When I first introduced china to my friends they were shocked about china.I told my friend a lot of things about china.I told what food,culture,clothing,toys,and a lot of things about china.

The food in China is very special. It depends on the state in China. In Lanzhou they eat pulled noodles. In Fujian they eat seafood. In Taiwan they eat lamb skewers or beef skewers.and in guangdong they eat wonton noodle,and fried rice,and in sichuan they eat meat buns.

 In China they wear red and white most often. The toys are very special.The toys have a lot of colors and are creative.There are also a lot more things that are cool in China.

 In china when a person comes into your house you have to give a cup of tea to that person.that is chinese culture. In China they usually drink iced tea,soy milk,beer and they also drink tea.

There are also a lot of places you should visit in china like the great wall of china,the canton tower, the fujian tower, the macau tower,and the shanghai tower.did you know that the cars that are invented in china such as BYD and dongfeng.

(Third Prize)

By

Aiden Chen 陈俊毅 英文小学组 2025-12-17

Today I’m going to talk about how and when I introduced my friends to China.

Legend

When I first introduced my friends to China, I first told them famous Chinese legends such as Chang E and Nian.  Nian is the legend of the Lunar New Year and Chang E belongs to the Mid-Autum Festival.  I also told them stories like the Preasant and the Weaver Maid.  These legends and festivals are all related to each other.

Festivals

Festivals play an important part in China.  That is also why I told my friends about Chinese festivals.  Festivals such as the Mid-Autum Festival are some of my favorites!   At the Mid-Autumn Festival, we eat mooncakes under the moon.  The zodiac snake reflects as the moon as the happy family unites underneath it.  

Food

Chinese cuisine has changed my life.  I told them that many different flavors like salty, savory, and spicy will also tell them a lot about Chinese history.  I told them that other flavors like sweetness also happened during the ancient times by sugarcanes.   I told them that I enjoy many famous foods like dumplings, noodles, and baozi.  “These are surely delicious!”  I told them.

Items

 I told my friends that items like fans were commonly used today and during ancient times.  Other items like the paintbrush are also commonly used today.   Hairpins, buildings, and even cities are still here during ancient times and today!  China is really famous for jade. Jade is a rare type of rock that mostly comes in a greenish whitish color.  Green and brown jade are common, while white jade mixed with a purplish color is very rare and is often worth over $10,000.

Places

Places like the Great Wall, Forbidden City, and the Summer palace are many different places in China and are very famous and existed during ancient times and still stand today.  The Great Wall is the largest hand-made building in the world.  It was made by Qinshihuangdi and his people.  It stretched across the northern borders and was used as a watchtower in ancient China.  Today it is a famous tourist place.  The Great Wall of China is crumbling, but it is still standing today.

In conclusion, I think that China is very important and is one of the oldest ancient civilizations still standing. All these things show the beauty of Chinese culture. I am thankful for these Chinese culture has given me and made me shine and special.

(First Prize)

By

Claire Zhou 周天玥 英文小学组 2025-12-17

When I introduce my American friends to China, I ask them if they have any questions about China. My friends usually ask questions like: 

What do you eat, what do you see, and where did you go in China? 

When I answer what do you eat, I say, I eat things like dumplings, noodles, and hot pot. A lot of foods in China are similar to the food in Chinese restaurants that are in America. We eat hot pot that is usually spicy with different kinds of food that you put in the hot pot. For example, beef, lamb, and lettuce, and a lot more! The hot pot is a different flavor so putting the food in it makes it a different flavor. 

When eating noodles, we often order it from a restaurant. There are lots of things in the noodles for example, beef, soup, and onions. We sometimes put some things in the noodles that didn't come with it. We like to put salt or pepper in the soup to give it a bit more flavor. 

When we eat dumplings, we like to get different kinds of insides of the dumpling to give it more taste. On the outside of the dumplings, it is usually white unless they made it a different color. The inside of the dumpling is meat with a flavor. Sometimes, the dumplings have a very strong smell, so we drink water after eating them so that the smell won’t last for a very long time.

When I answer the question ‘‘What do you see?’’ I start by saying what the houses look like in China.

In China, there are apartment buildings instead of regular houses that we live in in Maryland. Although Maryland has some apartments, China has a lot of apartment buildings. At least where I have been in China. Those houses have both elevators and stairs in case of a fire emergency, since you wouldn’t want to be trapped in a tall building when there is no elevator service during a fire! Outside of some apartments, there is a playground in which kids can play in. There are many bus stops in China and buses on the streets. Some people ride motorcycles to get around. A lot of kids ride in the back of motorcycles or they have bikes.

When answering the question ‘‘Where did you go in China?’’ I tell my friends where I went to in China.

Two summers ago, during the summer before 3rd grade, I went to my mom’s hometown in China. I met my grandparents and, since it was summer, We went to the pool and we had popsicles! Since I play piano, we found a place where I can have piano classes and practice the piano. My cousins also came to my grandparents apartment to visit me. They live in China so they don’t get to see me very often. It was very fun! I have a lot of cousins so I didn’t get to see all of them. Then I went to my dad’s hometown and visited one of my other cousin's hometown. We made a trip to the zoo and saw many adorable pandas! I was really hot so popsicles were eaten very often. I don’t have a whole lot of cousins in my dad’s hometown but It was still very fun!

This is how I introduce China to my American friends!    

(Second Prize)

By

Amelia Liu 刘芮 英文小学组 2025-12-17

When I introduced China to my friends, they thought it was very interesting because of the different events we celebrate. We celebrate different events than my friends do, and I told them about Chinese New Year, the Spring Festival, the Mid-Autumn Festival, and more.

I also taught them some Chinese characters and showed them how to say “hi” in Chinese, and they said it was hard. I told them that during the Spring Festival we eat dumplings and receive money in red packets. I also explained that during the Mid-Autumn Festival, we eat mooncakes, spend time with our family, and have a lot of fun.

Finally, I told them that Chinese New Year is also very fun. Of course, I had to tell them how difficult learning Chinese is. Celebrating the Spring Festival and the Mid-Autumn Festival is very fun, but learning Chinese, on the other hand, is a challenging experience. I told my friends that if they thought saying “hi” in Chinese was hard, learning Chinese would be much harder than that. I also explained that writing Chinese is even harder than speaking it.

They agreed when I showed them some Chinese characters. My friends asked if they could come to my house to celebrate some Chinese events too, and I said yes. They also asked questions like what mooncakes taste like, and I told them they are sweet and delicious.

In the end, after I introduced China to my friends, they thought the events we celebrate are great, and they wanted to celebrate them too.

(Third Prize)

By

Jerry Wang 王泽睿 英文小学组 2025-12-17

Most of my friends are American, so they do not know much about Chinese culture. Since I am Chinese, I want to introduce them to it. I want to tell them all about Chinese food, traditions, and dances, which are all important parts of Chinese culture.

Chinese dances are my favorite. Now, about Chinese food: my friend Julia once said she did not like Chinese food, so I asked her why. She told me that she had only been to Panda Express, and I was like—that’s not REAL Chinese food, it’s only American food. But she still said she did not like it.

So I told my mom, and she said I should invite Julia to a Chinese festival or a real Chinese restaurant. If I get the chance, I am going to take her to a REAL Chinese restaurant. I was thinking of Dimsum Palace, but I will see what she thinks.

Now about Chinese traditions. Some of my friends do not even know anything about them. (I was going to say their names, but I forgot who they were.) I told them they were missing out because we get red bags with money in them for Chinese New Year. My dad’s friends in Hong Kong gave me so much money for some reason. One person gave me two 500 Hong Kong dollar bills, and someone else gave me two 100 Hong Kong dollar bills. My friends were very surprised.

When I went to my uncle’s house, our family was celebrating Chinese New Year, and my great-aunt Anita told me that I could not open my red bags until the full moon. She did not want people to get jealous if I got more money, because I was usually the spoiled one with all the good gifts and money. Guess what? I did not wait until the full moon, which was two days later—I opened them as soon as I got home. My friends told me I was a very naughty kid, and I told them my great-aunt never found out. LOL.

Another Chinese tradition I would like to tell my American friends about is dancing. My favorite is the dragon dance—it never gets old to me, although it might to you. If you read my story called “The Chinese Dances,” which I turned in for the competition, you would know that I also dance ballet at Chinese school. I performed the Jasmine Flower dance, the Mongolia dance, and the Miaow dance (I don’t think I spelled that correctly, but you know what I mean).

I also told you about the outfits I wore for the dances. As I mentioned, the Jasmine Flower outfit was very uncomfortable. I didn’t say this before, but my friend Janice and I were complaining the whole time we were dancing. The other outfits, like the one for the Miaow dance, were much more comfortable than the Jasmine Flower outfit.

I really hope that my friends can learn more about Chinese traditions!

(Second Prize)

By

Hannah Leung 梁巧慧 英文小学组 2025-12-17