News / Nunn Road / 2024 / June 2024

Dear Parents,

Time passes really quickly, and now we are approaching July. The children have celebrated many festivals and special days so far, with the most recent one being Father’s Day.

Did you enjoy your child(ren)’s massages? They practiced every day so they could do it perfectly for you. All the teachers are very proud of them!

In July, Nania will have two more celebrations: Tanabata Day on the 4th, followed by our Lantern Festival on the 19th. The children are working hard to prepare the crafts for these celebrations.

For Tanabata Day, which is just around the corner, the children shared their wishes with the teachers. We then wrote them down on special papers they coloured, so they can hang them on bamboo branches called Tanzaku. On that day, they will bring the bamboo branches home along with their wishes.

The Lantern Festival is one of Nania’s major celebrations, and all parents are invited to join us. The children have begun making their own lanterns using their paintings. They drew suns, moons and stars on the paper before cutting out the shapes and covering the open spaces with colourful crepe paper. Next, they will  weave colourful yarn through a twisting process known as ‘guru-guru’ to create the handles for their lanterns.

July 2024 Activities

4th (Thu)   Tanabata Day

8th (Mon)  Replacement Public Holiday – Penang Heritage

Day and    Awal Muharam

11th (Thu) Gideon’s 4th Birthday

12th (Fri)  Jannel’s 5th Birthday

17th (Thu) Rio's Farewell

19th (Fri)  Lantern Festival

20th -28th  School Break

*Pool Day and Craft Circle will not be held in July*

Tanabata Day (Thursday, 4th July 2024)

During this time of the year, according to Chinese and Japanese folktales, the Weaver Princess and the Cow Herder meet across the Milky Way to profess their love for each other.  The children will make Tanzaku with their wishes for this celebration.  Tanzaku, along with other decorations placed in the house, symbolize the invitation of better things to come. The teachers will cut bamboo branches on the evening of the 3rd in preparation for Tanabata on the 4th.

Lantern Festival (Friday, 19th July 2024)

The Lantern Festival (or Summer Festival) is one of the major festivals we celebrate with all the parents at Nania. It combines elements from the Chinese Mooncake Festival and the Japanese Summer Bon Festival.

Bon is one of Japan’s summer festivals, where people make offerings of food and other items to their ancestors, praying for the happiness of their ancestors’ souls in the next world.  It typically takes place from the 13th to the 15th of August (depending on the region), and during this time, the traditional folk dance known as Bon Odori can be observed in cities, towns and villages all over Japan.

The Mooncake Festival, also known as the Mid-Autumn Festival, is the third major festival in the Chinese calendar and is celebrated on the 15th day of the Eighth Lunar Month. This festival is known as the Mooncake Festival because of a sweet cake prepared in the shape of the moon, typically filled with sesame seeds, ground lotus seeds and duck egg yolks. Traditionally, the festival centers around moon watching, with both children and adults strolling through their neighbourhood carrying colourful lanterns.

This year, we will celebrate the festival on 19th July (Friday) in the evening in our garden, weather permitting.

On the day itself, the children will make dango (rice dumplings) in the morning to be served as snacks during the evening festival. After dinner, all the children and their families are expected to arrive at Nania before 6.15pm. We will start the evening with some songs and dances before enjoying some light snacks. Later, the children will participate in a lantern walk with their handmade lanterns.

At Nania, we use candles for story times, birthdays and farewells. Candles, symbolizing earthly lights, are used to represent the heavenly lights in our cultural activities. As the children gaze at Mr. Sun, Mr. Moon and Mr. Star, they are filled with wonder and awe. The light of Mr. Candle graces their activities, bringing a sense of solemnity and dignity to them. The lantern walk during the Lantern Festival offers a moment of communion in the children’s hearts, bridging the lights on earth and the lights in the heavens.

Program for Lantern Festival

Date:19th July 2024 (Friday)

Time: 6.15 pm (Please be Punctual)

Schedule for the Evening:

6.15 pm                     Arrival

6.30 pm ~ 6.50 pm   Children’s Presentation (greetings, poems, songs and dance)

6.50 pm ~7.10 pm    Hokkien Poem and Bon Odori Dance

7.10 pm ~ 7.40 pm   Light Snack and Toilet Break

7.40 pm ~ 8.00 pm   Lantern Walk

8.05 pm                    Goodbye Song

Notes regarding the Lantern Festival

· School will begin at the usual time of 9am and finish at 2.30pm on 19th July (Friday). There will be no Day Care on this day. Children are expected to return with their parents and siblings by 6.15 pm. Please have dinner before arriving at Nania. The presentation will commence promptly at 6.30pm, so we encourage everyone to be on time.

· You can park your car at the rented parking lots at Che Hoon Khor Moral Uplifting Society, located just opposite of Nania’s Main Gate.

· There will be many attendees at the Lantern Festival. Please ensure the safety of your child(ren). Parents are kindly requested to keep a close eye on their children, especially when they are walking on the road.

· If the weather permits, we plan to have a lantern walk outside Nania (along the road circling the kindergarten). Please avoid blocking the children’s path to take photographs.

· Some Japanese children will wear their traditional costumes (Yukata) for the evening. We also encouraged other children to come dressed in their traditional clothes as well.

· Climbing trees, especially the ciku tree, is strictly not allowed due to the safety risks involved.