This Chinese New Year, I've decided to focus on the Chinese Reunion Dinner. Previously, we decorated the theme board with lion dances or the Chinese zodiac. However, I feel that family is a very important aspect of the celebration and I took the opportunity to reinforce the importance of the dinner - a celebration of family togetherness and unity. A time of sharing and caring, and catching up with each other as well as to practice filial piety. Phew - sounds heavy for the children, but I believe that we can make this a very natural learning process. We just have discuss and involve the children in sharing their knowledge. Believe me, they are very knowledgeable - if only we listen to them more often!We talked about the Nian monster story, the Chinese zodiac as well as the festive decoration and all things associated with the colour red. We also discussed angpow and taught the children how to greet and have good manners during the festival.
Back to the theme board. As I've mentioned, the focus is on the dinner. We tried to recreate a a scene showing love and happiness amongst the family members. We also decorated it with some of the elements associated with the festival, ie. fire crackers, lanterns, spring blossoms and the food on the table.
Boy holding an angpow in his hand. "Say thank you when you receive an angpow. Don't open and see the contents. Let Mummy or Daddy keep the angpow safely for you. Keep the money in a bank for your future education."
A closely-knit family, sharing a meal together.
Grandpa and Grandma holding hands during the meal -
indirectly, I'm trying to convey the message that grandparents can be loving too.
Wouldn't it be great if we could upkeep this loving gesture for many more years to come?
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