BES students welcome parents
The rain this morning didn’t dampen the spirits of the students of Belize Elementary School who welcomed their parents and fellow students into their classrooms to view their accomplishment. News Five’s Jacqueline Woods was among those enjoying the displays.
The open day demonstrated what students could accomplish with a little bit of support from their teachers and parents. This open day is the fourth for the Belize Elementary School. William Neal, BES Vice principal says preparations for the one-day activity started as early as September and he is impressed with the projects the students did for this year’s exhibition.
William Neal, Vice Principal, BES
“Each year the emphasis changes because each class and each teacher decides to do something different than what they did the year before. One year the emphasis was Social Studies, next year it might be on Science so it alternates. Except in the upper division where there is a strong emphasis on building the Science department. So in the upper division you might have a lot of Science projects. Like in Standard Four there are individual projects, In Standard Five their are group projects and an entire class project in Standard Six.”
One display that drew a crowd was a boat built by Nine year old Jordan Bradley. Bradley who is from the family of well-known boat builders no doubt learnt some skills while hanging out with his dad and grandfather at Bradley’s Boatyard.
Jordan Bradley, 9 years old
“I just, when I was growing up, I just saw my dad doing it and I just liked it.
Jackie: “Did it take you long to build this little boat?”
Jordan Bradley
“Oh, it only took some few weeks.”
Jackie: “You alone did it?”
Jordan Bradley
“My dad helped me by painting it and so.”
Another impressive marine display was the project by the standard six students. The exhibition depicted the coastal zone of Belize.
Brandon Gillett, Standard Six
“Well we had to do posters, we had to make like houses and all of that, mangroves. We had to spread sand like make it like a beach and all of that.
Cultural displays like the Garifuna exhibition treated visitors to a taste of the ethnic dishes of serre and hoodut, the beating of the Garifuna drums and a dance. The students were also proud to have their parents by their side giving them the encouragement they need.
Kim Sanchez, Parent
“I think they should come out and encourage them more you know when you are doing something like that they feel good when they see them come out to see what they have done for the year.”
David Coye, Parent
“It shows that they are skilful in things they would like to do in their spare time. If you would look around, it will show the artistic ability of the things they have, the craftsmanship like a little boy having a boat on display they are so creative.”
Natalie McNab, Parent
“I think this kind of activity is good because it gives them a chance to express their opinions, their art creativity and it gives them a sense of responsibility to get things done on time.”
Reporting for News Five I am Jacqueline Woods.
