解放军文职招聘考试Spring Festival’s Symbols 春节符号

  Spring Festival’s Symbols  春节符号

  Symbols are an important part of Chinese culture, and are more than just pretty decorations. Each decoration has its own tale to tell.

Fu(福)

  The character fu, usually painted on red, diamond-shaped paper, can be seen almost every household and is usually hung upside down. Those who hope for extra luck and fortune do this on purpose: The pronunciation of “fu dao” is similar to the phrase “luck arrives”. In other words, good luck will arrive and is welcome to enter the house.

Paper cuts (jian zhi)

  Making jian zhi is an ancient Chinese folk art that dates back to the Southern and Northern Dynasties (420-589). Traditionally, professional craft men (工匠)made paper cuts by hand; today, most paper cuts are made by machine. Red paper cuts are a sign of good fortune and are put on house and restaurant window. The bat is a popular cutting, as the Chinese word for bat is fu, which sounds like the character for good fortune. Fish are also a common paper cut, as the Chinese word yu sounds like the term for plenty.

  Chinese knots (zhong guo jie)

  The ancient folk art of knotting was developed in the Tang and Song Dynasties (618-1279). Each knotted shape has a special meaning: the most common is the red, diamond-shaped knot, which means “forever happy”. Other knots include “prosperity” knots (decorated with chili peppers); “romance” (in heart-shaped patterns); “fortune” (tied with ancient coins); “happiness” (featuring the double-happiness character); and “longevity (长寿)”(100 coins connected with red thread). It’s popular for women to wear a small piece of the knots as a necklace.

I Aims and Demands（教学目的和要求）

To learn a passage about the symbols of China’s Spring Festival and let the students know some related information.

ⅡKey Points and Special Difficulties（重点和难点）

Key points:

1) to describe the Spring Festival of China

2) to grasp some useful words and expressions

symbol, decoration, diamond, pronunciation, on purpose, be similar to, in other words

Special difficulties: to know about Chinese culture

Ⅲ Teaching Aids and Approaches（教具及教学方法）

Multi-media, Task-based approach and the integrated approach

Ⅳ Brief Teaching Procedures（教学过程）

Step1 Lead-in（导入新课）

When it comes to the Spring Festival, what images will come into your mind?

Step2 Fast reading（快速阅读）   

Read the passage quickly and answer（快速阅读并回答下列问题）:

1) What do bats and fish mean in paper cuts?

2) When was the art of knotting developed?

Keys（参考答案）:

1) Because the Chinese word for bat is fu, which sounds like the character for good fortune; the Chinese word yu sounds like the term for plenty.

2) It was developed in the Tang and Song Dynasties.

Step3 Careful reading（细读）    

1. Describe the symbols mentioned in the passage.

(Fu: painted on red, diamond-shaped paper, hung upside down, means extra luck and fortune;

Paper cuts: developed in the Southern and Northern Dynasties; a sign of good fortune; bats and fish 

Chinese knots: developed in the Tang and Song Dynasties; having different special meanings; popular among women)

2. Pay attention to some sentences.

1) Symbols are an important part of Chinese culture, and are more than just pretty decorations.

2) Those who hope for extra luck and fortune do this on purpose.

3) The bat is a popular cutting, as the Chinese word for bat is fu, which sounds like the character for good fortune.

Step4 Classroom activities（课堂活动）   

Work in groups of four and discuss:

What preparations do we make for the Spring Festival?

How do we celebrate the festival?

Step5 Homework （作业）

Write a passage about the preparation for and celebration of the Spring Festival.

Step6 Assessment（评价）

Words and expressions（词和短语）

1. symbol  n. 符号                                  2. decoration  n. 装饰

3. diamond  n. 钻石                                4. dynasty  n. 朝代 

5. prosperity  n. 兴旺                               6. feature  vt.  以……为特色 

7. on purpose 故意地                                8. be similar to 和……相似

9. in other words 换句话说                       10. date back to 追溯到……