S UM VAY BY THE CHUNG BANH
Before Tet is always the most favorite time of the members of the extended family of Ms. Nguyen Thi Song Tra, Director of TH Education and Training Company Limited, Ho Chi Minh City. Everyone returns to their hometown together, goes to the market to buy Tet flowers, decorates the house and wraps Chung cake and Tet cake together. The time to wrap Chung cake is the happiest time for the whole family. Everyone plays Tet songs and shares tasks, the children wash leaves, wash rice, clean green beans, grandparents split bamboo strips, wrap cakes. While working, the whole family tells stories about Tet holidays past and present, cooking plans, going out on Tet holiday...
The whole family gathered to wrap banh chung and tell funny stories about Tet.
Ms. Tra believes that children do not only learn many good lessons when they go to school. In every family or anywhere, children can learn through their own experiences. Ms. Tra's family's experience is to prioritize activities that connect children and families, sharing so that children can better understand family affection as well as how to take care of grandparents, behave with parents and everyone, because Tet is an opportunity for children to meet more people.
"When at home, grandparents and parents should let their children have many days to experience and do things with other members to prepare for the traditional New Year. While doing housework, grandparents and parents should talk and tell their children the meaning of each activity. For example, why Tet is about wrapping banh chung and banh tet; why many places have the custom of erecting a pole on Tet holiday... In particular, the dinner on the 30th of Tet always has an important meaning for Vietnamese families. At the reunion dinner after a year apart, many new members have the opportunity to gather together, talk about the difficulties of the past year, and encourage each other to move forward in a new year with many hopes...", Ms. Tra shared.
S SLOW TET HOLIDAY
Dr. Nguyen Thi Huyen Thao, history teacher at Tran Dai Nghia High School for the Gifted, Ho Chi Minh City, believes that the Tet holiday is an opportunity for young people to learn many things from life. This is a time for them to "verify" the theoretical lessons at school to feel and understand more deeply the traditional cultural values of the country, the behavioral culture, and communication of people in society.
"From a traditional cultural perspective, children have the opportunity to experience and feel the ceremonial activities that only happen when Tet comes everywhere, and are rarely seen in everyday life. For example, the beauty of wearing Ao Dai with many colors and styles. I am very happy that wearing traditional costumes is becoming a "trend" for young people, this is also a way for them to pay attention to the culture and history of the nation. Or in many traditional Tet spaces, children can play folk games that their generation rarely or never knows about, such as hopscotch, hopscotch, jump rope, blindfolded goat catching, dragon snake up to the clouds...", said Dr. Huyen Thao.
"Cleaning the house together, cooking together, wrapping cakes together, decorating apricot and peach blossoms together, these common activities take place naturally but bring many values to spiritual life, and help students learn many good values from life instead of dogmatic theories...", Dr. Nguyen Thi Huyen Thao confided.
Children join in wrapping banh chung, cooking banh chung, buying coriander plants... thereby understanding more about Tet holiday.
TEACH CHILDREN TO CELEBRATE TET IN A CIVILIZED WAY
Tet is a tradition, a beautiful custom that has been preserved by Vietnamese people for generations. According to teachers, this is also a time for adults to set an example for their children about civilized behavior and habits.
Ms. Luong Thi Hong Diep, Head of the Preschool Education Department, Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training, shared that although children are allowed to stay home for Tet, parents should also maintain a balanced schedule for their children, not staying up too late, eating and sleeping on time, and not eating too many sweets or fatty foods. Or if the family goes on vacation or goes out, they should also pay attention to the safety of the children.
According to Ms. Luong Thi Hong Diep, adults are often busy during Tet, but that doesn't mean they should neglect their children with their phones or tablets, because it's very possible that after Tet, their children will become "addicted" to technology devices.
"No matter how you celebrate Tet, parents can be teachers - teaching their children from the smallest things. Like teaching children how to live and appreciate spiritual values, not just material ones. Teaching children to wish adults a happy new year; to receive lucky money with both hands; to say thank you when given gifts; not to open lucky money in front of adults and then throw it away right away. Or teaching children not to make a fuss when visiting other people's houses, to be polite... These are things that are very small but extremely important," said Ms. Diep.
Wherever I go, I always remember Vietnamese Tet.
Since her two daughters Mylan and Lyanh were very young, Dr. Phan Bich Thien, a Vietnamese expatriate living and working in Hungary, has always focused on teaching her children about Vietnamese culture. She teaches her children Vietnamese, Vietnamese food, and Vietnamese customs, traditions, and etiquette. Every Lunar New Year when the family cannot return to Hanoi to celebrate Tet with their grandmother, the Vietnamese woman in Hungary will try to buy dong leaves, sticky rice, and mung beans to gather and teach her children how to wrap banh chung, make nem (spring rolls), and cook gac sticky rice...
She confided that family is always the best cradle to nurture in children love for their homeland and country, so that wherever they go, the best values of their homeland are always silently nurtured in their children.
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