It's Rosh Hashanah.

[conuly]

Those of my friends who celebrate, of course, have a good holiday and a happy new year. And those who don't, well, enjoy the next two days anyway. Any day is a good day for apples and honey :)

Interestingly, in a tangent from a conversation I'm having with leora right now, I'm quite impressed that the Kindergarten standards for Social Studies in NYC say that by the end of the year your average Kindergarten student should be able to "identify with his or her ethnic background" and there's something in there about being able to identify and enjoy ones traditional celebrations, food, stories, etc.

Perfectly correct, if you ask me - but I wonder, is this something common to most of the country? Or is it only common to areas like NYC, with high immigration?

Comments

[atdelphi.livejournal.com]

I would add (sorry if you already know this) that The Canadian Mosaic is a big thing in Canada. It was pretty much invented in opposition to the American Melting Pot metaphor, with the idea that we celebrate our differences, and thus why it's a part of a lot of curricula.

Of course, it's come under controversy in recent years. On the one hand, it does try to discourage a "fit in or get out attitude" (though it's really not successful) but on the other, it's criticized as not nurturing a national identity, especially for our many transracial and second- and third-generation Canadians, leaving all Canadians sort of sullenly grasping at "Well, we're not Americans and we're not British..."

[leora.livejournal.com]

*nods*

I can definitely see some good intent in that.

I just generally think any sort of family tree making is likely to lead to problems for some kids.

I do, however, like the idea of teaching that people are different, have different cultures, and come from different families - and that's okay.