The Hong Kong education team met their Mainland colleagues in Beijing, where they participated in classroom activities and joined the local students in their field trip to the imperial palace. 

The tutors commended the nine-session programme for motivating students to learn about traditional Chinese culture with its rich content and engaging presentation. Popular with students and parents alike, the programme has graduated its first cohort of 16 students since its launch in early October 2013.

Our Education Team brushed up their knowledge of the Forbidden City and traditional Chinese culture during a visit to the imperial palace, conducting topical field studies on-site while exploring the surroundings and documenting their findings with photographs, videos, sketches and pencil rubbings.

At the invitation of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University School of Design (Higher Diploma Programmes), the Education Team attended a seminar led by Head of Education, K. C. Ma. Based on the themes of “Architecture” and “Artifacts,” the seminar revolved around the various approaches to researching and promoting traditional Chinese culture, in the hopes of inspiring students to appreciate traditional culture from a broad range of perspectives with greater relevance to contemporary life.

On 9 October 2013, students in Beijing came face-to-face with The Forbidden City Children's Programme! Perked up in their seats inside a classroom designated for The Forbidden City Children's Programme, a group of over a dozen students from the Experimental Primary School joined their tutors in embarking on a two-month ‘Exploration Journey to an Imperial Palace’, navigating the palatial complex from the entrance point of ‘The Palace is Like a Big Jungle’.

Our Education Team, after conducting the debut learning experience workshop series last season, returned to Beijing where they joined hands with the Experimental Primary School of the High School Affiliated to Renmin University of China (formerly Zhichunli Primary School) to launch the ‘Little Forbidden City’ series. Adopting an approach that takes its lead from the palatial structure, this latest project uses stories to inspire children of Beijing to explore the fascinating wonders the royal residence has to offer. The project will be officially introduced in October to primary students in the second, fourth and fifth forms of the school.

The director and members of Design and Cultural Studies Workshop visited China Academy of Art and Zhu Xiao-jie workshop in Hangzhou in August. The team met with Professor Hangjian and Mr Zhu Xiao-jie, founder & chief designer of OPAL Furniture, discussing about research of Chinese utensils design and product development.

The Education Scheme was honoured to receive a special invitation from the Hong Kong Museum of History to design the education fringe event, "The Emperor's Wardrobe" education workshop for families, to complement its summer exhibition, The Splendours of Royal Costume: Qing Court Attire. Held on Sundays throughout August and September, the workshop highlights the design features of items of clothing worn by the emperor, alongside anecdotes and symbolic meanings of different patterns through storytelling and interactive games. Click here to visit the Hong Kong History Museum website for details of the workshop.

Drawing on the warm audience reception the learning experience sessions garnered in Hong Kong, Beijing and Guangzhou, our Education Team responded to the gracious invitation of the Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Tainan City Government with "How Are You, Forbidden City?", a learning experience session tailored to the Taiwanese audience, which made its debut appearances across the Straits at the Eslite Bookstore at the Tainan Municipal Cultural Center and the Tainan Patriotic Women Association. Taking an audience of young Taiwanese learners on a virtual tour of Beijing's Forbidden City, Our Education Team introduced them to the whimsical aspects and modern meanings of the magnificent structure from a variety of perspectives.

After series of learning experience sessions in Beijing, the education team made progress in Guangzhou on 1st July, the international children’s day. One hour’s session held in Fang Suo Commune and Xue Er You bookstore, was also our gift for children in Guangzhou on the special day. Children and parents took an active part, especially in the “Twelve Badge” section, where parents were invited to award kids badges representing different virtue.

After holding about 2000 workshops in Hong Kong, tutors of We All Live in The Forbidden City went to Beijing, presenting two experience courses to kids in the Poplar Kid's Republic Book Store and One Way Street book store. The content of the experience courses came from The Best Palace and lasted about one hour. Although it was the final exam time for primary school in Beijing, there were still many kids, who were accompanied by parents participated in the course.

Following the success of the two learning experience sessions held at two bookshops, our Education Team again returned to Beijing at the end of March with yet another series of learning experience sessions, this time visiting Xin Wei Lai Bilingual School in the Chaoyang District of the capital, where they read stories and played games with over 40 students, many of whom are children of rural migrant workers. The team also conducted a session at Your Bay Library where they spent a fun-filled, joyous afternoon interacting with over 20 groups of parents and children and sharing their learning experiences after the class.

Our Education Team had a happy chance encounter with the 40-strong delegation of Chiu Sheung School, Hong Kong who were on their study tour to the capital. A proper session was quickly arranged with the former participants of the "The Best Palace" workshops at the Forbidden City on 28 March. Besides designing a workshop and a set of worksheets for the occasion, our Education Team also drew the attention of the students of Chiu Sheng to the many charms and pleasant quirks of the palace and encouraged them to soak up the architectural wonders of the palatial residences. The two parties again met up at the Qianlong Garden, where an extension activity of the "Strolling in the Garden" workshops took place on site.

Thematic in-situ research, a highlight of the tour, was designed to enable members of our Education Team to acquire a better grasp and appreciation of the Forbidden City and traditional Chinese culture. Using an eclectic array of media, such as photographs, videos, sketches and pencil rubbings, they explored and documented every corner of the Forbidden City over several days of the tour.

Our Education Team took time out of their tour to visit the state-run Zhi Chunli Primary School where they gained from the teachers and students a fuller picture of early education for different sectors of the Beijing community. Later, the team met with representatives from the New Citizen Program, a local NGO, and came away with fresh insights into the education provided for children of rural migrant workers. These two visits bring immense inspiration to the educational project.

To arise the interest of young people to Chinese Culture, tutors use various modern ways to interpret the culture itself and also share experience as well as perspectives with young people face to face. At the invitation of Chinese Subject in Carmel Alison Lam Foundation Secondary School, tutors delivered a speech to five hundred middle school students, introducing We All Live in The Forbidden City project and sharing their own understanding of Chinese culture with them.

After holding about 2000 workshops in Hong Kong, tutors of We All Live in The Forbidden City Education Programme went to Beijing, presenting two experience courses to kids in the Poplar Kid's Republic Book Store and One Way Street book store. The content of the experience courses came from The Best Palace and lasted about one hour. Although it was the final exam time for primary school in Beijing, there were still many kids, who were accompanied by parents participated in the course.