Educational
OC Kids Learn About Self Defense
The family self defense workshop held Saturday May 15 was a great success! About twenty kids with one or two parents per family turned out for the session. The age range of the kids was from three and a half to ten, with the majority five to seven years old.
Instructor and FCC Mom Laura Hesser did an excellent job. She made it fun for the kids all the while they were learning important information and skills. Laura's set-up was perfect with the parents sitting in the background and the kids sitting up front around her, which resulted in the session being interactive for the kids, both discussion-wise and physically. Laura was able to tailor the session to the age range that attended so there was high participation and the kids seemed to get the messages. The session was relevant and a fun opportunity for the families to get to know each other better. All in all a wonderful event!
Summer Reading
Add Factory Girls: From Village to City in a Changing China by Leslie T. Chang to your summer reading list, and get ready for FCC-SoCal's book discussion event in October!
Factory Girls demonstrates how the mass movement from rural villages to cities is remaking individual lives and transforming Chinese society, much as immigration to America’s shores remade our own country a century ago."
FCC-SoCal will host a discussion of Factory Girls on Saturday, October 16 in Irvine. A concurrent storytelling event will be held for kids in an adjoining room. Location, exact times and more details will be posted closer to the date. Mark your calendars now - you won't want to miss this new FCC activity!
Chinese Dance Class with Anne Ma
On a rainy Saturday in March twenty-five small children in traditional Chinese costume gathered at the South Coast Chinese Cultural Center to learn Chinese folk dance from “Miss Annie;” Anne Ma.
Miss Annie and her two assistants taught their young students “The Firecracker Dance” during the 45 minute session, followed by a short snack break and finally the performance! Parents who had anxiously huddled in the hallways during rehearsal were allowed into the studio to video and photograph their angels as they exhibited a graceful display of dance. Some of the older students partnered with the younger ones to help keep them in step. The results were very impressive! Most importantly all the participants had a fun learning experience!
WeiWei and the Girls
On Saturday, November 14, 2023 at Beeman Park in Studio City the SoCal Friends - Chinese the Fun Way group met to do crafts and learn Chinese with WeiWei. Luckily, they didn’t get blown away with all the wind! The children had fun making turkey headresses and Thanksgiving cards. They also learned how to say and give thanks in Chinese. Pumpkin pie was among the assortment of treats!
The group meets monthly with a different theme. The next event will be Christmas in Chinatown on Saturday, December 12. Event details will be posted shortly. Other upcoming events will include Chinese New Year and Huntington Gardens.
Contact Arlene Balkin at [email protected] for more information. And look for information of upcoming events here on this website. Come join WeiWei and friends to learn Chinese the fun way.
New Research of Note
As interested and involved parents, we are always curious about research on the transracial adoption experience. A recent study by the Evan B. Donaldson Institute examines transracial adoptee identity. The study is quite long, but the "principal recommendations" and the "summary" are quite easy to read.
Click here for the study. Or to read the press release, click here.
This study on the adoptee experience provides us with opportunities to be proactive parents, doing our part to make the transracial family experience better for our children today and tomorrow.
Brush Painting and Oil Pastels at the Art-Making Workshop
The little artists who attended the FCC November Art Making Workshop in Irvine on November 1, created beautiful drawings of Chinese lanterns, mandalas, dragons and butterflies. Artist, Melanie Vogel, introduced them to Chinese brush painting and oil pastels.
The best part, though, was seeing the pride on all of their faces as they viewed their masterpeice. And of course the parents didn't mind chatting while the kids were having their class.
Treasures through Six Generations: Chinese Painting and Calligraphy from the Weng Collection
Now on view at the Huntington is one of the greatest private collections of Chinese art in the nation. It's an exhibition of Chinese painting and calligraphy works spanning 900 years and will be on view April 11 through July 13 in the MaryLou and George Boone Gallery. The presentation will feature 41 masterworks from the Weng collection. The collection was the focus of a recent exhibition at the Beijing World Art Museum and is revered in China as well as in the United States.