SAS Rings In Lunar New Year Chinese-Style

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(Newswire.net — May 16, 2014) Singapore, Singapore — For Chinese New Year on January 31st, many people celebrated by watching a Chinese festival, eating Chinese food or simply saying ‘gong xi’ which means ‘congratulations’ in Mandarin.  At Singapore American School (SAS) the elementary school kids rang in the lunar new year Chinese-style.[i]

At SAS, students either learn Spanish or Mandarin Chinese starting in Kindergarten. Every day they are getting accustomed to hearing it spoken and practicing speaking it. There are regular second language classes as well as ‘near-native’ speaker classes. Sudents are encouraged to speak the language in school as well as outside of school, creating future multilingual, multicultural world leaders.

 

To celebrate Chinese lunar new year, local performers were invited to give students a taste of Chinese talent, such as the mysterious and dramatic face-changing man, the gravity-defying plate spinning acrobatic woman, and the resplendent lion dancers. The day before the Chinese lunar new year holiday, the theater came alive with a celebration for students.  There was a brief cultural quiz and bilingual student emcees this year which was a nice addition.

 

Not only were first grade students reaching out to touch the brightly colored lion’s mane as it meandered through the aisles, but so were fourth and fifth grade students as well. The acrobatic lions jumped and jaunted across the stage to the rhythm and cacophony of cymbals and drums, to ward off unwanted spirits and welcome good luck for the new year. Towards the end, the lions were fed cabbage and lucky tangerines.

 

One of the highlights of the show was when the SAS Chinese language teachers took the stage with an intricate umbrella dance, choreographed by SAS Chinese language teacher Carol Xu. The students were astonished and the younger students sat wide-eyed gazing up as their teachers floated across the stage in sync with their Chinese umbrellas.  

 

Afterwards, one kindergartner shouted to her teacher, “I didn’t know you could dance!”

 

Established in 1956, the school primarily serves the American and international expatriate communities of Singapore. SAS is registered with the Singapore Council for Private Education, affiliated with the Office of Overseas Schools through the U.S. Department of State, and is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).

 

For more information about Singapore American School visit www.sas.edu.sg



[i] With gratitude to Zhang Lao Shi (aka Pauli Haakenson) and the editorial staff of SAS Crossroads, March 2014 issue.

Singapore American School

 
Singapore, Singapore