[中文版本]

On August 31, 2024, at the Chinese Culture Festival held in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC, the students from the Zaidao website set up a booth to promote the "2nd Chinese Culture Festival Junior Essay Competition" and organized a "How Much Do You Know About Chinese Culture?" trivia quiz with prizes. This event attracted active participation from all people at the festival.

The Zaidao website students carefully selected and designed questions across 12 categories, covering various subjects such as Chinese traditional festivals, history, literature and art, and geography. They created a spinning wheel that randomly chose a category, then allowed participants to choose questions of varying difficulty levels based on their own knowledge. At the event, more than ten students from Zaidao took turns engaging with the visitors, asking questions, giving hints, announcing answers, and awarding prizes, all in a fun and interactive manner to spread knowledge of Chinese culture.

Many eagerly participated in the activity, showing a strong interest in Chinese culture and demonstrating a certain level of understanding. Chinese-American students, parents, and Chinese international students also took an active part. The event attracted participants of all ages, including young children, teenagers, and family teams. The entire event lasted nearly 7 hours, with a steady stream of visitors at the booth and occasional lines forming for answering questions.

Zaidao (thez.us), created by American Chinese youth, is dedicated to encouraging Chinese writing among Chinese-American teenagers. The website's mission is to convey ideas through writing, build friendships through literature, preserve culture through words, and connect the world through text. Last year, the website successfully hosted the first Chinese Culture Festival Junior Essay Competition. This year, they will continue to host the second contest, further promoting Chinese culture. The theme for this year's essay contest is "Chinese Connection: My Beautiful Encounters with Chinese Culture," inviting all young people who love Chinese culture to participate.

By

贾盈盈 翻译 (Translation) 24-09-20

[中文版本]

As a generation growing up in houses with constant temperatures throughout the seasons, it's hard for us to feel the subtle changes of the 24 solar terms. So, if you ask me which solar term is my favorite, I choose the most unique one - "Da Xue" (Major Snow).

Where I live, winter is most typical, so during the "Da Xue" solar term, it might mean snowfall! Look outside, and you'll find the entire backyard covered in white powder, with lots of ice on the roadsides, and icicles hanging from houses and trees.

On snowy days, we don't have to go to school. We can enjoy the pleasure of snow all day long. First, I can sleep in comfortably, then get up to ice skate, build snowmen, have snowball fights, and even transform myself into a snow angel. Moreover, due to the weather, parents have to work from home, so they stay with us, giving us more family time. Although on snowy days, you might have to shovel the driveway, and some people don't like shoveling, but I find it fun, and I'm willing to help my parents shovel.

After a long day of playing and shoveling snow, I can come back home, drink a cup of hot chocolate, and then my parents prepare delicious beef and lamb hot pot. Life is so wonderful!

So, "Da Xue" is my favorite solar term because it brings snow and joy!

Mentor: Bingbing Deng

By

吴星颐 翻译 (Translation) 24-06-02

[中文版本]

Part 1: The Night Mystery

One night, Xie An was walking home from school. It was already half past nine at night, and the sky was pitch black. The road he was walking on was flanked by fields, with no surveillance cameras or buildings. As Xie An walked, he thought about the issues he had discussed with his teacher earlier that evening and played with his parrot. Suddenly, he heard the sound of a car behind him. It was strange because this road rarely saw any traffic, especially at night. Before Xie An could react, the car sped past him. Suddenly, a gunshot broke the silence of the night. Xie An fell to the ground.

Bai Yiheng was sitting in his office, devouring a sandwich. He had just finished a meeting and was starving. At that moment, the phone rang. "Hello! Detective Bai Yiheng, sorry to interrupt your lunch. There's a murder case on the west side that needs your help," Detective Sam said.

As soon as Bai Yiheng heard this, he forgot about his hunger. He jumped on his motorcycle and sped to Route 29, where the murder had occurred. When Bai Yiheng arrived, three police officers were already conducting a thorough investigation. One of the officers approached, holding a piece of clothing and a plastic bag. "Mr. Bai, after a careful search, we found these two items. This is the shirt Xie An was wearing that night, with paint traces from the car. In the plastic bag is the bullet casing from the murder weapon."

Bai Yiheng took the two pieces of evidence back to his office. He scraped the paint off the shirt and applied it to a card, then handed the card to a car company. The paint on each car is unique and can identify the make, model, and even the shop or factory it came from. Bai Yiheng began to carefully study the bullet casing. By the next afternoon, Bai Yiheng learned that the bullet was fired from an AA-12 automatic shotgun. This shotgun, invented by Maxwell Atchisson in 1972, is extremely powerful and is considered "prohibited."

Bai Yiheng realized that this was a ten-year-old cold case, and the suspect had escaped back then. Remembering this, Bai Yiheng immediately ran to the police station and pulled out the old files. This was also Bai Yiheng's only failure, which had been dubbed the "perfect crime" at the time. Looking up at the sky, Bai Yiheng said, "The modus operandi is exactly the same, but technology is much better now."

Part 2: The Genius Parrot

Bai Yiheng reviewed the old files and evidence. An hour later, he called Sam and asked, "Sam, can you check the scene for any traces of gunpowder and also look into the victim's social connections? Also, send me the victim's information."

Another hour later, Sam arrived at Bai Yiheng's office and said, "The victim's name was Xie An, a high school student, killed by a bullet through the heart. Strangely, there were no traces of gunpowder just a few days after the murder. Also, he was carrying a genius parrot before he died."

Bai Yiheng said, "Do you remember the 'perfect crime' case?"

Sam replied, "Yes, I do."

Bai Yiheng asked, "Is the victim of the perfect crime related to him?"

Sam looked at the information and replied, "Yes, the victim of the perfect crime was his brother."

Bai Yiheng walked out of the room, turned, and said, "Check his brother's social connections."

Then he left. Bai Yiheng drove to the scene and found the hiding parrot. The parrot suddenly started shouting, "Genius! Genius! 180-degree turn!"

Thinking of the genius parrot, Bai Yiheng immediately turned around, only to find a gun aimed at his head. The perpetrator said aggressively, "Goodbye, loser."

But Bai Yiheng was not flustered and said, "You wrapped yourself up well."

Bai Yiheng suddenly pulled out a knife and slashed the perpetrator's right hand. The perpetrator, in pain, dropped the gun. Reacting quickly, the perpetrator threw a smoke bomb and escaped. Bai Yiheng took the parrot and the gun back to the police station. "He was wearing a mask; otherwise, I would know what he looks like," Bai Yiheng said. He went straight to the interrogation room, with Sam and several officers watching. The officers were surprised and said, "He's actually interrogating the parrot!"

In the interrogation room, the parrot said, "Genius! Gambling! Enemy! Eyes! Movie!"

An hour later, Bai Yiheng had a rough idea of the perpetrator's characteristics: a man with glasses who had a history of gambling and a deep grudge against the victim. He also had a tattoo on his left hand, and Bai Yiheng had cut his hand earlier. Bai Yiheng walked out of the interrogation room and told Sam, "Have Officer Takagi guard my house and send some people to guard my office."

Sam suddenly thought, "Aren't you going to guard the parrot?"

Bai Yiheng waved his hand dismissively. In the middle of the night, both Bai Yiheng's house and office were set on fire. Although a group of officers was guarding them, they still couldn't catch the criminal. In the end, the quick-witted Sam shot the tire of the perpetrator's car, barely managing to catch him.

Part 3: The Butterfly Knife

The next day, Officer Takagi burst in angrily, "You guys! Your shooting skills are so bad! What does the government pay you for? What's the point of walkie-talkies!"

Bai Yiheng, seemingly expecting the police to fail to catch them, sat there leisurely and said, "After all, this is someone who committed the 'perfect crime'; it's not going to be that easy to catch them."

Sam entered the interrogation room and said, "There are now three suspects: the lame Qing Feng, the hand-injured Zhong Jin, and the heavily indebted Ye Lan. Although there's no substantial evidence, we believe Zhong Jin is the one who set the fire last night. Qing Feng, Zhong Jin, and Ye Lan are all connected."

Bai Yiheng waved his hand, and the three suspects were brought in. All three had tattoos on their arms and injuries on their left hands. Takagi and Sam immediately frowned. Bai Yiheng smiled confidently, his eyes seemingly able to see through everything. He took out a butterfly knife from somewhere, a small silver knife with a green-winged butterfly engraved on the handle. He started playing with it. After a while, Bai Yiheng looked at the three and said, "Show me your hands."

All three extended their hands, all injured. Zhong Jin's injury was the most severe, with a plaster cast binding his hand tightly. Qing Feng's arm had scratches, and Ye Lan's hand was full of marks, burns, and scars. Bai Yiheng smiled and said, "I don't know if you've heard this saying, 'After watching 1,000 movies, you'll find that there are no strange things in this world.'"

Bai Yiheng walked up to them and stabbed the butterfly knife into Zhong Jin's hand. The plaster cast immediately cracked open, revealing a fresh scratch and a tattoo from the "perfect crime" ten years ago. Bai Yiheng said, "Zhong Jin, you are the 'perfect crime' perpetrator; you're under arrest."

Zhong Jin calmly said, "Do you have any evidence?"

Bai Yiheng immediately took out handcuffs, cuffed him, and began his deduction: "First, although all three of you wear glasses, have tattoos on your left hands, and have grudges against the victim's family, the others were not greatly affected. But you, Zhong Jin, originally had a bright future as a pianist. You lost all your money and ruined your hand."

Zhong Jin picked up a nearby plaster cast and smashed it on the table in anger. "Evidence? Where's the evidence? This only shows that I had a grudge against him!"

Bai Yiheng took out the AA-12 shotgun shell and said, "When this bullet was fired from the gun, only the bullet inside the casing hit Xie An, and the shell fell by the roadside. The gun you used is almost trace-free. It can even be fired single-handedly. With such a gun, gunpowder residue is certainly undetectable.

"Also, when you drove past Xie An, the paint on your car was scraped off by a button on Xie An's clothes. The day before yesterday, the car company informed me that the paint came from a gray BMW sedan. Last night, after Detective Sam shot your car's tire, he found that the car you were driving was indeed a gray BMW, with a paint scrape on the door.

"Finally, we found an AA-12 shotgun in the trunk of your car. It seems you've modified this gun. The fingerprints match yours perfectly."

After Bai Yiheng finished, he stared sharply at Zhong Jin, whose face turned pale as he slowly lowered his head. Sam and Takagi shook their heads. Takagi pointed at Zhong Jin and said, "If he had more experience, this might have been another 'perfect crime.'"

The whole team agreed.

Mentor: Lin Cheng

By

袁文天, 陈斌 翻译 (Translation) 24-06-02

[中文版本]

At five o'clock in the afternoon, my mom starts cooking, and it's usually ready by six. I can smell the delicious food. As my mom calls me, my sister, and my dad to come eat, I run quickly from the living room to the dining room. I also make sure to call my dad because sometimes he's outside in the yard or in the basement. The whole family sits by the dining table and starts eating. We talk together while we eat. Everyone shares what happened during their day, sharing happy or unhappy things and showing care for each other.

My mom can cook many different things. Sometimes she makes dumplings, and other times she makes fried rice. We eat with ceramic bowls and metal forks, spoons, and chopsticks. Sometimes I don't like the food, like if it's too spicy, but sometimes it's very delicious. We spend about thirty to forty minutes eating dinner each day, and we eat until we are full and satisfied. Every day before dinner, I put cat food in the ceramic dishes for my cats. Then, my two cats start eating from their bowls.

I'm always very happy when I eat dinner because I'm really hungry when I come home from school. My sister isn't as excited as I am, but she also likes to come and eat. Our dinner time is always happy. After dinner, I go to the living room to do my homework. My dad washes the dishes, my mom goes to dance and do yoga, and my sister goes to do her homework.

I believe everyone deserves a good dinner. My sister is very funny; she always tells me amusing stories. My mom is very capable and affectionate; she always asks me what I did at school and if I'm happy. My dad is very hardworking; he's always the last one to come to the dining room to eat because he's always busy. I'm also very capable; I take care of my own things and look after my two cats.

I love my family dinners. We eat until we're full to keep our bodies healthy and so that we won't be hungry at night. I love my family, and they all love me. We are a happy and joyful family, and every day we enjoy having family dinner together.

By

任聚豪 翻译 (Translation) 24-07-06

[中文版本]

Made of cloth and string

A little brown darling

Smiling with glee 

Her yellow hair swinging free.

Playing with a child

Days turn to weeks 

Weeks turn to months 

Months turn to years. 

The child grows up, 

But the little puppet still smiles,

Waiting for the children yet to come.

Ten years go by, 

Brown turns to yellow. 

Her yellow hair fades, 

Her smiling face ruined.

One day, A child arrives, 

Finds the little puppet. 

Takes her home, 

Shows her to mom, 

Asks mom to mend her. 

With a cheerful grin,

The little puppet’s life Begins anew.

By

杜乐尧 翻译 (Translation) 24-06-02

[中文版本]

Question: Can you tell us your main top three priorities?

Answer: So the top priorities are to make sure we spend our money wisely. We have a lot of programs that need our help. We have Darnstown Elementary for the autism program, and we have a lot of reading literacy to catch up on, so Hispanic-based schools may need additional help in order to read, so we want to make sure that programs are prioritized. Number two, no drugs, no vaping in our schools. Number three, our teachers need to be trained so they can continue to grow and then make sure that they can teach us better. So those are my three priorities.

Question: How fast do you plan on achieving these goals when you're on the board?

Answer: It will take some time for teachers to be trained and teach. It might take a year or two for them to take additional certifications. What I would like to see is no drugs immediately. So those are out fast! I would like to bring in Safety Resource Officers or School Resource Officers back in to make sure there are no drugs and no vaping. And the first part, that's going to take longer for us to make sure we have programs that are funded correcltly. We will have to do some audits and then find out where the money is being spent.

Question: As a new candidate for the BOE, what kind of legacy do you plan on leaving when you leave the BOE?

Answer: My kids are in the school system as well. They're in elementary going to middle school I want them to be prepared when they are about to go to high school and graduate, I want them to be prepared to come out to have a job or go to college. Right now, it depends on individual hard work, and some people may not have the background or family background that can get them there. I'm going to help to bridge that gap. 

By

Felix Hou 翻译 (Translation) 24-05-14

[中文版本]

When I was in sixth grade, the school organized an unforgettable outdoor experience activity – Outdoor Ed. Outdoor Ed not only enabled me to learn a lot of new knowledge, but also to make many good friends, and it left me with wonderful memories.

Outdoor Ed is located at a camp far away from the city. The camp is located on a peninsula surrounded by a wide and calm river，and it is arranged simily. Besides the cabins where teachers and students live, the area is either open grasslands or dense woods. Participating in Outdoor Ed was the first time I lived with my classmates, so I was very excited and thought it would be fun to live in the same dormitory with them. Our cabin included six bunk beds and a bathroom. As usual, I chose a bed on the top. There was a girl I didn't know sleeping across from me, and that's how we got to know each other. Her name is Faye, she is of medium height and always puts her hair up in a ponytail. She is a cheerful girl who is always happy. Soon, we became familiar with each other. We went to the cafeteria together, played together during free time, and talked in the cabin until lights out. To this day, Faye is still a very good friend of mine.

Different activities are arranged every day at Outdoor Ed, among which my favorite is a game called Predator and Prey. Predator and Prey is a survival game played in the woods. Each participant will play a role in nature. Most students will act as animals, including carnivores, omnivores, and herbivores. Each animal has a certain number of life cards at the beginning of the game – each life card represents one life. A few students also act as viruses – the viruses’ job is to catch the animals and take life cards from them. Carnivores and omnivores are tasked with hunting herbivores and taking life cards from them.Teachers placed cards representing water and plants in the woods in advance. All animals seek water cards. Omnivores and herbivores seek out edible plants. In this game, the predators have to hunt for prey, and the prey have to avoid being caught by the predators. At the end of the game, if you still have life cards, water cards, and edible plant cards (only herbivores and omnivores need edible plant cards), you have successfully survived. Unfortunately, I did not survive.

In addition to the interesting activities, the food served at Outdoor Ed is also worth mentioning. There are different options for every meal in the cafeteria. A sample of food served: breakfast includes pancakes, sausage, and juice. When you are hungry after running outside for a long time, lunch is served with bread, BBQ pulled pork and a fresh salad bar, which is perfect for filling your stomach. For dinner there are tacos stuffed with chicken, cheese, lettuce, and tomatoes. Because it's so delicious, I can't help but grab another serving every time. When I first arrived at the camp, I only saw a few simple cabins, and I didn’t expect the food to be so yummy! And because school lunches are generally not very tasty, every meal in Outdoor Ed seemed particularly delicious.

 Now that I am in seventh grade, I still often think of last year’s Outdoor Ed experience. I think of the days living with my classmates, meeting new friends, participating in interesting activities, and eating delicious food... I really hope there will be Outdoor Ed every year!

Mentor: Dan Tian, Xiaofang Diao

By

刁宜萱 翻译 (Translation) 24-06-02

[中文版本]

Jon stood up. Huh? Where am I? He thought. After quite a while, Jon finally came to his senses: he was trying to find the famous Golden Pancake. Waffles, Jon’s Catigator (a type of animal), meowed beside him. Jon looked up and saw that he was next to the Golden Pancake Temple. The Golden Pancake was just inside of the temple! He rushed up and followed Waffles to the Golden Pancake Temple.

What Jon saw before him shocked him to his core. In front of him was a gleaming, clean and shiny pancake. He carefully walked over and took the golden pancake off its pedestal. Suddenly, the entire Golden Pancake Temple began to shake violently, the ground collapsed, and the ground began to split with huge cracks. The golden pancake slipped from Jon's hand. He tried to reach out to grab it, but he lost balance and fell into the pit. "Ahhh!" Jon's panicked cry echoed in the air. Darkness engulfed the whole pit. Waffles meowed twice, not aware of what had happened to its owner. It walked to the side of the big crack in the floor, and peered down curiously. Waffles’ paws fumbled and it fell on Jon. Oof!

Huh, what’s this sticky substance? Jon sniffed his hand. It smelled of fresh fruit. Even with the faint light from his watch, Jon could barely distinguish his surroundings. Ha! It was actually a mountain of blueberries, Jon’s favorite pancake topping! Jon's weight caused many of the blueberries to rupture, and the bluish purplish juice stained his clothes purple. Staggering, Jon attempted to stand up but failed and tripped under the weight of all the berries. But next to him, Waffles was quite happy. It was busy gnawing on a huge hunk of blueberry. Jon stood up and studied the blueberries carefully. They were massive, each one at least several times larger than a basketball. Jon thought for a while, and finally came up with a solution. At last, Jon and Waffles crawled out from the pile of blueberries.

Jon and Waffles continued their journey in search of the real Golden Pancake, and not long after, a large area appeared in front of them, covered by a yellow substance. They didn't mind, but who knew that as soon as they stepped on it, they would slide forward! Waffles stuck out his tongue, tasting the strange yellow stuff. It actually tasted delicious! "This weird and oily textured stuff is actually butter!" Jon thought, "Oh my god, why was I so stupid to walk on it without even thinking." Jon tried his best to control himself and stop sliding. But he tried again and again but still couldn't stop. Jon looked towards Waffles, where it was sliding forward gracefully, looking relaxed and comfortable. Jon thought of a method: follow the direction of the butter, and don't walk in the opposite direction. That way, the butter will naturally take them to a safe place. After a while, the patch of butter finally disappeared. Jon breathed a sigh of relief and continued walking forward with Waffles.

Jon suddenly skidded to a halt, listened, and said to Waffles, "Hey Waffles, do you hear that splashing noise?" Waffles raised its snout and sniffed intently with its little nose. Jon also took a deep breath and smelled a faint sweetness in the air. They continued walking forward and turned at a corner. Both Jon and Waffles were stunned by the sight they behold: a huge waterfall! This large waterfall was 20 to 30 meters high. The water was pouring down from a high place and hitting the rocks with a splash. 

When they got closer, Jon and Waffles found out that this waterfall was indeed different: not only did this waterfall flow slower than other waterfalls, but the color of the waterfall was bronze-colored and there was a sweet, pungent scent. Jon reached out and touched the strange liquid, which stuck to Jon's hand. "Ah! Waffles! This is maple syrup!" Jon suddenly realized: It turned out that this waterfall is made of maple syrup. Jon looked in and found a large pedestal behind the syrup with a shiny, circular object. 

It was the real Golden Pancake: the one they have been searching for all this time!

Mentor: Ju Cao, Dan Wang

By

梁博雅 翻译 (Translation) 24-06-02

[中文版本]

Question: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself? 

Response: I'm Shebra Evans. I currently serve on the school board. I am coming to the end of my second term running for reelection. I have one daughter who graduated from Montgomery County Public Schools, one is currently in the school system. And this is a great public school system and I want to continue to do the work, making sure there are more access and opportunities for our students to reach their full potential. So just really looking forward to the conversation tonight and hearing what you all like about our school system and where you think some improvements can happen.

Question: Can you give us a summary of your main top goals of what you are trying to achieve?

Response:  Sure. I am very much interested in making certain that every student [from] very early on has access to their learning, so I'm big on pre -K and expanding that. I would like to eventually make it a universal pre -K, so that's free to everybody, no matter what your income is. I also want to make certain that we can do more in the area of academics, creating more programs for our students. It doesn't matter where you live, what color your skin, your gender, like. I want you to be able to have those opportunities. I think it's important that we continue to have highly qualified teachers and educators in our school system, and I think it's important for there to be a lot of diversity. I think it's important that students see themselves up in front of the classroom and leadership roles so that they can see what they can become and what they can achieve. I want to level the playing field for students so that we're not creating opportunities where one area of the county or particular student group benefits more than another student group.

Question: As a previous board member, what do you think distinguishes you from new upcoming candidates?

Response: Most of my experience and my track record. So not only do I do work at the local level, I'm involved at the state level as well. I'm currently the treasurer for the Maryland State Association of Boards of Education.

I've been able to travel and go to national school board conferences where I can see and hear from other people what their best practices are and what I'm able to see and hear. The Montgomery County is really great.

A lot of things that other schools are trying to do, we're already doing it. So this is a good school system. I have two kids that really help inform my work. So as you all are going through experience, my kids are going through it too.

And I use them as guides when I make decisions.  That outcome impacts not only them but their classmates and kids across the county.  I have relationships developed at local, state level and federal level with our elected officials and they've been very supportive of the work that I've been able to do. And I've been able to see that achievements in the works that I have been doing for years. 

Question: What type of long-lasting Legacy do you want to leave on MCPS?

Response: You know what I want people to remember me as a collaborator, someone who listened to them, someone that they felt like they could approach to talk to you and share their experiences and then feel like what they told me maybe they are going to see that in fields of work, see a difference and make a difference.  That's a good question!  I just want people to know that who you see and the work that I do and I'm very committed. I enjoy doing it.  This is a part-time job. We make $35,000 a year, I don't do it for the money. I hope that I've impacted one student, one family member. I have been able to create a policy where it tackled our lunch problem. I was really concerned and wanted to ensure that we gave a lot of different meal options. I hope people will know all those things about me.

By

蒋晨煜 翻译 (Translation) 24-05-14

[中文版本]

Tomorrow is "Mother's Day," and I'm planning to give my mom a gift.

I think my mom would be really happy if I gave her a greeting card. So, I've decided to give her a Mother's Day card. But when should I buy the card without her noticing? At noon, when I go to pick up some medicine, I'll secretly buy a greeting card. I don't have much money, so I searched around and found a card that is both cheap and beautiful. The card is a light beige color, with an adorable Snoopy dog on the front. When you open the card, there's a big, fluffy pink "Love" in the middle that feels soft to the touch! I'm sure my mom will love it. I checked the price, and it was just over four dollars, and I happened to have five dollars, so it was enough. I quickly bought it. When I got back to the car, I wrote "I love you so much" on the card and drew my mom's favorite foods, lobster and durian, which made the card even more beautiful!

The next morning was Mother's Day. I got up at six o'clock to prepare a mooncake for my mom. I heated the mooncake in the microwave for three minutes and also prepared a banana for her. After my mom finished her breakfast, I was ready to give her the card. First, I asked her to sit on our blue sofa and close her eyes. I let her feel the fluffy "Love" first, and then I told her to open her eyes and enjoy the adorable card. My mom was so happy that she couldn't stop smiling, and I was grinning too. She said she really liked the card and added, "My child, I love you so much!"

This was truly an unforgettable Mother's Day. I love you, Mom!

Mentor: Lin Cheng

By

冯新民 翻译 (Translation) 24-06-02