennifer Sleeva, teacher.
“The goal of the project is to allow students to learn and recognize it is a big world with many diverse cultures and ways of living. The hope is that they take away an appreciation of all the many different ways of life in countries that border the Atlantic Ocean.”
Wales
The team of Camryn Burym and Rachel Mentanko chose to base their project on Wales.
“Wales is a smaller country with only a little over 3 million people,” said Burym. “People in Wales are known for having a firm handshake.”
One of the reasons they chose Wales was, “The family of our teacher, Mrs. Sleeva, is from Wales,” added Mentanko.
The country stretches some 130 miles (210 km) from north to south, and its east-west width varies, up to 90 miles (145 km) across in the north, narrowing to about 40 miles (65 km) in the centre, and widening again to more than 100 miles (160 km) across the south.
Wales is known for music and dance.
Burym and Mentanko discovered that when visiting someone in Wales, it’s customary to give them wine or chocolate or flowers.
Iceland
Declan Unick and Tarryn Tratch chose Iceland, which is well known for the blue lagoon in Grindavik in the southwest portion of the country. The blue lagoon is a geothermal spa, famous for its healing powers.
Another welcoming feature in Iceland is the prominence of the northern lights.
“Iceland is the eighth most expensive place to live in the world,” said Unick. “They are know for great food,” added Tratch, “including fish, lamb and Hákarl (fermented shark).
Handball, not especially well-known in Canada, is the most popular sport in Iceland, according to Unick and Tratch. Other popular sports include: fishing, hiking, golf, basketball, soccer (football) and swimming.
The main religions are Christianity and Norse religion, which is based on a large number of gods and goddesses.
Average daily temperature in Iceland ranges from -1°C in winter to 15°C in summer, and the climate is known to be windy, cloudy and unstable.
Brazil
Isaac Bryant and Ryder Edwards featured Brazil in their project, mainly because “Brazil is a very active country, where they’re known for being good at soccer (football) and volleyball.”
Dance is another activity enjoyed by many Brazilians, who are known for the samba and the bossa nova.
Brazil is the largest country in South America, and the fifth largest in the world.
The currency in Brazil is the Real, with a Canadian dollar worth about three to four Real.
Brazilians enjoy their barbecues, and the country is known for winning the South American barbecue championship. Bryant and Edwards said one of the favourite foods in Brazil is acarajé, a combination of baked potatoes, shrimp and vegetable stew.
The climate is tropical, creating an ideal environment for growing fruits such as watermelons, strawberries and plantain.
In Brazil, 95 per cent of the population claim to be catholic in their faith, after it was introduced to the country by the Portuguese over 500 years ago.
Jamaica
For Angel Sliva and Kenzee Kopelchuk, it was a pretty easy decision to focus their project on Jamaica.
“They’re known for their palm trees and nice scenery,” said Kenzee. “Jamaica produces sprinters,” added Sliva. “Usain Bolt still holds the world record in the 100 metres, and Jamaica produces the most gold medalists per capita of any country.”
In addition to track-and-field athletes, Jamaica also produces soccer (football) players, with the national team known as the Reggae Boyz. Of course, reggae music originated in Jamaica.
The people are known for their colourful fashions.
Popular foods include sautéed collaba (salted cod) and roasted breadfruit. Sliva and Kopelchuk had samples of boiled banana fritters, another popular Jamaican food, available to try as part of their display.
The Jamaican climate is generally warm, but cooler at higher altitudes. Hurricanes are possible in late summer and early fall.
Cuba
The choice for the team of Chance Weinbender and Kolton Unick was Cuba, an island nation. “You never have to go very far to find water,” said Weinbender. “Their main sports are baseball and soccer (football),” added Unick.
Canada is about 90 times the size of Cuba, but Cuba has almost a third of our population.
As part of display, the pair served samples of a popular Cuban drink made from: watermelon, sprite, lemon juice and sugar. Cuban residents love their food, especially stews and pork.
Cuba has long been a popular destination for travelers from Canada and the U.S., especially in winter.
The Cuban standard of living is quite low when compared to other countries, with over 70 per cent living below the poverty line.
After Fidel Castro declared Cuba an atheist state, celebrating Christmas was banned from 1969 to 1998.
Weinbender and Unick discovered that Cubans have an unusual tradition of burning rag dolls to celebrate New Year’s Eve.
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