The upper school Chinese Club held its annual Chinese Week the week before the Lunar New Year to welcome the year of the dragon. The week-long celebration has been a tradition at Bolles for years, according to Mrs. Rothschild, the Chinese teacher and Chinese club sponsor at the upper school. “Maybe ten, fifteen years,” said Rothschild, “because we want to use the opportunity to promote Chinese culture, language, and history.”
The Chinese Club came together to brainstorm various activities that reflect Chinese art, food, history, and language. “We’re always looking for fresh ideas,” said Rothschild, “it really depends on the club. It’s a collective decision.” It’s not just club members who participate in planning the week—students from various levels of Rothschild’s Chinese courses volunteered to lead activities and decorate the campus.
While it may seem like the activities are held just for students to have fun, Rothschild hopes to send a larger message by sharing Chinese traditions. “It’s important, especially when we’re living in a world with multiple cultures you need to understand each other and not be judgemental, that way we can make the world better. We should learn about each other’s cultures—in this case, it’s with Chinese Week.”
While Rothschild hopes to accomplish this mission, she couldn’t do it without help from her students. “I just have to thank and appreciate all my Chinese students,” she said, “they’re just unbelievable. Without them, Chinese Week wouldn’t be successful like this.”
