This morning, instead of going to school for my first two classes, I went to a ceremony at Luodong Vocational High School to watch my students perform a lion dance. Our area is apparently very well known for this particular dance, so a number of schools have lion dance teams. (We also apparently have a dragon dance rollerblade team, but I haven't had a chance to see them yet!)
The lion dance team is made up of about nine boys who practice mostly on their own. Sara, my coteacher, said that when the school has money they will hire a coach, but this isn't the wealthiest of schools so they are currently self-coached. In that regard, it was very cool to watch the boys perform as they were completely self-choreographed and rehearsed. Sara and the other teacher chaperoning the boys nervously bit their nails as these seventh and eighth graders performed synchronized moves and lifts. At the end they dropped scrolls from the mouths of the lions and ate (received) red envelops of a few hundred NT (about $10-20 USD) from the principal of the school.
I think the coolest part about watching the dance, though, was seeing my students taking part in their traditional culture in such a competent way. This isn't to say they were the most coordinated of dancers, but for middle school students to take such an interest in something so traditionally Taiwanese was very cool. I'm so used to seeing them in English class where everything they learn is literally foreign. Many students are not successful in that environment, but some of the students who struggle the most in English were so dedicated to the dance that it cast them in a light of success.
This morning, instead of going to school for my first two classes, I went to a ceremony at Luodong Vocational High School to watch my students perform a lion dance. Our area is apparently very well known for this particular dance, so a number of schools have lion dance teams. (We also apparently have a dragon dance rollerblade team, but I haven't had a chance to see them yet!)
The lion dance team is made up of about nine boys who practice mostly on their own. Sara, my coteacher, said that when the school has money they will hire a coach, but this isn't the wealthiest of schools so they are currently self-coached. In that regard, it was very cool to watch the boys perform as they were completely self-choreographed and rehearsed. Sara and the other teacher chaperoning the boys nervously bit their nails as these seventh and eighth graders performed synchronized moves and lifts. At the end they dropped scrolls from the mouths of the lions and ate (received) red envelops of a few hundred NT (about $10-20 USD) from the principal of the school.
I think the coolest part about watching the dance, though, was seeing my students taking part in their traditional culture in such a competent way. This isn't to say they were the most coordinated of dancers, but for middle school students to take such an interest in something so traditionally Taiwanese was very cool. I'm so used to seeing them in English class where everything they learn is literally foreign. Many students are not successful in that environment, but some of the students who struggle the most in English were so dedicated to the dance that it cast them in a light of success.
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