One of the traditions that best exemplifies Maggie Walker’s devotion to promoting international cultures is its annual International Language Fair. Every year, Dragons from each of the ten languages offered at Maggie Walker organize and host the fair for local middle school students to attend. The fair boasts dozens of language workshops, cultural activities, food tastings, and performances. For the students of Maggie Walker, the event offers the opportunity to promote their favorite languages and interact with their community. For middle schoolers, the fair is a chance to see what Maggie Walker has to offer and learn more about new cultures.

Behind the scenes of this fun event, there is a lot of preparation. Sreemayi Gangireddy (‘25) stated that one of the most important things to take into consideration was keeping the kids entertained and engaged. In the Chinese language workshop that she oversaw, Gangireddy taught the students Chinese numbers, and the students then played a “Flyswatter” game to test their knowledge. In this game, a workshop leader called out a number, and the students, competing with another student, must be the first to circle it on a piece of paper with all of the numbers on it. Gangireddy commented that the students were “running around” and seemed “really engaged.” This is her third year of volunteering for the event, and she’s really excited to volunteer again next year. 

Samuel Freeman (‘27) oversaw the French workshop, where the students first participated in a French jeopardy game, then a game inspired by “Poisson d’Avril” (the French equivalent of April Fool’s Day). In this game, the students colored fish and had to tape them to the backs of other students. When asked about how the French workshop leaders came up with this idea, Freeman stated that he wanted to think of a “game with a reward” because “middle school students can be very competitive.” As in the Chinese language workshop, candy was a big incentive for the students. The French language workshop used Haribo gummies, which are popular in France, as rewards. 

The language fair was actually what introduced Freeman to Maggie Walker, and as a current freshman, his past experiences with the fair as an attending student inspired him to volunteer for the fair this year. As an attending student, he “learned a ton of new things,” and the “environment was very good.” The fair exposes students to many different cultures that they otherwise may have never known about. He highly recommends taking part in this incredible teaching opportunity and encourages any interested students to sign up to volunteer for the fair next year. 

To the south of France is Spain, and the Spanish language workshop was another hotspot at the fair over the weekend. Despite unfortunate conflicts that left one of the booths missing a few of its leaders, the workshop still went off without a hitch thanks to the help of four other volunteers who leapt to cover the gap. One of these volunteers, Hoda Vohra (‘25), described the workshop: it featured a “presentation that covered the basic cornerstones of the Spanish language” and a couple of rounds of Kahoot “to engage the students” and foster some lighthearted competition. Overall, however, Vohra’s favorite part of attending the fair was watching the dance performances from Bhangra and Japanese Club. About the Japanese Club’s performance, she said, “It was especially nice to hear some of the backstory behind the dances.” The performances were another amazing way to learn about new cultural traditions. She added that the reason fairs like this one are so important, especially for younger students, is that “there’s so much to learn from other cultures,” and “we can connect with each other by learning new languages and traditions.”

Aside from workshops that focused on individual languages, the fair also featured special performances from student-led groups such as Bhangra and the Japanese Club. Ritvika Palani (‘25), a member of Bhangra, described the process of preparing for the big event: “We had practices once a week leading up to it, then we started stacking on practices as we got closer to the event.” She added that the team had to adjust to the change in space on the stage and “made sure to have a dress rehearsal” for those last minute adjustments. According to Palani, things got “intense” the last week before the final performance; making sure everyone thoroughly understood the choreography and positions was a demanding but important task. Looking upon the fair as a whole, Palani added, “I think [the fair] really highlights the importance of education and learning about other cultures.” Through its culture and language-focused booths, food, and performances, the International Language Fair “opens your eyes to how many diverse cultures and languages there are.” 

The International Language Fair is a beloved tradition at Maggie Walker. In the years since its creation, it has quickly become an avenue for sharing languages, memories, and experiences. For middle schoolers, it represents a chance to explore the possibilities of what Maggie Walker has to offer, as well as an inspiration to continue involving themselves. Finally, the fair represents, for all, a devotion to learning about others and the unique cultures that constitute our community.