By Caroline Castellano and Laura

Chinese History

The Xia Dynasty 

The Xia Dynasty began when the Longshang people came to China. They could weave silk, bake bricks, and they could use the potter’s wheel. A wheel that spins quickly, so you can shape clay. They founded the Xia Dynasty. In the time of the Xia Dynasty, according to the story “The Story of the Wise Woman Loawnu”, people probably went to the wise woman when they had problems.Some people who studied history didn’t believe the Xia Dynasty to truly have existed, but one day, in 1959, people discovered some proof. Fifty two years later, people still argue.

The Qin Dynasty

The Qin Dynasty lasted 11-15 years, but affected many things for a while. The Qin Dynasty was the first dynasty to take control of all China. For this reason, he called himself the first emperor Qin. The first emperor of China. He took China and changed it into 36 provinces. They were divided into districts. Two people that emperor Qin trusted were in charge of each province. They had people go into the districts, so that the people who were sent into the district would report back. Then anyone they found who wasn’t abiding by the laws could be found and sentenced to the “Slammer.” (or jail.) If the Xia Dynasty was a myth then the Qin Dynasty would be the third dynasty. The Qin Dynasty was the shortest dynasty, but what this Dynasty had done was not good at all. The great wall was one of Qin’s building projects. One man called Liu Bang overthrew him. That is why the Qin Dynasty only lasted 11 years.

By Maya and Liesel

Chinese Festivals

Chinese Dragon Boat FestivalThere are a lot of Chinese festivals such as Ching’ Ming, Harvest Moon Festival, Moon Cake Festival ,Chinese New Year and the Dragon Boat Festival. Chinese New Year and the Dragon Boat Festival are the most important festivals in china. The Dragon Boat Festival is only in Southern China. The dragon boats that people ride in are actually canoes. They race with them at the dragon boat race. The Chinese have raced with the dragon boats for about 2,000 years now. The Dragon Boat Festival is also a lunar holiday. The Dragon Boat Festival memorializes the Chinese patriotic poet Chiu Yuan , who drowned in a river and died on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month.

   

Chinese New YearThere are a lot of Chinese festivals , Chinese New Year is the most important festival in china. Chinese New year is the longest and most important festival in china. Chinese New year is celebrated for about 15 days in china. On Chinese New Year red envelopes with money in them are given to the children. Chinese New Year is also called the Spring Festival. Chinese families clean the house from all bad luck. Chinese New Year starts with the new moon on the first day of the new year and ends on the full moon 15 days later.

By Annie and Jonah

Food and Drinks

FoodChina is the biggest producer of rice in the world. Rice, wheat, millet, corn, buckwheat, potato and sweet potato are some common foods in China. When people could afford rice they bought or grew vegetables to put on it but on special occasions. People put some meat on their rice as well. Some of China’s foods are appetizer meat balls, apple pork chops and fire roasted tomatoes. Rice is popular in China. Dim sum is a popular food from China.

DrinksSome of the teas are green tea, black tea and blue tea. Tea was discovered by the Chinese. Chinese tea was used as a medicine and then made into a drink. Tea is the most popular drink in china. Tea is the oldest beverage in china. It is about 4,000 years old.

By Lauren and Trisha

Chinese Art

Chinese JadeJade is a stone valued for its beauty. The term jade is actually applied to 2 different stones: Jadeite and nephrite. Jade is a very rare stone. It is a common stone in China. Jade is only one color which is green. Some people make fake jades. People buy them for the same money as real jade. They are really fake and not a lot of people know that still after they buy it. Jade in Mandarin is YU. Asian people believe that wearing Jade is good. People will be protected from bad luck, evil sprits, and danger.

Chinese PotteryPottery may be the oldest artwork of human beings. It is also the oldest artwork in China. It started more than 8,000 years ago! People began mixing clay and water, then baking it until it held its shape. Ancient people attached the word ‘pottery’ to their discovery and used it to create tools to improve the quality of life. Over thousands of years, pottery was used in people’s daily life. They used it cook, to store things, and many other things in a house. Pottery is used all over the world. You can make bowls out of clay and water, and its pottery! As time passed, pottery became more and more popular. Different kinds of pottery started at different times and places.

By Caroline Chin and Lilly Heller

Chinese Calligraphy and Language

Chinese CalligraphyChinese calligraphy is a special art to China. Now many people only use calligraphy to write poems. You would need black ink made from pine soot and animal glue, and a brush made from animal hair. Chinese calligraphy is an oriental art. Chinese calligraphy is one of the four basic skills and disciplines of the Chinese literature. In China calligraphy is a traditional art. Wang Xizhi was a famous calligrapher and lived in the 4th century. Chinese calligraphy is basically a painting. Chinese calligraphy is to show people’s feelings. “ Shu Fa “ is how say calligraphy in Chinese. Chinese calligraphy is about 2,000 years old.

Chinese LanguageThere are two basic languages in China, Mandarin and Cantonese. More people speak Mandarin because if you know it you can be understood in many other Asian counties. It has only been around about 800 years. Cantonese has been around for much longer, at least 2000 years. Mandarin is the main language used today. It is used in public place such as schools, theater, radio, and in movies. It shows that you are well educated if you speak this language.

 

By: Joe and Maddie

Chinese Schools

Chinese Elementary SchoolThere are many elementary schools in China. They learn a lot of the same topics that we learn in the USA such as science, math, Chinese, English, history, art, geography, and P.E. The school week in China is Monday through Saturday. They go to school from 7:00am to 4:00pm. Elementary school children start school at age six and end school at age eleven. During recess children do calisthenics and relaxation exercises.

Chinese College TestTo go to college in China a student must have to take an exam called the gao kao (pronounced gow kow), or known as the high test. It is a very hard test. Some students have to study sixteen hours a day! The gao kao is kind of like the American SAT, except it’s twice as long. The nine hour test is how they know who they should accept and who they shouldn’t. The competition is so fierce that many students try to cheat to get in. 2,645 cheaters were caught last year.

By, Brendan, Cory, and Madelena

Chinese Style

Chinese Architecture

In the Mao Era families moved into concrete apartment blocks or were jammed into courtyard dwellings built for a family of one with several other families. The central courtyard filled with brick compounds. In some cases houses in courtyards were torn down and were replaced with work compounds where housing and factories were combined within walls. Most of the concrete apartment buildings that were built in the 1950’s and 60’s were four to six stories tall. Ones that are built today are much higher.

Chinese JewelryIn China, silver was used more often than gold. Silver and gold were enameled in blue, a favorite color, and it was decorated with blue kingfisher feathers. Jade is the most valued among the precious stones. Under the Chinese Empire, jeweled emblems such as the buttons on the hats of mandarins indicated rank. Silver and gold filigree and headdresses were worn by women that are in the high positions. The dragons, phoenixes, and many of Buddhist symbols were used for decoration or charms on necklaces, rings, and bracelets.

Chinese ClothingChina has been making silk for more than 3,000 years. Cocoons from butterflies produced silk. Back then poor people wore dark colors and the rich and wealthy people wore bright colors to show that they were happy. Tunics (long t-shirts) were really popular. Women wore tunic all the way to the ground and men wore them all the way to their knees. Silk used to be really big in China it still is but not as much as cotton because people came in and cut down all the mulberry trees. They used the mulberry trees to make their silk.

By Simon & Ben

Chinese Public Transportation & Buses

Public TransportationThe Chinese want their own cars. The roads are more crowded than ever. The government is trying to get drivers out of their cars to ride public transportation. The Shanghai Maglev train, an airport rail link service, opened in 2004 that travels 30.5 km in seven minutes and 30 seconds. The line runs from Long-Yang Road to Pudong International Airport in china.

Chinese BusesChinese cars have so much fuel. They can go 160 miles per hour! They can go from country to country. Sometimes they can sometimes even go from state to state. The wheels are very strong. The wheels can crush all the garbage on the streets. All of the Chinese cars have a lot of strong parts, like the wheels and the motor.

By Benjamin and Teddy

Chinese Sports and Games

Chinese Sports Martial arts are done to protect people

from danger. Bike races are done in China. In China they play tennis. In China swimming is a popular sport. Daur field hockey is played in China. Handball is played in China. Softball is played in China. In China they do Chinese wrestling.

Chinese GamesThey have dragon boat races in China. Ping- pong is a very common game. Chinese checkers is played a lot. Chess is a fun Chinese game. Chinese dominoes is another fun game. One of Chinas favorite games is Go. Throw the Coins is a traditional Chinese game.

By Leo & Justin

Chinese Toys & Inventions

Chinese Inventions

Nearly 1,900 years ago, a man who worked for the emperor of china invented paper out of tree pulp. They also invented pencils out of trees.About 1,000 years ago, a man mixed up chemicals that can blow up together. They began to spark and explode and fireworks were invented.Chinese invented kites more than 3,000 years ago. They don’t just make them diamond shapes or rumbas shapes. They make them animal shapes like dragons. Chinese kites are one of the most popular inventions in China.

Chinese ToysDominoes were made in china 1,000 years ago people played all the games that are played in modern times. Two thousand years ago a hacky sack was played and invented in china you kick it and keep it in the air.Chinese kites were the most popular toy in china 3,000 years ago they made shapes and animals. 

By Samantha and Madison

Music and Dance

Music

China wants popular music. Some Chinese say a man, his name was Ling luh, during the Chou dynasty about 10,00 invented the early music to China. China has lots of music. Some music they made are folk songs.Usually some Chinese listen to a song that called C-pop. Another popular song has something called Zai Zai. The first people who came to China with music came in 5,000 B.C. They brought music with them from Africa. The people who came there made music by clapping their hand and singing songs. Some Chinese people say that music is a way for them to think easier.

DanceThe dragon dance is one of the most coolest things in the world. The dragon dance is preformed in late January or early February. The dragon is a big puppet. People make puppets and then they have a big puppet dance on Chinese New Year. They do the dragon dance to scare the evil spirits. At the end of Chinese New Year, they do the dragon dance. The dragon is yellow and red for good luck. The head of the dragon is made out of deer horns and cow ears.