The international students dove into a North American Halloween tradition starting on October 24, when students spent a day at the pumpkin patch in Maple Ridge. The group spent the day going through activities, such as a petting zoo and corn maze. The school bought five pumpkins for the carving that would take place on Friday, October 27.
“This was a way to give students a taste of what we do in North America,” said Ms. Catherine Yamamoto. “Most of them are in homestays, living with families who may or may not celebrate Halloween and may not give them a chance to go to a pumpkin patch and carve a pumpkin — a tradition we have grown up with and always looked forward to in North America.
The pumpkin carving was held in the cafeteria, and even though the turn out was small, the pumpkins weren’t the only ones grinning.
“It’s nice to see the students participating in activities like this,” said Ms. Sharon Lotter. “These past days have allowed the students to get involved in something they may have never done before. In Japan, for example, they don’t celebrate the same way we do here and it’s nice to have the students exposed to something they aren’t used to.”
