On Sunday, January 28, from 1:00 – 4:30 pm, the Roslyn Branch volunteered with Greater Roslyn Association for Chinese Enrichment (GRACE) to host a carnival in the Bryant Library.
GRACE is an organization dedicated to serving and supporting the Chinese American families in Roslyn by promoting cultural awareness and improving diversity inclusion within the community. By hosting this carnival, GRACE provided an opportunity for newer families to be welcomed into the community and for the kids to befriend one another.
Roslyn Members arrived early to set up, laying out tablecloths and distributing the games to each table. Once that task was complete, we were assigned to different ‘booths’ and each set up the game or activities while we waited for families to arrive. Once the kids started filtering in, we explained our booths and demonstrated the games for the children. Due to the different games and activities we had, each booth required different types of assistance and accommodations and the members quickly adapted to different situations. The paper lantern-making table taught the kids how to cut out lanterns while taking extra care to monitor young kids with scissors. The Jenga table gave pointers to kids and rebuilt the tower with surprising efficiency after its collapse. The station where you picked up marbles with chopsticks adjusted the levels of difficulty according to the age of the player. The bracelet-making table helped pick out lettered beads to spell the children’s names and knotted the bracelet with an adjustable knot. Volunteers manning the 5-second trivia station actively engaged and interacted with children in the game. The ping pong booth and board game booths demonstrated the rules of the game and cheered the children on.
Through this vivacious chaos, we volunteers were able to garner valuable lesson in interacting with both children and adults, on how to offer assistence and reach out to one another, and learn to think on our feet and adjust to unexpected situations.
Members who participated includes (3.5 hours):
Yang Amy Wu, Serena Wu, Katrina Chen, Anita Chen, Ryan Lin, Ethan Lin (grade 11), Elyse Jin, Ryan Chen, Brian Xiong, Ethan Lin (grade 10), Zihan Wang, Emma Wei, Chloe Wu, and Eric Xiong
Reporter: Yang Amy Wu
