Name Sunday, September 1

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Pan Gu Created The Sky and Earth

By Vickie Chao

According to a Chinese fable, the universe was like an egg a long, long time ago. On the outside of the universe, there was a shell. The shell blocked all lights and sounds, so the universe was dark and quiet. On the inside of the universe, there were two sources of energy mixed together. One was light and pure. The other was heavy and murky. At the center of the universe lived a god named Pan Gu. Pan Gu liked to sleep. In fact, sleeping was the only thing he had ever done since he was born! After a long nap of eighteen thousand years, Pan Gu finally woke up. He found the universe too small for him. So he picked up an axe lying next to him and broke the shell. As soon as he did that, the two sources of energy began to separate. The light and pure one floated up and became the sky. The heavy and murky one sank and became the earth. Afraid that the two sources of energy would get mixed up again, Pan Gu stood up. He planted his feet firmly on the earth and used his hands to push up the sky. For the next eighteen thousand years, Pan Gu grew ten feet a day. By the time he died, the sky was so far from the earth that the two sources of energy could never get mixed up again. Shortly after Pan Gu died, his left eye became the sun and his right eye became the moon. His hair and beard turned to the dazzling stars in the sky. Wind and clouds were his breath. Thunder was his voice. Fertile lands were once his muscles, and long, winding roads were his veins. Pan Gu's hands and feet became tall mountains. His teeth, bones, and marrow became stones, pearls, and jades. Rivers were his blood. Rain and dews were his sweat. Flowers and trees blossomed from the hairs on his skin. In this Chinese fable, Pan Gu spent his first eighteen thousand years doing nothing but sleeping. Then, he spent his second eighteen thousand years standing tall to create the sky and earth. Even after he died, he kept on working -- he gave himself to make the universe a beautiful place. Pan Gu's dedication made him one of the most legendary gods in the Chinese culture. Pan Gu Created The Sky and Earth

Questions
1. How old was Pan Gu when he died? A. 9,000 years old B. 36,000 years old C. 27,000 years old D. 18,000 years old

Name Sunday, September 1

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2. According to the Chinese legend, Pan Gu made the universe a beautiful place. A. False B. True 3. What was the universe like before Pan Gu woke up? A. An egg B. A football C. A potato D. A carrot 4. What did Pan Gu use to crack the universe's shell? A. A hammer B. A jade C. A stone D. An axe 5. How many sources of energy did the universe have? A. Three B. Two C. Four D. One 6. How fast did Pan Gu grow? A. 10 feet a year B. 10 feet a week C. 10 feet a month D. 10 feet a day

Name Monday, September 2

Date

Nuwa Fixed The Sky

By Vickie Chao

Have you ever wondered why the sun, moon, and stars always move across the sky from east to west? Have you ever wondered why there are rainbows? This lovely Chinese myth answers both questions. A long, long time ago, the god of water and the god of fire had an argument. After hours of fighting, the god of fire defeated the god of water. Feeling humiliated, the god of water hit Mountain Buzhou. Buzhou was not a usual mountain. It was so tall that it became the western pillar that supported the sky. When the god of water hit Mountain Buzhou, he snapped the pillar in half. Right away, the sky collapsed, and the earth cracked. Monsters, forest fires, and floods all came loose. People were miserable! Nuwa was a very kind goddess. She saw how much people suffered, and she wanted to help. She set out to collect a special kind of stone that came in five different colors. The five colors were red, yellow, blue, white, and green. Once she gathered enough stones, she put them in a pot. She cooked for a long time until all the stones melted. She then used the melted stones to fill the big hole in the sky. After she had done that, she took the four feet of a big tortoise and used them as the new western pillars. She filled the cracks on the ground. She killed the monsters. She put out the forest fires. And she stopped the floods. Once again, people were able to live happily. Though Nuwa did her best to fix the sky, she wasn't able to restore it completely. So the new sky tilts toward the west and the earth slides toward the east. That explains why the sun, moon, and stars always travel from east to west. That also explains why all the rivers in China always flow from west to east. As for the rainbows, they are the melted stones Nuwa used to fill the sky! Nuwa Fixed The Sky

Questions
1. According to this Chinese myth, what was the original western pillar supporting the sky? A. a big tortoise's feet B. Mountain Buzhou C. a big ox's horns D. a giant tree 2. According to this Chinese myth, what forms the new western pillar supporting the sky? A. Mountain Buzhou B. a big tortoise's feet C. a big ox's horns D. a giant tree

Name Monday, September 2

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3. How many colors of stones did Nuwa use to fill the sky? A. four B. seven C. five D. six 4. Why did the sky collapse? A. Nuwa hit Mountain Buzhou. B. The god of fire hit Mountain Buzhou. C. The sky collapsed for no reason. D. The god of water hit Mountain Buzhou. 5. Which of the following is NOT a color of a special stone that Nuwa used to fill the sky? A. red B. orange C. green D. blue 6. The rivers in China flow ______. A. from north to south B. from west to east C. from south to north D. from east to west

Name Tuesday, September 3

Date

Erhu
By Vickie Chao

The erhu is very popular in China. Like the violin, the erhu is a stringed musical instrument. Yet, unlike the violin, the erhu does not have four strings. It has just two. Besides the two strings, the erhu has a long neck and a small base. The neck is about 32 inches long. It has two tuning handles near the top for adjusting pitch. The base is like a drum. It is what gives the instrument its "voice." The erhu's base is usually six-sided. The front of the base is covered with snakeskin. The back is left open. To bring out the erhu's wonderful sounds, a musician holds it in an upright position with the base resting on the left thigh and places a bow over the two strings. The bow is slightly shorter than the neck. It has horsetail hair attached to both ends. As the musician pulls the bow back and forth, music flows out effortlessly. The sounds from the erhu are similar to those from the violin. The erhu has been around for more than 900 years. Interestingly, though we call the erhu a Chinese musical instrument, the Chinese did not invent it. They made it clear in the instrument's name. The first word "er" is "two" in Chinese. It refers to the two strings. The second word "hu" is a general Chinese term referring to the foreign tribes living north and west of China. Once we put the two words together, we get the true meaning of "erhu" -- a two-stringed musical instrument from foreign tribes! Erhu

Questions
1. How many strings does the erhu have? A. two B. three C. four D. one 2. What does the erhu sound like? A. a drum B. the violin C. the trumpet D. the piano

Name Tuesday, September 3

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3. How long has the erhu been around in China? A. about 700 years B. about 300 years C. more than 1,500 years D. more than 900 years 4. Which of the following about the erhu is correct? A. The front of its base is covered with snakeskin. B. The back of its base is covered with snakeskin. C. Its base is usually four-sided. D. Its neck is shorter than its bow. 5. How does a musician hold the erhu? A. In an upright position with the base resting on the right thigh B. In an upright position with the base resting on the left thigh C. In an upright position with the base resting on the ground D. In an upright position with the base resting on the left shoulder 6. Who invented the erhu? A. the Italians B. the Chinese C. the French D. foreign tribes living north and west of China

Name Wednesday, September 4

Date

Pipa
By Vickie Chao

The pipa first appeared in China about 2,000 years ago. Since its debut, it has been very popular. As a lute, the pipa (called "biwa" in Japan) is a musical instrument with four strings. It has a long neck and a pear-shaped soundboard. There are four tuning handles, called pegs, near the top of the neck. Musicians use pegs to tighten or loosen the four strings, so they can tune the instrument. The pipa has many frets along its neck and down onto its soundboard. The Chinese have two different names for those frets. Those on the instrument's neck are called "xiang." Those on its soundboard are called "ping." No matter what names they have, frets are used for altering pitches. During a performance, musicians hold the pipa vertically in their laps and play with all five fingers of their right hands. As they pluck the strings, they bring out the instrument's best feature -- its sound. The pipa offers a rich body of sounds. It is perfect for depicting different musical expressions. Originally, there were only two finger techniques -- "pi" and "pa" -- to play the instrument. "Pi" in Chinese means to pluck the strings forward, and "pa" backward. The two techniques together made up the instrument's name -- pipa. Nowadays, there are more than two finger techniques. Yet, the name has remained unchanged. Pipa

Questions
1. How many strings does the pipa have? A. three B. two C. four D. one 2. How long has the pipa been around? A. about 1,000 years B. about 2,000 years C. about 3,000 years D. about 5,000 years

Name Wednesday, September 4

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3. Which of the following about the pipa is true? A. It has three pegs. B. It has a short neck. C. It has a pear-shaped soundboard. D. It has frets on its neck only. 4. What does the word "pi" mean in Chinese? A. pluck strings upward B. pluck strings backward C. pluck strings downward D. pluck strings forward 5. Which of the following about the pipa is correct? A. A musician can adjust pegs to loosen or tighten the pipa's four strings. B. The instrument is placed across a musician's lap during a performance. C. The pipa is called "biwa" in Korea. D. The instrument is played with a musician's left hand.
Who is your favorite musician? Describe what instrument he/she plays, and explain why you like him/her.