Trinity St Stephen’s First School visit Hong Kong Restaurant for Chinese New Year

In celebration of Chinese New Year a reception class ‘ate a phenomenal amount’ at the Hong Kong restaurant in Alexandra Road on Thursday, January 23.

Pupils from Trinity St Stephen’s First School in Vansittart Road visited the restaurant to learn about Chinese culture ahead of the country’s biggest annual celebration.

Reception teacher Jo Cope took the class of four and five-year-olds on the trip to gain ‘first-hand experience’ after setting up a role-play restaurant in the classroom.

“They bent over backwards for us,” she said about the staff who decorated the restaurant before the children arrived and played traditional Chinese New Year music during their visit.

“It is important they have an awareness people have different ideas and cultures,” said Jo.

The annual festival celebrates the beginning of the year in the Chinese calendar.

The children made their own spring rolls and duck pancakes out of paper when they returned to school.

“They ate a phenomenal amount,” she added.

They were allowed to take home their chopsticks and were given fortune cookies and a red envelope, a traditional gift from elders to children on Chinese New Year containing money for good luck.

Chinese New Year is traditionally celebrated over 23 days and pupils are continuing to learn about the festival with dragon dances, a symbol of Chinese culture which is said to bring good luck, and making lanterns and banners.