School: Xin Sheng Elementary School, Taipei, Taiwan
    Taipei, , Taiwan

6 students, ages 10-12 worked together to complete this CyberFair project on March 15, 2012. They have participated in CyberFair in the following year(s): 2012

Classes and Teachers: Cheng-Hong Tsai, Ming-ling Liu, Xiang-Ping Li

E-Mail contact:

Our School's Web Site: http://stu.snes.tp.edu.tw/

1. Description of Our Community

Sansia, that was a simple village in 1960s, is the place Buteo Huang was born. Buteo Huang ran around the country field and had lots of fun there. He was contented and happy. The spacious and natural countryside environment was the hometown of kite art master Buteo Huang.

From Sansia town at Taipei County to Sansia district at New Taipei County, Sansia is continually changing nowadays. Under the construction led by the locals, the houses with various styles along Sansia Old Street have been filled with traditional hand-made culture creative industries that bring the new outlook to old buildings.

Buteo Huang’s studio locates in Sansia that is a place full of nostalgia and innovation. He has devoted himself for over three decades to pursue innovations out of the tradition. He creates multiple appearances and infinite possibilities of kites with the local and global perspective. From International kite festival in Shihmen to the one in Spain, from individual exhibition of art kites in Holland to the special exhibition in Kaohsiung, teacher Huang connect Sansia, Taiwan, and the world via stings of kites.

2. Summary of Our Project

Generally speaking, kites probably are something for leisure time for people. For creators, however, kites create a fantastic field where they are willing to devote themselves for decades. Internationally famous kite creator Buteo Huang contributes himself to the creation of the kite art. Once he spent five years successfully flying a nautilus kite. We agree on his idea that ‘tradition and modernity actually come from your experience of life and knowledge, and I want to interpret our traditional kites with modern art concepts.’ We are touched all the more by the fact that he wants to present a new horizon of vision art by appropriating the local-style techniques, and bring Taiwan onto the international stage via kites. Our inquiry questions are as below. 1.What is the driving force that teacher Huang has devoted himself to the kite art for three decades? 2.How does teacher Huang integrate the local culture into kite creations and introduce Taiwan to the world? 3.Did teacher Huang face challenges in the creating process? How did he overcome those obstacles? 4.What does teacher Huang suggest to those who have dreams?

3. Our Computer and Internet Access

A. Percentage of students using the Internet at home:more than 50%

B. Number of workstations with Internet access in the classroom:1

C. Connection speed used in the classroom:dedicated connection

D. Number of years our classroom has been connected to the Internet:more than 6

E. Additional comments concerning your computer and/or Internet access (Optional):

Our school has two well-appointed computer classrooms, and the ration of internet connection is one hundred percent. The wireless coverage is over ninety percent. Through the internet authorization from Department of Education, wireless is available on campus. Our school itself is a local area network. We can connect to the Taiwan Academic Network through a special optical fiber network. On school days, the computer classrooms are open to students during the lunch break and after class. In clustered classrooms of third till sixth grade, there are six computers for students to search information. The percentage of students’ household having computers is over ninety, and internet access is over eighty. Our school also teaches students of fifth and sixth grade to learn blog building. Students can transfer learning materials via class websites or personal blogs when they are home.

4. Problems We Had To Overcome

1.Everyone’s schedule: It was difficult to make an appointment with teacher Huang due to his tight schedule. He had never received children’s interviews. On the day before the Chinese New Year eve, he accepted our invitation and spent whole afternoon telling us the stories about his dream and journey of kites. Meanwhile, it was not easy to gather everyone for meetings during the winter vacation. We thus often discussed and exchanged materials over phone or on the Internet. 2.Interview skills: It was not easy for elementary students to do interviews and write notes. We gradually made progress, however, via mock interviews offered by our parents and analyses of transcription and videos. Complexity of expertise: This was the first time we joined the International CyberFair. We faced problems and frustrations in the process of writing webpage programs, arranging layouts, standardizing formats and sizes of images. We can only make progress from trial by error. We seized breaks in school to ask fellows and teachers, and learned from our computer teacher on holidays. Regard of some harder and more completed skills, however, we can only learn by doing. 3.Miscellaneous tasks. 4.Final-stage integration: It became more difficult as the deadline was closer. ..........

5. Our Project Sound Bite

For all team members in the kite project precious, we have gained a lot by participating in the International CyberFair. We have longed for putting what we learned from the computer courses we have being taking since the third grade. Even though our school provides abundant technology resources, we can only produce some individual and simple works because of limitations in time and space and absence of team-work opportunities. It was great that we had a chance to fully display our talents this time. Our team members have become closer as well. All these have become sweet memories of our childhood.

6. How did your activities and research for this CyberFair Project support standards, required coursework and curriculum standards?

The project provided opportunities for us to experience the comprehensive process of theme-based inquiry learning that consisted of deciding the research topic, collecting and reading materials and interviews, analyzing data, writing reports, designing webpage, and promoting research outcome, which equipped us‘the ability to take away ’emphasized by our current curriculum.

1.Language Art Learning Field 2.Social Studies Learning Field 3.Arts and Humanities Learning Field 4.Science and Technology Learning Field 5.Integrative Activities Learning Field

1) What information tools & technologies did you used to complete your CyberFair project?

Visiting Buteo Huang, his colleagues, and his friends in person several times to explore more about his stories, we conducted oral interviews in addition to reading books and magazines, searching for relevant texts/journals, and comprehending Buteo Huang himself and his extraordinary records of kites.

In order to explore more about Buteo Huang’s personal stories, we visited him, his colleagues, and his friends in person several times, and conducted oral interviews in addition to reading books and magazines, searching for relevant texts/journals, and comprehending Buteo Huang himself and his extraordinary records of kites.

(1) Hardware : Computer,The Internet,Digital camcorder,Digital camera Scanner,Flash drive,Printer,Voice recorder

(2) Software : Namo WebEditor6,Microsoft FrontPage,Unlead Photo Impact 12,Microsoft Word,Internet Explorer, CuteFTP3.5,Dreamweaver,Flash,Illustrator

2) In what ways did you act as "ambassadors" and spokespersons for your CyberFair project both on-line and in person.

We were highly interested in the International CyberFair when our teachers mentioned the information. It was not a problem to find team members because there are fellows in our class and swimming team that are good at computer and like surfing the Internet. The challenge was to find the topic. From November 2011 to January 2012, we could not reach the conclusion. Our parents encouraged us to take a walk rather than to stay home when we were stuck in discussions over topics. Spontaneously we strolled Daan Park nearby, and lay on the ground under the warm sunshine in the winter time. There were kites flying in the sky. While we were disputing whether the kite was introduced in the lesson ‘Traditional Festivals and folk events’ in the fourth grade’s Social Studies textbook, ‘Let’s do kites! I know a kite art master Bueto Huang, and there might be a chance to meet him,’ our team leader Ting-Han said suddenly. We decided our topic right afterwards. Through our fellow’s grandma Xue Huang, who is Beuto Huang’s aunt, Beuto Huang finally allowed us working on the project about him, which had never happened before. Grandma Xue Huang served as an ambassador arranging our visits to his studio and interviews of him, his wife, his relatives and friends. The debt of gratitude that we owed Grandma Xue Huang was huge because we could not make this project without her.

3) What has been the impact of your project on your community?

Bueto Huang’s persistence and will in kite art creation are the most touching feature among others. He is an inspiring story himself indeed. He has fulfilled his goals and honored our country because he realized his dreams bravely and feared for nothing. Further he places a spectacular record in the history of kites.

‘It is thought not technique that changes the world,’ once said by teacher Huang, evoked our aspiration that whether it is possible to arouse new perspective and innovative thought or actions if we realize our practices in addition to relying on the influence of the Internet. We take this action in the hope of disseminating the kite art to schools, communities, and other countries.

Besides webpage, we also produced motivational picture books as the guide in XinSheng elementary school, which initiate fellows’ curiosity about kites and touch their hearts by Huang’s inspiring stories. We had interchange over kites with Sanzhan elementary school in Hualien. We introduced his inspiring stories. We offered his kite pieces for appreciation. We learned from each other in the process of discussion and feedback. In the future, we are eager to domestically and internationally disseminate the kite art, the wing of Taiwan, via the Internet to display the influence of diplomatic relations.

4) How did your project involve other members of your community as helpers and volunteers?

Born in Sansia District in New Taipei County, the kite artist Buteo Huang very often has not only been invited to attend international kite festivals in the States, Frence, Holland, and Spain, but also participated in exhibitions or performances in Penghu and the east coast in Taiwan. He always contributes himself to the local as well. He was invited by Cultural Affairs Department of New Taipei County for the memorial event of Mei-Shu Lee in 2011, for example. He performed wild kite and taught crowds to color Mei-Shu Lee’s drafts on kites. The locals in Sansia thus recognize him as an world-class famous artist in Sansia, and acclaim his contributions to the kite art.

The colleagues or experts that have been working with Buteo Huang also highly praise him. Ya-Mei Chang, an elementary school teacher, was impressed by Buteo Huang’s passionate devotion to kite art and wholehearted teaching style once she had a chance to know teacher Huang in a teacher workshop for the kite art. Rui-Yuan Guo, who is a painter, compliments Huang as the artist he has ever known that maintains both ideals and reality by having his feet on the ground. Dr. Heng-Biao Jin, an ecologist and earth science doctor, acclaims Huang on his innovation of kite art, which has made kites more than a traditional craft. Huang has transcended limits of folk art’s style as well. He integrates scientific conceptions that emphasize on accuracy into the process of making kites, while his pieces embody the spirit of humanity. No wonder he won the title ‘Number one kite creator’ in the kite field around the world.

5) Discoveries, Lessons and Surprises (Optional)

When we saw a kite flying in the sky, we usually only checked its height and appearance at first glance. We thought that a kite should be disposable after being flown once or twice, which would be a no big deal. After we interviewed Bueto Huang, however, we realized how profound the kite art is. From the production process including materials, shapes, and designs, to the kite-flying process such as the wind direction, materials of lines, techniques of controlling kite strings, and so on. Bueto Huang even created the standardized size for boxes that store and transport kites. We really broadened our horizon after learning the knowledge mentioned above. Teacher Huang made his experiences from hundred or thousand times of trials, practices, and errors. Everyone is impressed when he flies his creative kites. ‘Amazing!’ even foreigners say so. We came to deeply realized the meaning of ‘a grasp of mundane affairs is genuine knowledge,’ always said by elders, along the process of interviewing and designing webpage. We admire teacher Huang all the more for his determined and persistent mind. He is indeed our role model. ‘Your dreams are the force to success’ and ‘being unique rather than the first,’ which said by teacher Huang when we interview him, will definitely become our mottos.