ORIENTAL cooking aromas and African drumbeats filled the air during a special global cultures week at Maidenhill School.

Students in Years 7-9 embraced a host of worldly activities as part of the Stonehouse School’s Go Global event, which ran from Wednesday, July 14, to Friday, July 16.

Almost every part of the school bustled with excitement as pupils tried their hand at traditional South American, Asian and African activities, including salsa dancing, Thai and Indian cooking and African map-making.

Chinese language classes, calligraphy and martial arts classes were also attempted as well as carnival head-dress making and a South American form of five-a-side football called Futsal.

The week accumulated with a series of showcase presentations from each culture in front of parents, teachers and governors at the school on Friday.

"Go Global has been a fantastic opportunity for students to find out about the life and culture of these three continents," said deputy head Pam Wilson.

"We are thrilled with the way our students and staff have thrown themselves into these activities and what the students have produced has been exceptional."