Experiencing the Traditions of Dragon Boat Festival at WCIH

In the rich and diverse campus cultural activities of Wellington College Hangzhou, we ushered in the last traditional Chinese cultural event of this academic year - the Dragon Boat Festival. 

Wellington primary and senior schools celebrated the traditional Dragon Boat Festival on 7th June. Last year, we learned how to make zongzi (rice dumplings) on this festival day, and teachers and pupils attempted to make zongzi together, bringing them home to share with their families. 

This year, we learned how to make scented sachets, dragon boats, and experienced woodblock printing. Pupils worked with various materials and tools to showcase the traditional culture of the Dragon Boat Festival in the best way possible. The children eagerly displayed their carefully designed sachets and beautiful dragon boats, which helped people understand, appreciate, and respect our ancient traditions. 

Year 8 pupils took the lead in this activity based on their different interests, using different methods to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival. 

One group conducted research on the history of Qu Yuan and wrote a Qu Yuan textbook play to add more wonder and joy to this festival. This play highlighted the main story and tradition of the Dragon Boat Festival, especially the story of Qu Yuan. Through their creativity and talent, the children demonstrated beautiful dances, outstanding performances, and colourful costumes on the stage. All the audiences were moved, and the children received well-deserved applause. The success of the play made this beautiful traditional festival worth celebrating even more. 

Some groups chose to make scented sachets to showcase China's traditional culture. They made sachets with different herbs and named their sachets, introducing their uniqueness. In addition, during lunchtime, the sachets were displayed in the Wellington Hall. All staff and pupils could watch, appreciate, and learn about the process of making sachets. The pupils felt proud because they could showcase their talent and skills in this activity. 

Some groups combined textbook knowledge with games to design a set of game cards, attracting many teachers and pupils to experience the game while deepening their understanding of Chinese culture. 

In this celebration, we appreciate the unremitting efforts and hard work of our pupils and teachers, making this Dragon Boat Festival celebration more meaningful, interesting and wonderful. We look forward to learning more, appreciating, and experiencing Chinese traditional culture in the future, adding more richness and diversity to our multicultural community.