Educational Excellence Since 1912
Hamden Hall Country Day School
Educating students in PreSchool through Grade 12
Hamden Hall Country Day School
Educating students in PreSchool through Grade 12
New Year Celebrations Under the Pines
January 29 marked the start of Chinese New Year, also known as Lunar New Year or Spring Festival, a multi-day celebration that signals the arrival of spring in many Asian cultures. From classroom lessons and projects, to food and assemblies, all three divisions are taking part in celebrating and learning more about the holiday and its traditions.
As part of a new tradition in its second year, a group of both local and international parents gathered in the Dining Hall, rolled up their sleeves, and got hands-on with the art of dumpling making. The Dining Hall was beautifully decorated with lanterns, hanging snake tassels (since it’s the Year of the Snake), and a dragon in the entranceway. Head of School Bob Izzo and Director of Admissions Janet Izzo greeted the parents, welcoming them to campus and thanking them for sharing their time and culture with the Hamden Hall community.
Wearing custom Hamden Hall aprons, the parents spent the morning carefully filling the dumpling dough with scrumptious fillings of chicken, pork, and vegetables. Mandarin teacher Margaret Wei and a small group of students from Mandarin I also stopped in to help with the dumpling making. The 1,500 dumplings were enjoyed by students for lunch with a few other inspired dishes including lo mein, fried rice, bok choy, egg rolls, kimchi, and more. A few of the parents even stayed to help serve the lunch items.
The Middle and Upper School communities will join together for an assembly tomorrow, January 31. The assembly has been organized by the efforts of Ms. Wei and members of the Chinese Culture Club. It will feature a myriad of choral, instrumental, and dance performances including a solo song titled Ascending to Heaven performed by junior Pureaf Ye; traditional Chinese dance performed by junior Lan Liu; a modern Chinese dance featuring jazz-style choreography infused with Chinese elements by members of the Dance Club; and the Dragon Dance performed by Mandarin III students.
The Lower School community celebrated the holiday earlier in the month with an assembly featuring acrobatic artist Li Liu. Other activities included PreSchool and PreKindergarten students in Kathleen Swenning’s class watching videos from online teacher Lin Lǎoshī in their Mandarin class. Kindergarten students designed snake masks and did a paper cutting craft in their Mandarin class with teacher Chien-ju Lin. In first- grade, parents of current students Ian Qi, Dylan Wang, and Derek Zuo will be joining the class on Friday, January 31 to share a craft and story. Fourth-grade students collaborated on an art project where they created a snake chain with construction paper. On each piece of paper, the students wrote words related to the New Year such as health, luck, and wealth.
Hamden Hall Country Day School
1108 Whitney Avenue
Hamden, Connecticut 06517
Phone: 203-752-2600
Fax: 203-752-2651
admissions@hamdenhall.org
Hamden, Connecticut 06517
Phone: 203-752-2600
Fax: 203-752-2651
admissions@hamdenhall.org
About Us
Hamden Hall Country Day School, located less than two miles from Yale University, is one of the best private schools in Connecticut to enroll elementary, middle, and high school students. Our nurturing and inclusive community provides a dynamic learning environment that promotes academic excellence by understanding each child and fostering their individual growth.
