Teaching Site at “Petar Bogdan” Foreign Language High School Affiliated with the Confucius Institute in Sofia Held “Painting Horses” Event to Celebrate the Chinese New Year

On February 18, the elementary Chinese class at the Foreign Language High School “Petar Bogdan” in Montana, a teaching site under the Confucius Institute in Sofia, held a “Horse Painting” activity to celebrate the Chinese New Year. A government-sponsored Chinese teacher and 12 elementary students from the school participated.

First, the Chinese teacher briefly introduced the origin of the Chinese Spring Festival, its traditional customs, and the symbolic meanings of the Chinese zodiac. Through pictures and videos, the students gained a basic understanding of the twelve zodiac animals.

The event then moved into its core activity—coloring the little horse. Under the guidance of the Chinese teacher, students fully used their imagination to color the horse illustrations with their favorite colors. While creating, the students reinforced their Chinese vocabulary related to colors and animal names.

At the conclusion of the event, students watched a video introducing the Chinese Spring Festival and learned about traditional customs such as posting Spring Festival couplets, setting off firecrackers, and having the New Year’s Eve dinner. Through this visual approach, students gained an intuitive understanding of the Chinese New Year and developed a stronger interest in Chinese culture.

Confucius Institute in Sofia

Text and photos: Wang Ruping

Editors: Chen Ying, Aksiniya Koleva, Ding Chen

English translation: Dima Pironkova