Minority Culture Day
We are excited to share that Sheldon School will be holding its first Minority Culture Day for Years 11–13 on Friday 13 February. This event has been designed by the Student Leadership Team and will be led by the Sixth Form Presidents and Prefects. This event will celebrate the rich diversity within our school community and to provide all students from minority cultures the opportunity to share and take pride in their cultural heritage.
Why Culture Day?
Our school community has grown significantly in diversity over recent years. We now have students who collectively speak over 50 different languages. A Minority Culture Day will allow us to recognise and celebrate this wide range of identities, traditions, and experiences and other students to learn about these rich cultures. Through learning and understanding, come tolerance and respect. Martin Luther King Jr said, “we must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.”
Culture is an important part of students' individual history and sense of belonging. By celebrating it, we hope to help strengthen our school community, promote understanding, and encourage students from all backgrounds to feel valued and represented. This event focuses on highlighting minority cultures, which are often underrepresented or misunderstood.
Expectations
Although Culture Day involves students in Years 11–13, we know that some items of clothing and dress may raise students' curiosity, which is what the event is about. However, students in the lower school need to be respectful and polite and use this as an opportunity to ask questions and learn about different cultures.
What will students in Years 11–13 be invited to do?
Students are encouraged to take part in a variety of optional activities, including:
- Wearing clothing that reflects their minority cultural heritage
- Bringing in food linked to their culture (clearly labelled; no nuts)
- Submitting song suggestions for the Culture Day playlist
- Sharing cultural games or activities
- Volunteering to participate on the catwalk
- Volunteering to help support the day’s events
- Choosing to have henna applied (small cost – all proceeds go to Wiltshire and Bath Air Ambulance)
- Entering a multi-cultural snack hamper raffle
If students would like to take part, we ask them to sign up here. Students who don’t sign up unfortunately will not be able to take part in this year's event. But they can come and support the event at lunchtime.
Looking ahead
We hope Culture Day will be an exciting and positive celebration for our Sixth Form and Year 11 students. We hope that if this event is successful, we will be able to expand this event to the whole school in the future. Thank you, as always, for your continued support in helping us build an inclusive and respectful school community.
If you have any questions or if your child would like to volunteer to support the event, please do not hesitate to contact Mr Spiers, Head of Sheldon Sixth Form at espiers@sheldonschool.co.uk.