Nakasuk students celebrate Australia

SARAH MANIAPIK

IQALUIT — Students from Iqaluit’s Nakasuk School celebrated Australia Day on January 26.

Peter Hough, Nakasuk school’s principal, is orginally from Australia. Hough celebrated the day by visiting classrooms and talking to students about his country.

John Maurice, a Grade 2 and 3 teacher at Nakasuk School, said his students were looking at calender and noticed that January 26 is Australia Day, and decided to work a theme around it.

Teacher Kate McDermott had placed paper boomerangs in teachers’ mail slots, and students wrote and colored them and put them up in the office area, along with two large colored kangaroos.

Students started the day off by singing the Canadian national anthem, followed by Hough singing Australia’s national anthem “Advance Australia Fair.”

Then Mc Dermott and Hough sang “Waltzing Matilda,” Australia’s unnofficial anthem.