Civics Week

 
Costa Rica's Independence Day was on Sept. 15th. Therefore, every morning LAST week, for the first half hour of school, all students and staff assembled in the 1st and 2nd grade classrooms (that can become one large room, the ONLY space on campus inside large enough for everyone) for presentations related to celebrating Costa Rica. Each presentation is called, "Acto Civico" (civic act?) and all presentations are a culmination of work done by students each afternoon for 45 minutes since the beginning of school.

Each morning started with everyone standing silently with right hand on one's heart while the Costa Rican flag was proudly paraded into the room in proper flag-holding style, with one person holding the flag up so that it wouldn't drag on the ground. The school's flag was also carried in, and both were put in stands for the duration of the presentation.

Then we all sang the Costa Rican national anthem and song of the Puntarenas province in which is Monteverde. Luckily they provide the words by means of overhead projector. After the presentation (which I'll get to), at the end we sang, "O, Costa Rica!" (like a national patriotic song that isn't the anthem).

At first I wasn't sure if I should put my hand on my heart while the flag parades in, or if I should sing the words, since it isn't my country. But I saw other "international" (non-tico) teachers putting their hands on their hearts and trying to sing along as best they could, in order to provide a model for the students I'm sure, so I joined in of course.

The presentations included:
1. animals of Costa Rica - monkey, manatee, butterfly, some sort of deer-like thing...
2. sayings (dichos) of Costa Rica (I'm hoping to get this from the teachers soon)
3. Kindergarteners in traditional Tico costumes danced to typical music of CR
4. traditional clothing of the various provinces of CR
5. famous people of Costa Rica - (I'm waiting for the list of who they presented)
6. Dances by teachers and students with traditional clothing

kindergarteners prepare to dance

students and teachers perform typical Costa Rican dances