At the very beginning of this semester, Year 5 students had their first topic study in their Chinese Studies Classes—Chinese Valentine’s Day.
In the Lunar Calendar, July 7th is traditional Chinese Valentine’s Festival for Han People. Being the most romantic traditional festival in Chinese culture, it is widely appreciated by people and has been passed on for many years. Originated from the beautiful tale between the cowherd and the fairy, this festival has become a symbol of love and was called Eastern Valentine’s Day. Through the Chinese Studies Classes, Year 5 students not only learned the origin and customs of Chinese Valentine’s Day, but also knew about the tale between the cowherd and the fairy. The students were so absorbed in the tale and compared the festival with western Valentine’s Day. Through the group work in class, they have captured a better understanding of the festival by creating the posters of comparison between eastern and western Valentine’s Day.
In the Han Dynasty, Chinese Valentine’s Day has developed the custom for people to pray for wisdom and skills from the fairy. Based on this tradition, Year 5 students were involved in the various skillful activities. Among these activities, the most popular ones are picking up glass balls and cutting paper patterns. With a pair of bamboo chopsticks and several glass balls, they challenged each others’ chopstick skills; With a piece of colored paper and a pair of scissors, they brought their creativity and imagination into full play. At the end of the activity, each child wrote down their wishes of being more skillful: I wish I could learn how to use chopsticks someday; I wish I could have more beautiful handwritings in Chinese; I wish I could bake yummy bread like my mum in the future.
Y5C Co-Teacher – Sarah ZHANG