KOREA FOUNDATION

On April 20, the World Activity Class shared the cultures of the Philippines and Vietnam with a group of children at the Public Children’s Center in Guro, Seoul.
   After an introduction of both countries, the children learned about tinikling, a traditional folk dance of the Philippines, from Filipino volunteer Sherlyn Mendoza. The children had a chance to learn tinikling movements by using the bamboo poles brought for the class by Mendoza.
   During the cooking class, the children made mango float, a Filipino dessert, and the Vietnamese dishes bun cha and cha gio. The sweet and delicious mango float was especially popular with the children.
   Nguyen Minh Trang, a Vietnamese volunteer, said, “The lotus is Vietnam’s national flower, and so I made lotus lanterns with the children. I was worried that the process might be too difficult for them, but they focused and worked hard, which made me truly happy and thankful.”
   Jiyoung Yang, a class volunteer, also expressed her satisfaction with the day’s program. “We plan programs in consideration of the participating children’s ages and the characteristics of the countries to be introduced. This time, the children were quite young, in the lower elementary grades, yet they were quite interested in the foreign countries presented and actively took part in the activities.” For smooth program implementation, Yang said it is important for class organizers to gain information about participants, such as age and interests, in advance through coordination with the staff of the hosting venue.

KFVN Guest Reporter Hyemi Kim

Word Philippines Vietnam Traditional_Culture