Beijing 2008 – What will the world see?
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Focus concepts:
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Effective teaching:
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Years 0–3
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Students will:
- investigate and explain the use of the dragon/lion dance in China.
Activity 1 – Viewing a dragon dance
The students view the dragon dance clip to gain information on the importance of the dragon/lion dance.
OR:
View the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2008 Olypmic Games and observe the use of the dragon/lion dance in this presentation.
Activity 2 – Making a puppet
Students make their own dancing dragon puppet, following this step-by-step approach: making a dancing lion or dragon toy.
For more activities, see these crafts and activities for Chinese New Year.
Years 4–6
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Students will:
- investigage and report on aspects of Chinese culture using a variety of sources
- analyse the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games and identify how Chinese culture has been represented and expressed.
Activity 1 – Looking at Chinese culture
Students re-visit the items in the grab bag and consider the following question: “What symbols/objects/… represent the Chinese nation and its people?” Students list these.
Divide the class into groups. Each group is to collect and process information about a particular aspect of Chinese culture and present it to the class orally or visually. You could give each group a focus or have them choose one. Use the following websites and examine the question: "What makes the Olympic Games in Beijing unique?" In other words, how are these Games different to those held in Athens or Sydney?
Suggested focus areas and links are listed below. Use these or develop your own.
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Aspect of culture |
Suggested website |
Why is it important? How is it represented? |
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Famous places in China |
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Colours in China |
Calligraphy: Symbols and signs (PDF 71KB) |
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Symbol – dragon or lion dance |
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Festivals in China |
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Olympic Games symbols using characters/mascots |
Other aspects you could focus on include music and dance, and fireworks.
Actitivy 2 – Let the Games begin!
As a class, predict what you expect to see at the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, based on what you now know about Chinese culture. Collect information by watching the opening ceremony (or some of it!) and/or by collecting news items.
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In the opening ceremony, we predict we will see … |
What we saw |
Key questions
- What are the symbols that make the Olympic Games in Beijing unique?
- Was there anything that you expected to see in the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games opening ceremony that wasn’t included?
- Was there anything included in the opening ceremony that surprised you?
- Do you have any further questions about Chinese culture and traditions after watching the opening ceremony?
Language focus
Refer to language lesson 5 - Family members.
