Correction: The original version of this blog post contained multiple errors. The program is hosted by Hanban. The program has no plans of hosting another university group in April.

Astrology plays a significant role in Chinese life. The dragon represents the fifth animal in the 12-year cycle of the Chinese zodiac. Monday, the UCLA Confucius Institute celebrated the start of the lunar new year with performances by students from Zhejiang Normal University for local elementary schools.

“This event program is hosted by Hanban, our founder in China. They contacted us last October and said that they were planning to have students visit the U.S. to celebrate the Chinese New Year, so we welcomed them,” said Xiaojie Ma, program coordinator of the Confucius Institute.

Following a few performances at the University of Hawai’i and San Diego State University, the students visiting from China ended their tour in celebration of “Chinese New Year 2012: The Year of the Dragon” at UCLA.

“I think for most of them, it was their first time coming to L.A. and they were excited to see the different sites, but they still felt glad to have a chance to come and perform at UCLA,” Ma said.

The event featured performances by Zhejiang Normal University that catered to kindergarten through fifth-grade students on UCLA’s campus. The visiting students came from a university that is located in the central part of Zhejiang Province in China.

Elementary schools in attendance included Broadway Elementary School, James A. Foshay Learning Center, Nora Sterry Elementary School, Brockton Avenue Elementary School (which is partnered with the UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies), Norton Space and Aeronautics Academy and the UCLA Lab School.

Incorporating the Chinese lion dance, a selection of Chinese folk dances and martial arts performances, the event, which took place at the Freud Playhouse in Macgowan Hall, brought together students from six local elementary schools. Because of such a tight travel schedule, the performers prepared with only a 40-minute rehearsal.

“The first program was a lion dance and the kids were crazy about that, so it was so exciting. … They also had martial arts and Tai Chi,” Ma said. “By the end of the program, both the students from China and the (elementary school) kids were really excited.”

The second part of the program spanned the late morning and early afternoon and included traditional Chinese music and folk dancing in “The Spring Festival” as well as solo folk performances, dance trios and Kungfu shows.

In the fall, UCLA’s Confucius Institute hosted students from Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

“There are other performing groups in China that we have relationships with,” Ma said. “We have two or three groups each year from China. This upcoming April we will host a Kunqu opera group.”