Rice from own fields
In mid-May, students at SAMS Boarding School in Bangladesh's northwest region had the chance to improve their physical fitness while participating in the rice harvest on school grounds. Bangladesh's comprehensive education system emphasizes not only the development of mental and social skills but also the acquisition of practical agricultural knowledge. Students, teachers, and school staff actively took part in the harvest, undeterred by the rain.
Rice is a staple food in Bangladesh, and SAMS Boarding School is fortunate to own land where rice is cultivated. In mid-May of this year, all students from fourth to twelfth grade enthusiastically participated in the rice harvest. In addition to their regular classroom studies, they refreshed their practical skills by manually cutting, binding, and gathering rice from the school fields to the school compound for further processing. Teachers and school staff also joined in the effort.
The challenge of this year's harvest was the rain. Fortunately, it wasn't prolonged, and the several days of cloud bursts that could have flooded the fields and thwarted the harvest did not occur. In Bangladesh, however, such moments sometimes happen, and during those times, people wade through the fields to salvage at least part of the crop from under the water.
However, such a situation did not occur at SAMS Boarding School this year. So, despite the slight weather adversity, students and school staff harvested the rice. Standing crops were given priority, followed by the harvest of fallen crops, and then the collection of scattered ones. Everything was successfully harvested within two days.
During the harvest, a special meal was served to the students in the school cafeteria. It is a kind of gratitude tradition that bonds the participants of the harvest and serves as a small reward for their hard work.
Tusher Dev Sharma, the school's financial manager, said, "The harvested rice will gradually be served in the school cafeteria. We are fortunate that the school owns land for rice cultivation, which economically supports us. We are grateful to all our students for actively participating in the harvest."
PS: For more information on the further processing of rice, you can read the article Rýže od A do Z.
