To usher out the Year of the Goat and welcome the Year of the Monkey, YCIS Hong Kong students participated in a variety of exciting and fun activities across all of our campuses.

The Chinese New Year spirit could be felt everywhere. Our schools were beautifully decorated with red and gold lanterns whilst mandarin trees symbolising good fortune adorned our corridors and outdoor spaces. The vibrant decorations coupled with students sporting their colourful traditional Chinese New Year costumes brought about a real sense of being transported back in time.

Our younger students in the Early Childhood Education (ECE) and Primary Programmes enjoyed a multitude of activities such as painting New Year pictures, card making, preparing Jiaozi and Tangyuan (Chinese dumplings), lantern making, writing Fai Chun (spring blessings) and paper cutting. Our Primary students also visited the local flower market.

There were many booths offering a great range of activities at the Chinese New Year Festival for our Secondary students. Students could try their hand at fortune-telling, papermaking and Chinese calligraphy. There were also games, music performances featuring traditional Chinese instruments and delicious festive food. The Chinese teaching staff also put on their own special performance entertaining the crowds with an eclectic mix of traditional Chinese dances.

Secondary teachers and students worked together to produce a special Chinese New Year assembly that incorporated a performance of the classic story Journey to the West with a modern Star Wars twist. Teachers handed out red packets too to the lucky students.

Our teaching staff produced a wonderful programme of activities and events reflecting every aspect of the Chinese New Year celebrations. YCIS Hong Kong students gained an important grasp of the meaning behind these thousand year old traditions and a deeper understanding of Chinese culture.