May the 9th 2003 we celebrated Polish Day in Astwood Bank First School. We were a few days too late, because the actual date for the Polish "Constitution Day" is the 3rd of May.

We had three different stations after the introduction area. This is where Marek among other things showed the children on the map where Poland is situated in comparizon with Great Britain.

The first area was "The Country Kitchen" in a log cabin where Ebru and Mam talked to the children about the way of life and different foods eaten in Poland. The children were able to sample a few tidbits of Polish Kabanos and smoked pork sausage and rye bread dipped in salt, which is a welcoming ceremonial thing in Poland. Pickled gherkins and sauerkraut was also on the offering!

Second area was the woodlands where wild animals like european bison, bears and wolves run free in the forests. Marek told the children the legend about how Poland started over a thousand years ago, the way the story was told to him when he was little. That story also explains the white eagle with a crown on its head that symbolizes Poland. Helen, Nenita and Eva helped visualize the story. He also showed the children his mountain axe and explained to them why it had a spike on the bottom. It's a good help on the snowy and slippery mountains.

In the third area Sue and Karen told the children a little bit about religion, culture and music and showed them some dancing, both live and on video. Much appreciated by the children. They also listened to some music by Chopin and there were pictures of famous Poles such as Nikolaus Copernikus who was an astronomer and Marie Curie who got the Nobel Price in chemistry in 1911.