Poetry, mooncakes, tea tastings: Hong Kong kindergarten taking holistic approach to pushing national security education

The seemingly unorthodox curriculum helps pupils ‘establish their national identity and nurture their affection towards the country’, principal says

The curriculum changes are aimed at fulfilling new requirements under the Beijing-imposed national security law

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The Buddhist Tsang Kor Sing Anglo-Chinese Kindergarten is using traditional Chinese arts and cultural elements to push national security education. Photo: Winson Wong

Published: 7:00am, 15 Sep 2021

As soothing Chinese music plays in the background, pupils at a kindergarten in Sham Shui Po work on an arts and crafts exercise. In the next room, students recite verses by the renowned Tang dynasty poet Li Bai, while in another, they press balls of pastry into mooncake moulds.

The activities are not one-offs, or part of Chinese culture week, but rather elements of a new curriculum at the Buddhist Tsang Kor Sing Anglo-Chinese Kindergarten designed to comply with the government’s latest policy on national security education, which emphasises learning about the motherland.

The curriculum involves numerous experiential activities, such as mathematics games from ancient China, tea tastings and an introduction to mainland China’s space industry. Other topics such as Chinese geography, weather, medicine and opera are also touched upon.

Mooncake making, tea tastings and Chinese opera appreciation are among the activities being used to promote national security. Photo: Winson Wong

The kindergarten, run by the Hong Kong Buddhist Association, started implementing the new curriculum – which has been submitted to the Education Bureau – in this academic year.

Principal Ng Yuen-hei said the new lessons aimed to teach young pupils about China “in an orderly and progressive manner”.