They were international representatives who sat in a circle at tables with the flags and cultural artifacts of their respective countries. These diplomats were students and their audience was a group of their younger peers as students from the Lakeland School presented different countries in celebration of United Nations Day.
The U.N. Day presentation has been a regular event for the multi-age class of fifth- through eighth-grade students. Teacher Pearl Sandy said students were assigned the project a month ago, with fifth- and sixth-graders tending to find it easier to study European countries while the seventh- and eighth-graders took countries in Asia and Africa that are more of a research challenge.
Each student prepared a board containing pictures and facts about their respective countries for the Wednesday presentation, while they also brought in other cultural items such as money, models of houses, and other items. They also brought in a food from their country to share with the rest of the class.
Portugal was presented by fifth-grader Derek Achenbach, who described the country's animals, including varieties of oxen and cows as well as the Portuguese man-o-war jellyfish. He also explained the symbolism of the Portuguese flag and brought in a cod casserole, symbolizing the country's abundance of fish.
DARYL CARLSON/CITIZEN PHOTO Maya Infascelli demonstrates Chinese writing during presentations for United Nations Day at Lakeland School in Meredith Wednesday morning. The all -day event included food tasting from different nations in the afternoon.
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Spain also has "quite a variety of fish" according to fifth grader Mitchell Johnson. He also explained how the Euro displays its value on one side while the other side has different designs from the different countries in which it is used.
Johnson also described the difference between Christmas in Spain and the United States.
"You know how we have Santa Claus, they have the Three Wisemen," he said, adding that Spaniards fill their shoes with hay and leave them out to collect presents.
Lydia Candage, a sixth-grader, discussed Greece, showing pictures of the Parthenon and sharing spanakopita, a spinach and cheese pie.
Amelia Freo had a personal reason for choosing Italy as her country.
"The reason I decided to do it (is) my ancestors were from Italy," said Freo, a fifth-grader. "They were from Rome, they came by boat."
Freo talked about the sport of bocce ball and the popularity of the late opera singer Luciano Pavarotti as well as showing a bracelet strung with 500 pieces of Lira. She brought in her grandmother's homemade lasagna made from around six different meats and four different cheeses.
Tartans and bagpipes were major cultural features of Scotland according to fifth-grader Marisa Myers, who also described the country's sheep.
"They're used for haggis and you don't want to know what it's made of," she said.
Maya Infascelli is a native of the Shanxi Province of China and did a presentation on her native country. The fifth grader demonstrated Chinese calligraphy and stamping and shows photos from a recent trip to China, including the Great Wall and Beijing. Infascelli, who was given the name Fu Anqui, meaning "Happiness Angel," also served her classmates rice with soy sauce.
Brad Tardif from the seventh grade did his report on Madagascar and described the nine-foot tall elephant bird, the commonality of lemurs, and showed a model he made of a red mud hut in addition to sharing lemon cookies.
The 18,000 islands of Indonesia was the focus of seventh grader Sarah Morrissette's presentation. Morrisette showed models she made of stilt houses and described the country's vulnerability to volcanoes, earthquakes and tsunamis due to it's position in the Ring of Fire. She also shared Lapas Legit, a treat of Dutch origin also called the "thousand layer cake," which is typically served after a celebration.
Natasha Vogel described Mongolia, with its 220 to 260 summer days, volcanic lakes, and yurts, or huts.
"They have crystal clear rivers," the eighth grader said. "They have no pollution there."
Sri Lanka is a major exporter of coconuts, rubber, tea, and coffee, said sixth-grader Elizabeth Longshore, a new student at the Lakeland School. Additionally "most of the places get over 39 inches of rain."
Thailand is the native country of Siamese and Korat cats. "That's why I did it, because my cat was a Korat," said fifth grader Lee Miller.
Miller described the highest restaurant in Bangkok and a jewelry store that cuts sapphires for customers.
"They do eat bugs but I didn't bring any pictures of them because it was really gross," said Miller, who instead brought a chicken dish from Little Thailand restaurant in Laconia.
"It really does a lot of good," said Sandy said. "Makes that connection between what they read about in the newspaper and what they learn in books."
