This past CNR Host Competition, we were given an opportunity to meet people of all ages, all ethnicities, and from all over the country. Of these participants, we met Carter Ware, our youngest competitor and one of the most talented, earning himself the Runner-Up of the CNR Host Competition 2016.
1. Tell us a little bit about yourself!
I just turned 11 years old and I am in 5th grade at the International School of Denver. I have been studying Mandarin for 7 years and I just got back from a two-week school trip to China where I got to visit Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou and our sister school in Chongqing. I like to ski and hike in the mountains of Colorado, play and watch ice hockey and American football, listen to pop music, practice ping-pong and hang out with my friends.
2. Why did you decide to participate in the CNR Host Competition?
My teacher suggested that I enter the CNR Host Competition because I have good fluency and pronunciation in Mandarin. I have won our school’s speech every year for the past 5 years and I enjoy speaking in front of a crowd. I really love speaking Mandarin!
3. How did the competition grow your interests?
I learned about lots of different jobs I could do with my Mandarin skills. Maybe I could be on the radio or a TV presenter? Now that I know my skills are as good as almost anyone’s, I think I could do it!
4. What are ways that you can use this experience for your future?
This experience helped me gain confidence about speaking in front of a large group of people and with lots of distractions around. I was able to focus on my speech and speak clearly even though there were lots of people whispering in the crowd and even a carousel in front of me!
5. Would you do this competition or something like it again?
Yes, absolutely! I had a great time and I would love to show the world my Mandarin skills!
6. What do you like about the entertainment industry?
I love listening to pop music and the weekly countdown of the hits on the radio. I like TV a little better than radio and game shows, cooking shows and comedies are my favorites! My all-time favorite game show is Chinese Character Hero and maybe one day I can compete on it. I would have to study really hard to win especially in the second round where I would go against a native Chinese speaker!
7. What are people in your classes thinking about your participation in this event?
They all congratulated me and were a little jealous of my prizes. Some of my friends weren’t surprised because they know I study hard and I love to speak Mandarin.
8. What makes you interested in the Chinese culture? And how is it different from the American culture?
I like to learn and memorize things and there are thousands of Chinese characters to learn and only 26 letters in the English alphabet. I think it is exciting because there is always something new for me to learn. I like that China has very long history to learn about and American history is much shorter.
I think China is different than America because everyone in China looks similar and in America there are lots of different kinds of people everywhere. When I was in China, someone even tried to see if my hair was a wig because he had never seen red hair before! Crazy!
