On Friday, we took a field trip to The Magic House to see the special exhibit “Children’s China: Celebrating Culture, Character and Confucius” before it closed down. This exhibit was the perfect complement to our study of Asia this school year, and our specialized study of China, which began when we went to the Lantern Festival at the Missouri Botanical Garden in May.

Our first stop was at the restaurant, where the children could pretend to cook an authentic Chinese meal, set the table, and take part in an ancient tea ceremony.

We also got to visit a Chinese market…the scooter was a big hit!

There was a park, complete with exercise equipment and table tennis. We all had fun trying all of it out (even if some of us can’t play table tennis to save our lives)!

We got to experience home life in China, as well. The shutters in all of these settings opened up, with pictures of what a view from the window might actually be like, which was a nice touch.

We took a peek at a Longtang (a traditional Chinese neighborhood):

We spent a great deal of time in the Chinese school. There were tangrams, crafts, and a place to practice Chinese character writing. I was amazed at what the school schedule looks like, especially the daily 80 minutes of calisthenics!

The other area we spent a great deal of time in was the panda reserve. We learned all about pandas, and about how they care for baby pandas in China. The children enjoyed having a chance to name a cub with a traditional Chinese two character name, weigh it, and care for it. They also liked the panda playground!

In addition to those settings, there was also a hands-on area dedicated to crafts (like making paper lanterns) and music.

This was without a doubt the best special exhibit we’ve been to at The Magic House. I loved how hands-on and immersive everything was…I think we all got a very good and realistic glimpse into Chinese life and culture!