Second Mate

Considering Diversity

How to Run

Explain that ships can have crew members from all over the world and that they can have very different religious beliefs, this includes the festivals they celebrate. Tell the section that they will be learning about some of these religions and their festivals (including why and how are they celebrated. Ask the section to name some religions they know and highlight any they say that have big annual celebrations (Hindus, Judaism, Christians etc) and then ask them to name any religious festivals that they know. Once they have named a few festivals, split the section into groups and ask them to make a basic plan for a celebration (they can write the plan or draw it out) the plan should include food, decorations etc. once they have their plans, they should then make decorations and invitations to their celebrations, these should be in the theme of the festival.

What You Need

  • Pens, paper, colouring pencils and craft materials to create the decorations and invitations
  • Printed fact sheets about the religions you want the groups to focus on. a google search can bring up any information you need.

Ahhh so these are the new crew mates I’ve been hearing so much about… I hope you’ve not been causing any trouble! I’m sure you’ve been a great addition to the crew.

Speaking of the crew… on board this wonderful ship we have many seafarers from all over the world. We like to make sure everyone is welcome and to do that we celebrate many cultural and religious festivals.

Could you help me to organise some celebrations?

Your tasks:

  • Learn about 3 different religious festivals (why and how are they celebrated)
  • Focus on one festival and learn in more detail how they are celebrated
  • Create invitations, decorations and plan an activity to celebrate the event