Harmony Week begins on March 15 and goes through to the 21st.
It is a time when schools and the greater community celebrate all Australians’ cultural diversity and inclusiveness and coincides with the United Nations’ International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.
If you have been following along for a while, you will know that here at Rainbow Sky Creations; we are all about saving teachers time and working smarter, not harder! And let’s face it, planning for special events can often just be another thing on the ever-growing to-do list!
(Psst: If you need help with getting on top of that To-do list – CLICK HERE).
So let’s talk about easy lessons to plan for Harmony Week:
1. Create an eye-catching display
Perhaps your classroom looks a little bare, and you need an excellent display to showcase your student’s learning during Harmony Week.
These Harmony Hearts allow students to reflect on Harmony Week by recording how they can contribute to a peaceful and happy Australia, where diversity and multiculturalism are respected and celebrated. As a bonus, they look so effective displayed in the classroom.
See how we made our 3D Harmony Hearts here.
Another alternative is to print and display this ‘We all smile in the same language’ banner. Find it FREE here. This is the perfect centrepiece for if you want to show other activities the students complete around it.
2. Foster a sense of belonging with mini lessons
Maybe you want to make the most of Harmony Week but are a little short on time or ideas – don’t worry, we have you covered!
Our Harmony Project contains a series of mini activities or lessons you could engage in each day. You could adapt The Harmony Project to use as:
- Morning work
- As a fast finisher project
- Work into your reading groups as rotational activities
- Give as homework
- Or simply use as discussion starters
We recommend The Harmony project for Grades 3-6.
Teacher tip: We have even seen some schools use it as a school-wide initiative where they share their learning!
Click here for The Harmony Project!
3. Dive into the theme with a book study
There are loads of books you can read to your students that support the message of Harmony Day. You can find a list of our favourites here.
Sharing a book each day may be all you can fit in, or you might want to dive deep and explore the themes of a particular book. If this is the case, we highly recommend ‘I’m Australian Too’ by Mem Fox for this purpose.
‘I’m Australian Too’ is a beautiful picture book celebrating Australia’s unique multiculturalism.
We have some print and go resources that are awesome time savers if a book study is something you would like to do with your class. Again, these activities also double as valuable tasks for reading group rotations.
“This resource has come in handy as we prepare for Harmony Week at our school next week…There are enough activities here to last us at least a week, possibly more! The activities are well set out, and age appropriate.’”- Emma A
Click here for the Grade 1 and 2 I’m Australian Too resource
Click here for the Grade 3 and 4 I’m Australian Too resource
BONUS Idea
Create mini Harmony Week hearts. Start by discussing the idea of ‘Everyone belongs’ – what does this mean in your classroom? School? Community? (You might like them to record their ideas on the template provided in our free resource).
Then, give each student a Harmony Heart. Ask them to decorate it in any way they like. Finally, Come together to discuss how each heart is different, but have their own special features. It is just like us, even though we all have differences it doesn’t mean we can’t live in harmony together.
Grab these mini hearts for FREE here.Â
The message of Harmony Week is such an important one to teach the next generation, and it is no surprise that teachers all over Australia are looking for ways to implement lessons about this message in their classrooms.
We hope this post helps you plan some relevant and meaningful learning experiences for your students during Harmony Week this year.
Don’t worry if you are time-poor. We have print and go resources ready for you to implement in your classroom. Click your grade level below to take you there:
What to read next:
Our Favourite Harmony Day Activity
7 Books that Celebrate Harmony
