Articulate, ambitious and cooperative are characteristics that define the Year of the Rabbit, according to Chinese Lunar New Year tradition.
Students at P.S. 46 in Bayside exemplified these traits when they performed in their annual Lunar New Year celebration on Thursday, February 3. The show featured Chinese and Korean songs and dance, as well as the traditional lion dance, kung fu and tae kwon do routines. Students from kindergarten to the 5th grade practiced for three months with the help of parents and volunteers.
This marked the fifth consecutive year that the school celebrated the Lunar New Year. The administration believes that it is essential for the students to learn about the Korean and Chinese cultures.
“We are a diverse society and within P.S. 46 we are definitely a multicultural school, so it’s important for everybody to be able to understand and to be aware of each other’s culture and appreciate it. It is very important,” said Marsha Goldberg, principal.
Goldberg and coordinator Caroline Galan both expressed their gratitude for everyone involved in working with the children to make the performance possible. Approximately 140 students performed.
“We have rehearsals and planning that goes on for a couple of months. It’s all due to the parent volunteers and our teachers giving up their time,” said Goldberg.
“We try to find every crevasse in the building to practice so sometimes they are practicing in the corridors and you can even hear the sound of the drums during lunch,” said Galan.
Goldberg said that the students “love it” and that the tradition will continue.
“There will definitely be another one next year, there is not even a question about it,” she said. “The first step is to enjoy the New Year today and party tomorrow. Then we will sit down and discuss what worked and what didn’t and how we can keep on improving.”
