On the February 22 and 23, Confucius Institute successfully held a Chinese cultural experience activity in Evergreen Park School. More than 400 teachers and students from 21 classes participated in the event. The headmaster gave strong support to this activity. Some homeroom teachers also took part in the event dressed in traditional Chinese costumes and said “honored to wear Chinese costume in this activity”.

In the process of learning to write Chinese characters, the children imitated and wrote an artistic font by combining Chinese and English in order to avoid the confusion caused by learning to write Chinese characters. This made the children feel as if they were drawing while experiencing the structure of the Chinese character. In the paper-cut area, the children cut the maple leaves and stuck them to the maple tree drawn on the wall. Looking at the colorful maple tree they had “cultivated” with their own hands, the children felt that they had a good harvest.

In the area where Chinese names were being written, all the children had a panda name card. After being instructed by volunteers at the scene, they wrote their names on the colored “scales” and then affixed these “scales” to the dragon. The most exciting thing for the children was not only that they all had Chinese names, but also that through the joint efforts of all, a vivid dragon sprang up on the wall.

In the three other areas each child was eager to try. They learnt to use chopsticks and to grasp stones in traditional Chinese games, and took pictures in traditional Chinese costumes.

The success of the event owed much to the support of many parents. Mr. Li and another parent volunteer came to the school early to prepare for the event together with the CI teachers. They said: “The children are so cute that it’s worth the hard work. We’ll come and help again with such activities.” At the same time, they said it was a particularly pleasing thing for new immigrants and other local children to have the opportunity to learn Chinese language and culture thanks to the CI program.

The two-day event was praised by all the teachers and students of Evergreen. The principal highly appreciated it: “Ms. Li, Good job!” Students have gained a lot through this event. I was most gratified that some children who need EA teachers to accompany all the time could also devote themselves to the activities, and harvest happiness and growth. Listening to the teachers’ sincere “Thank you”, I think all the hard work was worth it. Growing up with the teachers and students here is the driving force for my constant exploration.

Evergreen Park School举办中国文化日

      2月22至23日，孔子学院在Evergreen Park School 成功举办中国文化体验活动，全校21个班级总计400余名师生参加，校长对本次活动更是给予了大力支持。学校一些homeroom教师也身着中国传统服饰参加了活动，并表示：“I am honored to wear Chinese costume in this activity” 。
      在学写中国字环节，为了避免学写中国字给孩子们带来的困惑，孩子们就模仿写了一个中英文结合创作出来的艺术字体。这让孩子们感觉好像在画画的同时又体验了中国字的结构。
      在剪纸区域，孩子们剪了枫叶，剪好后又贴到了墙上的枫树上。孩子们看着自己亲手“栽培”的五彩缤纷的枫树，感到收获颇丰。
      在学写中国名字的区域，四百余名孩子，每人都拿着心爱的熊猫卡片上的中文名字。在现场经志愿者指导后，把名字写在彩色“鳞片”上，再贴到龙身上。最让孩子们兴奋的不仅是大家都有了中文名字，而且经过大家的共同努力，一条栩栩如生的巨龙跃然墙上。
      在活动区的三个区域，每名孩子都跃跃欲试，体验了学用筷子、学中国传统抓石子游戏、与中国传统服饰合影三项活动。
      Evergreen活动的成功举办，离不开众多家长的鼎力支持。在奖品区进行志愿服务的学生家长李先生和另一位外国学生家长当天很早就来到学校，与孔院教师一同进行准备工作。活动结束后，家长们说：“孩子们太可爱了，再累也值得，再有这样的活动还会来帮忙。”同时，他们表示因为有了孔院项目，新移民和其他当地孩子有机会学习中文，了解中国文化，这是一件特别让人高兴地事。
      两天的活动，受到了evergreen全体师生的一致好评，一向做事严谨的校长对此大加赞赏：“Ms. Li, Good job!”通过此次活动，不同的孩子都有了不同的收获，让我最感到欣慰的是，有一些需要EA教师时刻陪伴的孩子们也能尽情的投入到活动中，并且收获了快乐和成长。听着老师们一声又一声诚挚的“Thank you.”觉得一切的辛苦都很值得。未来的路还很长，与这里的师生共同成长是我不断探索的动力。