China-Africa People-to-People Exchanges | Hu Rong: Me and My “Little Kapok”

When Ms. Hu Rong first arrived at a Chinese classroom in Sierra Leone,

faced with lively, energetic children,

she felt somewhat at a loss.

Then a chance moment showed her

that songs might become

a key to unlocking the Chinese language.

And so, the “Little Kapok Choir” was born.

She turned Chinese into

one catchy song after another,

letting children learn and grow through song.

From a single classroom, the “Little Kapok” set out —

and today it stands on the grand stage of China-Africa people-to-people exchanges.

Click to play: watch the story of Hu Rong and the “Little Kapok Choir”!

On the broad stage of China-Africa people-to-people exchanges, there is a special group of Chinese and international figures who use the Chinese language as a bridge — connecting distant lands and deepening the bonds of China-Africa friendship. Recently, the Center for Language Education and Cooperation (CLEC), together with StarTimes, launched a series of documentary videos. The series shines its lens on Chinese learners in Africa and practitioners of China-Africa exchanges, telling the stories of how they came to know the Chinese language and China, and recording their vivid journeys of engaging in people-to-people exchanges and mutual learning between civilizations. New episodes will be released one after another — stay tuned!

Further reading:

➤China-Africa People-to-People Exchanges | Yu Zhangbao: Making Chinese the “First Choice” in Nigeria

➤China-Africa People-to-People Exchanges | Zhou Hong: Sowing the Seeds of Chinese in Burundi

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Center for Language Education and Cooperation