Batesville students celebrate Chinese New Year with unique cultural art

Students spent several months working on the project

(BATESVILLE, Ind.) – Students at Batesville Middle School are getting the opportunity to learn more about Chinese culture while taking part in an ancient artistic practice. 

The students and teachers have spent months crafting a dragon lantern from scratch, ahead of the Chinese New Year on Wednesday. 

They started preparing last school year and purchased items ranging from bamboo strips to silk. 

Chinese Immersion teacher Emily Du said the construction process did bring some difficulties, but the students were able to overcome the challenges while gaining a deeper appreciation of the cultural heritage. 

The dragon lantern was paraded through the hallways for the first time on Tuesday, on the eve of the Chinese New Year. 

“This project not only demonstrates the spirit of unity and cooperation among teachers and students, it is also a vivid practice of the overseas dissemination of Chinese intangible cultural heritage,” said Du.

Batesville became the first school corporation in the state to launch the Chinese Dual Language Immersion Program in 2016.

Beginning in Kindergarten, students enrolled in the program are taught Indiana standards in both English and Mandarin through their senior year. Learn more about the program here.

Here are more photos of the process of building the dragon lantern: