A Happy Children’s Day Assembly at TAC!
The April 23 National Sovereignty and Children's Day Assembly, prepared with the leadership of TAC’s Social Sciences Department, started with the observation of a Moment of Silence for the nation’s Great Leader, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, fallen Turkish commanders and soldiers, and then continued with the National Anthem which was sung with great enthusiasm.
The meaningful remarks of Dr. Duygu Gülev, our Academic Dean, took the audience back to their childhood while giving hope and promise for the future. The article about the opening of the Turkish Grand National Assembly, read by Tolga Mayaoğlu from grade 10, and poems by Cevahir Bozkurt from grade 11 and Çağatay Gökçeli from grade 10 reminded us, the listeners, about the unique importance of the day, with a taste of poetry.
During the assembly, the opening of the Turkish Grand National Assembly in 1920 was stressed as an important turning point in our country’s history. It was explained that as of this date, sovereignty was transferred back to the people, unconditionally, and that during the trying days of the national struggle, Mustafa Kemal and his friends were building the future of a country. How Ataturk presented this day to children as a gift was also mentioned. TAC students staged a short play based on Ataturk’s idea that the preservation of the integrity of the motherland starts with the protection of the children. Everyone was very touched by the scene where Shepherd Mustafa meets Atatürk as a kid, a beautiful, life-changing coincidence, based on his own memoirs.
The percussion show prepared in collaboration with the students of Hasan Karamehmet Elementary School, led by music teacher, Ms. Ayşegül Yıldıran, and TAC music students, as well as the dance show prepared by TAC students and young students from the same sister school provided entertaining, fun moments in the auditorium.
Traditional shadow puppetry, which is one of the most important cornerstones of our culture, along with “ortaoyunu and meddah”, known as “KARAGÖZ and HACİVAT” which emerged hundreds of years ago, entertained people while contributing to social awareness about many issues. The Karagöz and Hacivat puppetry, which entertained children in every period of our history, came alive on the TAC stage thanks to the very successful narrations of Mert Kepece and Ege Baykal, our 11th graders.
We hope to continue to experience the same enthusiasm on 23rd of April every year!