Chinese New Year Celebration at ZIS

After the successful "Under the Star" Christmas Concert in December, Zhuhai International School conducted a very colourful and meaningful Chinese New Year celebration by welcoming the Year of the Rat and enriching expatriate children's cultural experiences in China. It was also the very first Chinese New Year celebration since the school opened in September 2007.

All children were encouraged to wear traditional Chinese dress. During a special assembly children presented their Chinese language skills by performing Chinese opera, reciting Chinese poems, displaying their Chinese portfolios, and then having a fashion parade through the school. Afterwards all children participated in different activities such as dumpling making, paper cutting, and other Chinese activities.

A group of parents also brought traditional snacks such as dumplings and home made cookies to celebrate with children. In the afternoon two magicians were invited to entertain children and staff with various tricks. They produced many surprises and were lots of fun.

The ZIS teaching model consists of two teachers, one Western and one Chinese teacher, in every classroom from Nursery (3 years old) to Year 6 (11 years old). This co-teaching model allows for close and individualized attention for students, and provides a bilingual and bicultural learning environment for an international student-body.