Shan Ding Elementary School sports day
Yesterday was the kid’s school sports day. It is held on a Saturday so parents are able to attend and join in the activities.
To make up for having to attend on Saturday, school is out for Monday. I’m not sure what the working parents will do tomorrow.
The weather at this time of year is absolutely gorgeous. It is really the time of year to be enjoying the outdoors and yesterday was a perfect day for it. There was a band, miniature cauldron and flame and lots of parading.
They had running, relays, tug-of-war, 3 legged races and even an egg-and-spoon race.
There were lots of proud parents watching on.
An event like this can not go by without a fair full of food, game and trinket vendors.
Here is the paper fishing net fair game. A very flimsy sheet of paper is stretched across a plastic paddle. 1 paddle for 10 yuan, 6 for 50 yuan. You get to keep all the goldfish you can catch before the paper fails.
We are now a household of 8 new goldfish and two small turtles.
The kids still had their usual school provided meal so they returned to the classrooms during lunch time. They look pretty much like the classrooms I attended so many years ago on a very different continent.
Here is my daughter’s classroom.
And here is my son’s.
The rapid drop in birthrate is having a real impact on schools all over Taiwan. Elementary school covers years 1 to 6. Shan Ding has 6 year 6 classes by only 4 year 1 classes. Pretty much the demographics of Taiwan proper.
As so often happens, a few nervous young people shyly asked to take a photo of me and my daughter. Something I always oblige as I’m never without my own camera ready to reciprocate. Here are the shy English speakers of yesterday.
Though very different from the sports days I once attended, the essence of festivities and activities were still there.
Why they even had long standing at assembly listening to lofty speeches by the headmaster.
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