Chinese New Year Assembly at Westside

By Kate and Isabel

Friday, January 31st was the celebration of the Chinese New Year or Gong Xi Fa Zai. Although here at Westside we are calling it the "year of the horse". That same day we had a school-wide assembly to commemorate the festival filled with a lion dance and traditional music including drums, symbols and a gong. This was performed by some of our middle school students. As well as that, there were Chinese songs sung by many of the lower school classes.

Aside from in school celebrations, there are many traditions that Chinese families and individuals participate in preparation for the new year. They eat oranges symbolizing gold which brings good fortune and. many have New Years Eve dinners with family.  Leading up the New Year people often clean and tidy their homes to clear out the old and bring in the new.

We wish everyone a Happy New Year and can't wait to see what the next year brings both in school and outside.