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Confucius Institute offers Chinese
experiences for Buffalo students

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By PATRICIA DONOVAN
Published: July 14, 2010

The Asian Studies Program is sponsoring two Chinese language and culture immersion experiences for Buffalo public school students this summer through its Confucius Institute.

One is a week-long “Experience China” Summer Camp to be held July 26-30 at South Park High School for 20 Buffalo public middle and high school students.

The second is a culture and language trip for 15 Buffalo public high school students and two teachers to Xi’an, China, the 3,000-year-old capital of Shaanxi province, one of China’s four great ancient capitals, to be held July 27 to Aug. 11. 

The “Experience China” camp and the travel costs of the Xi’an trip will be partially funded by grants from the Buffalo Public School Foundation and support from the UB College of Arts and Sciences. The program in Xi’an will be funded by the Confucius Institute’s parent organization, the Chinese Language Council International. 

The Confucius Institute organized the summer camp, trained its teachers and devised camp activities for Buffalo participants, who were recommended by their school principals.

Participants will be introduced to Chinese language and cultural activities, among them calligraphy and games that are popular in China, such as table tennis. They also will be taught how to cook Chinese dumplings, which will be served at the celebratory party at the end of the camp week.

During camp week, a delegation of students from Luoyang, China, who are traveling in the United States, will visit and meet the Buffalo campers.

The trip to Xi’an, at the eastern terminus of the Silk Road, will expose students to Chinese language and culture, and involve them in a variety of sports activities and tours. Xi’an is home to the famous Terracotta Army—8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses—made during the Qin Dynasty in the third century BC and discovered in 1974 in a royal tomb. When the travelers return home, they will receive a certificate of completion.