• Footsteps Preschool shines spotlight on tea during Independence Day activities

Footsteps Preschool is determined to change the way children celebrate Independence Day, marked annually on 4 February, by making it an opportunity to learn about something that makes up the country’s identity. Last year, the theme was ‘Protect Our Elephants’, with Footsteps Preschool educating students about the importance of protecting our elephants, while also tying in the sustainability aspect.

This year, Footsteps Preschool chose tea as its focus point, centring their Independence Day celebrations on the theme ‘Beau-tea-ful Sri Lanka’. The celebration was a journey through the art and culture of tea. Students had the opportunity to make and drink tea, make art using tea, and take home tea bags so they can share their tea-making knowledge with their families.

In conversation with The Daily Morning Brunch, Footsteps Preschool Director Fazra Irfan shared more details about the 2025 theme for Independence Day and the activities the school organised for the students.

Since the students are too young to understand the economic aspects of the industry and the challenges it faces, the team taught them about the different types of tea grown across the country and how up-country tea differs from Southern tea, including the difference in climate, volume, and quality.

The students were also made more aware of the multicultural nature of our country, learning about the ethnicity of tea pluckers as well as the importance of preserving what is ours regardless of the ethnicity linked to it.

Celebrating Independence Day, the students also wore outfits representative of their ethnic backgrounds, which also sent a message of unity.

A learning experience

Last year’s elephant-themed celebrations had students learning both about jumbo protection and sustainability and recycling. This year, the focus was on tea, with the school getting parents involved as well, especially in providing them with different kinds of tea.

The team then looked at how they can make it an interactive learning experience for the students.

“We thought of doing certain activities that will develop their creativity and also develop their senses. That’s when we divided the activities among the specific age groups. For the older children – that is the age group between say three and a half to about five and a half years – we had role playing, teaching them how to make tea. We also showed them a video on how tea is made, from the tea plucker until it goes to the factory,” Irfan shared.

Two students also danced to the popular song ‘Udarata Kandukara’. Meanwhile, for the smaller age group, the team organised tea tasting, giving a sensory experience to the students. Irfan explained that the students got to taste different flavours of tea, including fruits and spices, and also painting using tea bags, which developed their creativity.

The students were also given tea to take home, so the parents could make tea with their children.

When asked how the different activities were decided on for the different age groups, Irfan explained that Footsteps Preschool follows the Cambridge Early Years curriculum, which is broken down into six areas of learning. One of these areas or standards is giving children hands-on real-life experiences, which needs to be done continuously, as per the curriculum.

“That’s when we decided how we are going to turn this into a real-life experience. We then went with the different milestones of students, as they have specific milestones that they have to develop at a certain age,” Irfan explained.

Younger students need to develop their senses, such as touch, smell, and sight. Tea tasting helped with taste, while tea making involved sight, as they saw the colour of the tea change depending on the flavour of tea. Smell was also a huge component.

A positive response

The response to the activities was way beyond expected, Irfan said, explaining that for some, it was their first time drinking tea. The students were able to differentiate flavours, with some saying the tea was sweet and others pointing out teas that were sour. They also experienced the different tastes of tea, and Irfan said it was a very good learning experience for the students.

The feedback from the parents was also positive, with some saying their children insisted on showing them how to make tea just as they learnt in school. “They really enjoyed the act of putting the tea bag into the water and mixing it,” Irfan said.

A different approach to Independence

According to Irfan, their themed Independence Day celebrations are a result of wanting to make them a learning experience for children. Instead of limiting their Independence Day learning to national symbols like the flag, for instance, the school ensures they teach students something about Sri Lanka.

The school also wants to show children the importance of preserving things the country owns, which Footsteps saw as an important part of Independence Day celebrations. “That is the main idea why we take different themes every year,” she said, pointing out that since the students are very young, they would remember for a long time what they learn in school.

She added that as a parent herself, she has seen that children today don’t have much interest in historical facts. They don’t feel patriotic and aren’t interested in freedom fighters or Independence in 1948, for instance. However, they are interested in various things in our country, like surfing, seeing elephants, and going on safari.

“When we touch the emotional side of the country, saying these are things that are only seen in Sri Lanka and that’s why the country is thriving, especially with tourism, that part they understand,” Irfan said.

She explained that all educational institutions should look at these aspects, saying: “Given the current situation of how competitive education has become, I think it is important for all institutes, and not just early year education, to show the important things of our country to the students.”

Activities like this also give students a better understanding of what they see or experience. Irfan pointed out that some students came to them saying they have seen tea plantations during trips to Nuwara Eliya and Badulla. However, they weren’t aware of what these plantations really meant until the Independence Day activities.

Some students weren’t aware that tea is cultivated and made in Sri Lanka and this knowledge about Sri Lanka’s tea industry was intriguing to them. To provide a more enriched experience, Footsteps Preschool also had fresh tea leaves the students could see and touch.