Our Mandarin classes for children have been researched and developed for children who are both native and non-native Chinese speakers. Currently, the majority of children who attend our classes are non-native speakers. Our Mandarin Stars community is diverse and we welcome children from all cultural backgrounds.
Ni hao!
Mandarin Stars is excited to announce that the upcoming Dragon Boat Festival is a fun occasion for families to enjoy:
- making delicious Zong Zi
- watching the local Dragon Boat Racing with their parents, and
- learning about the famous Chinese scholar and poet Qu Yuan!
Held on the fifth day of the fifth month in the Chinese lunar calender (which is the 16th June this year), the Chinese Dragon Boat Festival is now a public holiday in China. Whilst we do not have a day off on Wednesday, Mandarin Stars highly encourages families to experience with their children one of the best-known traditional Chinese festivals.
Aside from our focus on the Dragon Boat Festival in Mandarin Stars classes, you can have fun learning to make tasty Zong Zi with this helpful video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dXbWvHYrZU&feature=related
Also, see a Dragon Boat race here!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZQ0ZJZBb4I
And to impress your child on your knowledge about the Chinese Dragon Boat Festival, the story is recapped here by one of our teachers:
“The Dragon Boat Festival is celebrated by Chinese people for commemorating Qu Yuan, who was a famous Chinese poet and scholar. Qu Yuan was a righteous and wise man who loved his country very much, but ejected from his homeland for a trumped up charge of conspiracy. In 278 BC, Qu Yuan drowned himself in the Milo River. His people chose the day that Qu Yuan died to commemorate him.
In China, people have many traditions to celebrate Dragon Boat Festival every year. The most famous are racing dragon boat and eating Zong Zi (which is a traditional Chinese glutinous rice dumpling wrapped in reed or bamboo leaves). When Qu Yuan drowned, people who loved and respected him rushed to the river in their boats to try to save him. Racing dragon boats is created to commemorate the event of rescuing Qu Yuan.
After Qu Yuan’s death, his people threw cooked rice and other food like dates, meat, nuts into the river as sacrificial offerings. People wrapped the rice and other food in bamboo or reed leaves and called it Zong Zi.”
We wish your family a very happy Chinese Dragon Boat Festival!
Xie xie!
Dawna and the Mandarin Stars Team!
Mandarin Stars provides fun and inspiring Mandarin Chinese lessons for children age 1 to 12 years. Our Mandarin program for children is designed for children from all nationalities and our program is specifically designed for non-native learners. To find out more and to read about what our parents and the wider community think of us- please visit www.mandarinstars.com.au
