CCLE at Moanalua High School Culture Week
Minqi Chen
Jan 10, 2025
CCLE has been invited to participate in Culture Week at Moanalua High School for several years. Each time, we introduce different aspects of Chinese culture to inspire students learning the Chinese language through a cultural perspective.
This year, I had the honor of being a guest speaker. With the Lunar New Year approaching, I decided to share various traditions related to the holiday in Taiwan, such as festive greetings, couplets, taboos, and customs.
To start, I used a warm-up activity featuring a photo of the famous Dragon and Tiger Pagodas in Kaohsiung. Students were asked to guess which entrance should be used first, leading to a discussion about Taiwanese preferences for certain zodiac animals. When introducing couplets, students showed great interest in modern Taiwanese versions, which incorporate puns in Mandarin, Taiwanese, Japanese, and English.
Additionally, we held an interactive activity that allowed students to experience a common tradition from the first day of the Lunar New Year. In Taiwan, it is customary to visit temples and pray for good fortune in the coming year. To simulate this, we played Pua̍h-Pue (跋桮/博杯), a traditional divination game. Students took turns tossing divination blocks, with the goal of obtaining as many Siūnn-Pue (象杯/笑杯) in a row as possible. The student with the most successful throws won a prize. Since it was their first time encountering this cultural practice, they were very excited and had a lot of fun.
To conclude the session, I prepared pens and paper as small gifts for the students. I explained that in Taiwan, giving a pen to a student carries a special meaning—it symbolizes a wish for their academic success and progress.
It was a wonderful experience sharing these cultural traditions, and I hope the students found inspiration in learning about Taiwanese Lunar New Year customs!
