Celebrating Chinese New Year Village School Style

On Thursday afternoon the student community celebrated Chinese New Year. Much was achieved in such a short time. The specialist program has only been operating for 2 weeks. Our younger students made red envelopes known as Hong bao. The red envelopes are gifts presented at family gatherings such as the Chinese New Year. Traditionally they contain money which is a symbol of good luck and good fortune. Our Hong bao contained Village School money that the children made.

Melissa's group made dragon puppets and Leanne's group made dragon heads. The Chinese dragon is a symbol of China, and it is an important part of Chinese culture. Chinese dragons symbolize wisdom, power, and wealth and are believed to bring good luck.

In ancient times, when there was no rain for a long time, people prayed for rain with a dragon dance, and dragon dances after planting were also a way to pray against insect attacks. Nowadays, dragon dances are performed during festive occasions as a means to chase away evil spirits and welcome prosperous times.

Samantha's group made 2 symbols used in Chinese New Year - streamers and firecrackers. Traditionally you find firecrackers outside of many businesses and shops during Chinese New Year. These firecrackers represent happiness and festivities as they are loud and start the year with a bang - literally. Traditionally, they are lit in front of homes to create noises meant to drive evil spirits away.

The students really enjoyed the afternoon where they were encouraged to showcase their individual creations. Each group paraded around in the Hall and finally, we took a group photo that highlighted each group’s contribution.

Chinese streamers and fireworks made to celebrate Chinese New Year