The Confucius Classroom at Lafayette School Corporation (LSC), Indiana, US, hosted the fourth annual  "China Night" at Tecumseh Jr. High School on Wednesday March 23 2012. Sponsored by the Confucius Classroom, LSC school district and the Confucius Institute at Purdue University,  "China Night" drew hundreds of parents and community members to Tecumseh Jr. High School to take part in the exploration of Chinese culture and to watch performances of LSC students who have been attending the Chinese language classes.

Dr. John Layton, Assistant Superintendent of Lafayette School Corporation, Dr. Hongling Jiang , Associate Director of Confucius Institute at Purdue University, and Mr. Xiao Liu, President of Purdue Chinese Students and Scholars Association, were in presence at the event to welcome and greet the participants at this Chinese cultural event in the Greater Lafayette community.

Since the establishment of the Confucius Classroom at LSC, the popularity for gaining an insight into Chinese culture and learning Chinese language has been increasing rapidly. More than 200 students from kindergarten to senior high school enrolled in Chinese classes this year. "China Night" provides a good venue for the students to showcase their learning achievements to their parents and friends, to engage in Chinese cultural activities and to simply enjoy the networking with Chinese students and scholars. LSC Chinese language teachers Ye Sun, Xiao Liu and Dongning Hu worked days and nights to organize the event which included interactive themed stations. Those in attendance sampled Chinese food, learned how to make Chinese dumplings, participated in a chop sticks skill contest, played a Chinese trivia game, learned how to do Chinese paper cutting, created Chinese peace knots, tried the Chinese calligraphy, and played yoyo, shuttle cocks and other Chinese table games. The activities resulted in hands-on products by the attendees such as the Chinese knots, books, picture albums and calligraphy writings, a great way for the Lafayette citizens to experience traditional Chinese arts and many of them expressed the interest in attending more Chinese cultural activities like this.

The evening was highlighted by a talent show featuring the language talents of students in the LSC. Students ranging from kindergarten to senior high school, representing Edgelea Elementary, Sunnyside Middle School, Tecumseh Jr. High School and Jefferson High School, presented songs, folk tales and skits in Chinese. Performances of Chinese Beijing Opera and traditional Chinese musical instruments by Chinese students from Purdue University added a great authenticity of cultural taste to the programs, and Nancy Van Duren, a former student in Chinese language class at Purdue University, presented her breath-taking sword demonstration to the audience.

Through  "China Night", a fun, entertaining event full of Chinese cultural activities, the Lafayette community got together to celebrate our diversity and culture.

"That' s great! Shall we have a try?"