Aver

The Chinese Club performs their annual lion dance at Ayala’s sports rally. “The Lion Dance is just a fun experience that taught us how to coordinate ourselves and how to work together in a team. It was overall a good experience” Albert Cheng (12) said.

Mesmerizing lion dances, impressive diabolo skills, traditional Chinese instruments, and extra tutoring – Chinese Club has it all. This club offers students the chance to enhance their understanding of Chinese culture and tradition while also being a part of an uplifting community of people with shared interests. This club meets every Friday from 3:30-4:00 and welcomes everyone to come out and join them.

Many students, regardless of their culture, join Chinese Club to gain a better understanding of the unique Chinese culture. People familiar with the language come to meetings to converse with other students who also speak the same language. Those who do not speak the language come to meetings to converse with native speakers to help better their understanding of Mandarin Chinese. Fluent speakers offer free tutoring to help students Improve their Chinese skills. This is especially helpful for those who are taking high school Chinese and want to improve their grades or their own personal knowledge.

“I joined Chinese Club because I wanted to know more about the culture and I also wanted to learn how to improve my Chinese,” Brian Ung (12) said.

Another main attraction of the Chinese Club is the popular lion dances. These dancers meet every week to practice their skills in preparation to perform at the community center and sports rallies for hundreds of people to watch. Lion dancing is a Chinese tradition that dates back to the Tang Dynasty, and Ayala’s Chinese Club is actively working to keep this tradition alive. Members find great joy in participating in this traditional dancing.

“The Lion Dance is just a fun experience that taught us how to coordinate ourselves and how to work together in a team. It was overall a good experience,” Albert Cheng (12) said.

The Chinese Club gives members the opportunity to learn how to collaborate in groups, as working together in the same Chinese dance team or playing instruments teaches members the valuable lesson of teamwork. The Chinese Club advisor, Mrs. Lin Guo, takes pride in leading their group meetings and encouraging these life skills.

“My favorite part about being the Chinese Club advisor is working with the students and to see them display their Chinese culture for the community,” Guo said.

A common misconception is that you have to be of Chinese heritage to join Chinese Club. However, the club advisor debunks this notion. Many students who are interested in the culture are welcome, regardless of their culture.

“More and more students are joining us, not only those who know Chinese, but also many students who are taking Chinese class, even though they are not from Chinese heritage,” Mrs. Guo said. “Welcome, everyone, if you are interested in Chinese culture and Chinese language.”

This year, the club is taking a new direction with their musical team by experimenting with western instruments in addition to traditional instruments. These two cultures will join together to produce new sound and add more musical options in the club, giving new members with different skill sets a chance to participate with instruments that aren’t Chinese.

“This year will have Western instruments with Chinese traditional instruments. So it’ll be fun. We have never tried that. So before we only had traditional Chinese instruments, but now we have to combine them together,” Mrs. Guo said.

Chinese Club gives Ayala students a place to build meaningful connections with other students who share the same passion. From working in the same teams together, acquaintances have blossomed into friendships. Mrs. Guo invites everyone to join their club after school every Friday from 3:30-4:00.