Welcome Sesame (Ukraine): Invisible Shield

Ten-year-old Denys from Kyiv loves to dance and attends group lessons several times a week, where he practices with his teacher and other children. In the winter of 2022, Denys started to learn the Ukrainian dance - Hopak, which has become a way of expressing his pride in Ukrainian heritage. As Denys practices different elements of the dance, he also learns about its history and the story of the Cossacks. Hopak is a dance that shows their strength and courage, which Denys compares to having an invisible shield, some kind of a 'super defense'. After classes, Denys likes to go to the park by the Dnipro River, where he collects his thoughts and rehearses his dance alone in nature, preparing for his performance on the big stage some day. This film is part of the 5-film series produced by Sesame Workshop, as part of the Welcome Sesame initiative, designed for children and families affected by the war in Ukraine to develop coping skills, encourage emotional wellbeing, and provide opportunities for early education. Videos and print resources are being distributed on an ongoing basis to families and to Sesame Workshop's partners responding to the crisis.