The Hall Chinese program has brought about many activities throughout the year, that have given students the chance to explore the culture of China, and assist them in learning about the language.

The Chinese program which started out teaching only 40 students, now teaches just under 300. It spans across 5 levels including honors and and an AP class. Even with it’s growth the program still takes the students on trips in Connecticut, New York and China. The largest trip with around 200 students going this year is the Chinatown field trip.

“The trips are immersive and really help you practice your language skills. The teachers make sure to emphasize the culture as well as the language so you really get to learn about china” said senior Lizzie Divine

The most recent trip that the Chinese program had put together was one to Aiken Elementary school. The school asked Lauren Drazen to pick some students to come to Aiken and teach the kids about the Chinese language and culture by teaching them how to write characters and telling them about the way of life within the nation. On behalf of the students at Aiken Elementary, the principal there had told Drazen that they had received good reports from the teachers and how much the students were interested in the AP Chinese presentations.

The trip to NYC allows students to roam the allowed area eating food and looking for chances to use their Chinese in a setting outside the classroom. Lauren Drazen the Chinese one teacher stated that she was fine with more people coming on the trip.

The trip to China is one of the most extravagant trips the program has to offer. It is done every year. The length of the trip varies each year, but they average around 13 days. Since the beginning, these trips offered students the chance to experience little known parts of China that are rare for Americans to go to. Back in 2015 the trip went to the Guizhou province in the southeast part of China. In 2016 the China trip traveled to Beijing for two nights, Hunan Province: Zhanjiajie and Fenghuang for five nights, and lastly, Shanghai for three nights. With the exception of Beijing and Shanghai, the trip’s destinations in China change every year.

When asked what they’re most interested in about the upcoming trip to China, Benjamin Ellovich responded, “I’m looking forward to to experience a culture that I’ve never been a part of. I’m looking forward to being submerged in the experience of the cool old stuff, like the Great Wall.”

These trips would normally cost too much money for the language department and students to handle on their own says Mrs. Drazen, however, Hall is a Confucius Classroom-school. This means that every year, the Chinese department writes an application to receive this money from Asian Society.

The activities that the Chinese program does aren’t just limited to trips; it includes everything from learning how to properly use chopsticks to learning tai chi and calligraphy from masters of the arts. When asked about adding additional trips, Mrs. Drazen said “Not really on trips, but to bring in more masters, etc.”  

All this helps pay for field trips lessening the strain on the language department and the students. Through this, the Chinese program can let more students go on the trips.

Similar to the China trip, the Chinese student’s performance in Cultural fusion is the biggest in-school activity the Chinese program does. Singing was what the Chinese program has been doing for a while now.

Though Mrs. Drazen, who organizes the students for the performance, says that she wants to “mix it up with our dance” this year. The cultural fusion dance is normally the biggest performance at the show with full classes going up to perform.

The expansion of the Chinese program and the activities it’s done have allowed the program to become one of the major classes at Hall.