Bluffdale DLI Students Celebrate Brazilian Independence Day

BLUFFDALE — Students in Bluffdale Elementary's Portuguese dual language immersion program celebrated Brazilian Independence Day with song and dance, learning and performing traditional songs in Portuguese, the district said 1.

The holiday, Dia da Independência, also called Sete de Setembro, commemorates Sept. 7, 1822, when Brazil declared its independence from the United Kingdom of Portugal, according to the district. Students wore Brazilian soccer jerseys and specially decorated hats for a day the district described as festive.

The district did not give a date for the celebration at the school, and it did not name any of the students who took part.

Portuguese is one of the languages Jordan School District offers through its dual language immersion programs. The district said students enrolled in one of them spend half of their elementary school day learning in a second language, that the program starts in first grade and continues up to twelfth grade, and that university classes are available in high school. It directs families to immersion.jordandistrict.org for more information.

The district said the day mixed the holiday's history and culture with the language the students are learning.