GLSW International - Join-in-Jamboree programme ideas from Korea
Have a Korean Evening
You could pick one of the important dates from the Korean calendar
| New Year's Day | 1-2 January |
| Independence Day | 1 March |
| Arbour Day | 5 April |
| Children's Day | 5 May |
| Memorial Day | 6 June |
| Constitution Day | 17 July |
| Liberation Day | 15 August |
| National Foundation Day | 3 October |
Start the evening by taking your shoes off as you come into the hall, showing everyone how to bow in greeting, and learn a few simple words of Korea
| Hello | Annyeong Haseyo |
| Goodbye | Anneoughi Gaseyo |
| Please | Putak Hamnida |
| Thank you | Gamsa Hamnida |
| Yes | ye/ne |
| No | aniyo |
Tell the group a little about Korea:
Korea has 4 very different seasons, a mild Spring, hot and rainy summer, dry and pleasant Autumn and very cold winters quite often with snow. Korea is a peninsula attached to China and has Japan as it's nearest neighbours. Beautiful forested mountains cover much of the country and there are breathtaking hills and valleys. While a lot of the country is made up of small villages and towns, there are several huge modern cities like the capital Seoul full of skyscrapers, offices, restaurants shops and markets. There are lots of national and provincial parks and also ancient temples and palaces.
The Koreans are very fond of sport and games — if you are a large group you could have a Scout World Cup in football, baseball or basketball — these are some of the favourite sports in Korea.
A traditional Korean game is Yoot. This is played with four sticks, which are rounded on one side and flat in the other. The players are divided into two teams that take turns throwing the sticks into the air. The scoring depends on which side up the sticks fall. If they land with :
| 1 flat side up, 3 round sides up | 1 point |
| 2 flat, 2 round | 2 points |
| 3 flat, 1 round | 3 points |
| 4 flat | 4 points |
| 4 rounded sides up | 5 points |
Scoring is recorded by advancing a marker around a circle, the first team to finish wins.
You could have a Gejuldarigi — this is a traditional tug of war game played with several teams each pulling a rope attached to a central ring (good way to practise your knotting skills).
The Martial Arts and wrestling are also very popular in Korea but I don't suggest you try these unless you have a qualified teacher in to show you how to do it properly.
You could make and fly kites. Square shaped kites called yeon are made by putting a cross of bamboo sticks on a changhoji paper and sewing them down. Kite flying is very popular on traditional holidays and folk festival days. Kite flying championships are held in many cities.
The main religions in Korea are Buddhism, Confucianism and Christianity — both Catholicism and Protestant. Perhaps you could arrange to visit a temple, if there is one in your area or church that you would not normally go to, or have someone come and talk to you about their religion.
How about brewing some green tea. Tea wards off drowsiness and invigorates the mind and body and there are many varieties to be found in most supermarkets.
You could make some Korean snacks to go with the tea:
- Hwajeon is rice dough shaped into small circles and pan fried with flower petals to decorate.
- Jeolpyeon is pounded and steamed rice dough, pressed into moulds and shapes and coated with sesame oil.
- Injeolmi is steamed and pounded rice dough coated with bean powder or hulled red bean powder.
- Gyeongdan is again rice dough formed into small balls, placed into boiling water, removed and coated with coloured powders like, sesame seeds, beans, cinnamon, chestnut etc.
For main course foods you can buy a recipe book and have a go at the vast number of Korean recipes especially Kimchi, but if you have not got the time or facilities you could cheat and pick up some instant meals from the supermarket and "just add boiling water". Of course you must have your food on the floor at a low table and eat it with chopsticks.
The Korean people are also very fond of indoor games and you could try and get hold of one or make your own. Yutnori is a stick tossing game, unique to Korea, Janggi is a game similar to chess and Baduk is also a board game played professionally throughout the Far East.
The Koreans enjoy all the arts, and their ceramics are world famous. You could have a go at making your own pots with play dough, clay or plaster of paris and decorating them in traditional style with greenish-blue colours. Or you could get some special pens and ink and have a go at calligraphy and make some signs and posters for the Scout hall.
You could finish off the evening with two other things the Koreans love — singing and dancing. How about a karaoke — Scouts love to sing too don't they? While they still enjoy the traditional songs and dances, Koreans also love modern music and Karaoke is very popular in Korea. They also love dance of all kinds, so when you aren't singing you can dance.
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