The past few weeks have brought a lot to celebrate! With the return to in-person learning, the BCIS community is back together and stronger than ever. Now, BCIS has another big celebration: Chinese New Year! Chinese New Year is one of the most exciting times of the year at BCIS, as students are hard at work creating magical performances to spread traditional Chinese New Year cheer to the whole community. The CNY activities at BCIS are a great way for students to come together and celebrate a holiday full of traditional culture and express their own holiday spirit through performance. 

New Year New Beginnings 

The upcoming Year of the Rabbit signals a time for new beginnings. For students in our Early Childhood Center (ECC), their long learning journey has just begun. Chinese New Year is an opportune time for our young learners to celebrate how far they have already come along with their parents! The ECC’s annual CNY parade takes students on a trip around the whole school for a day of fun and festivity. Chinese drums, played by our talented teaching team, ring out through the hallways, and students enjoy traditional dances with lively costumed performers. Students and parents don traditional clothing, making happy memories together that will last a lifetime! 

Melody and Merriment  

The students and parents at the ECC weren’t the only ones enjoying the holiday spirit with merry music. In the Elementary School (ES), our talented young singers took to the stage in front of a packed audience of parents and community members to perform the songs they had been rehearsing so hard for so long. Their winter melodies cut through the cold and brightened the faces of all the listeners. After the performance, the students were greeted with a rousing round of applause and cheers that filled the auditorium. Although this Winter Music Assembly had been delayed from its original date, the fact that the community could enjoy it all together made the students’ stupendous singing even more beautiful. 

A Show for the Ages! 

Even as they were stuck online, our Secondary School (SS) students were planning how to make Chinese New Year a special occasion for the whole school. Although this made the process of auditioning for the CNY Assembly quite a challenge, many brave groups of students stepped up to the task of coordinating their acts remotely. Supported by our charismatic Chinese teaching team, our student actors, hosts and stage designers all worked extra hard to put on a New Year show for the ages! 

Filled to the brim with acts celebrating traditional and modern Chinese culture in their own unique ways, The Year of the Rabbit performances from our SS students was a stunning show indeed! From traditional music to contemporary takes on old favorites, from dances to skits, the CNY Assembly had something for everyone. This year’s assembly took extra work from everyone involved, but all the efforts from the Assembly team paid off. The celebration of the Year of the Rabbit was a spectacular way for students and parents to get a beautiful taste of traditional and modern Chinese culture and served as a splendid sendoff as we begin our New Year holiday! 

This year’s Chinese New Year celebrations at BCIS felt even more special. Although the last few years have been full of challenges, the future is bright! One of the best sources of inspiration for overcoming challenges is our students themselves. Although their assembly preparations may have been disrupted, they were able to adapt and present outstanding performances. We can’t wait to see all the amazing things they will accomplish in the coming year and wish everyone a Happy Year of the Rabbit!