First Week of School 2016-17! (Video at the Bottom!)

It's been an overwhelmingly exciting first week of school. The students have gotten into the groove of routines and are showing so much eagerness to learn. The first few weeks of school are vital because routines are taught, practiced, and reminded. Smooth routines mean a successful school year. Our students are no different, except it IS a little more difficult. They arrived Wednesday morning expected to follow directions in Mandarin. To better help students comprehend, I incorporated gestures and pictures. By day three, most students are already able to unpack their backpacks, find their names on the table, and place snacks and water bottles in the bin. It is already rewarding for me as a teacher!

Next week, we will continue to focus on Math standard - Counting from 0 to 100 by ones and tens (a Common core standard but in Mandarin, of course) We will count using manipulative (sticks, uni-fix cubes, play-doh..etc.) This is also a good time to go over writing numbers from 0 to 9 at home and counting by touching (one to one correspondence).

In Science, we will be exploring nature using our senses. The students will record their findings on a graphic organizer.

In Mandarin, the students will continue to add greeting vocabulary words by importing songs and dialogues.

See pictures below from our first week of school! Happy weekend everyone!

Fly Swapping Sight Words / Colors 

|WATCH| Reading Body Parts Book in Mandarin

Have you wondered how students take off to read...in MANDARIN? My kindergarten students have been with me for two and half months, but they began to build sight words starting day one. The theme of the month is Body Parts, and some students are really taking ownership of the words and their meanings. Watch how two friends read the book by matching the words to the pictures and using one to one correspondence skills.

Week of August 24-28, 2015

The students completed MAP test this week! Don't forget, the tests (Reading and Math) are 57 questions long... determine your child's age and the length of the test plus the test method, the scores will NOT be the only measurement in your child's benchmark. Portfolio and parent teacher communication are your best way to see your child's growth. Don't forget reading bag is coming home mid-September. Nightly reading in your child's native language is KEY to his/her academic success!

Write and Wipe Mandarin Sight Words

Building Words with Geo Board

Writing with Chopsticks and Pom Poms

Building Sight Words with Playdoh

Skip counting by 10's using sticks

No Connections - Outdoor Play 

Thanks Suo Hsien for Reading Chinese to the children! 

|WATCH| Mid-Year Chinese Performance

Thank you for all the parents for celebrating all the hard work the children and teachers have put in thus far! Can't wait to see what is in store for everyone in the second semester!

|WATCH| Week of January 6-9, 2015

Enjoy of the video of three students working together to figure out where the correct order of the poem. It is important the students are building their word recognition skills regularly. You may hear them converse in English, and this is totally normal for dual language immersion students.


Happy New Year! Can NOT believe we are well on our way into the second semester of Kindergarten. The shadow of perspective parents touring in the school hallways is surreal. On Tuesday, January 6, 2015, our students began the 50/50 same day rotation. It went very smoothly and after four days of our new schedule, I am confident the students have already benefited from the consistency and their growth over the next few months will be exciting to see!

What was very exciting for the teachers? We are so fortunate to have Mrs. Marie Bouteillon at GLOBE! Mrs. Bouteillon is a native French speaker who also speaks English, Spanish, and Mandarin. She helped open several French immersion schools in New York City and is currently a consultant for schools across the US. I have started implementing word study centers during the language block and good dual language immersion practice throughout the day. Mrs. Bouteillon will be visiting us four times between now and May.

What are we studying?

Math
Students are learning to measure with different measuring attributes, measuring from the tip point, and comparing length and weight.
Some ideas to try at home...
1) Compare the height between two family members.
2) Measure the family pet with dog biscuit, a ruler, or a piece of yarn.
3) Compare the weight of two objects. For example, an empty water bottle versus a metal cup.

Science
Students will use senses to observe and group rocks by physical attributes such as large/small, heavy/light, smooth/rough, dark/light.
Some ideas to try at home...
1) Compare two rocks found in the backyard and discuss their attributes
2) Research natural landscapes made up of rocks
3) Discuss the difference between rocks and soils and their uses

Mandarin
Students continue to familiarize with their birthdays as well as others' by reading the month and day. We are having lots of fun playing Fruit Stand. The students are learning to recognize words by sight through poem and songs through Morning Meeting.

                                                                   Word Building

                                                     
                                                             Matching Body Part Words

Additionally, my Amazon wish list has been updated - http://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/wishlist/3MKQG5OQDHEL3/ref=cm_wl_rlist_go_o?

Week of October 27-31, 2014

Peace week was successful! Students were introduced to the meaning of bullying, heathy eating, and the importance of good reading habits. Asides from all the exciting programs, we continued on retelling in reading, learning to introduce self (name, age, favorite fruit, number of siblings), and comparing two/three dimensional shapes.

Shape book should remain in your child's reading bag. Please practice reading nightly. The video is posted HERE.

Parent teacher conference is coming up between 11/3-11/10. Click HERE if you are unsure of the time you signed up for. Be sure to arrive 10 minutes early as we are running a very tight schedule.  MAP test scores and portfolio will be shared during that time.

Book Character Day Class Picture

Book Characters

Mystery Reader

Week of August 25-29, 2014

This week we continued to review color words, and we are also connected fruits and their colors. (i.e. Red Apples, Yellow Bananas, Green Pears, Pink Peaches..etc) The students played games and sang songs to reinforce the skills. You may download the CD we frequently play on iTunes as it's loved among all children.

In Math the students practiced using one to one coorspondence and Mandarin while counting.  Please encourage your child to count objects at home or sitting in traffic. The skill is incredibly important. 

Family is a community. Students learned the titles for family members. (Dad, Mom, Myself, Older Brother, Younger Brother, Older Sister, Younger Sister, Grandma, and Grandpa) It is quite confusing for foreigners because each person has a place in a family and he or she may be called something different depending age and gender.

Check out all the work we have been doing in the classroom! Don't forget, water bottle daily and ALWAYS keep the Mandarin journal in your child's book bag.

                 

    We are writing color words in Mandarin!

We are teaching each other how to say "Xiang Jaio". 

We are learning a new poem "Wu Zhi Ge". 

                       

Outside collecting natural objects...

 Building Characters out of Natural Objects - A constructivist activity

Finished Products! 

Photo Gallery in the Hallway

Chineasy flashcards help us see pictures in words. 

Calendar Math

Fruits and Colors

|WATCH| ::Mandarin Songs:: How Are You? / Where is My Friend?

Please refer to this ^^^ Mandarin Journal for lyrics referencing. This is a way to enjoy learning Mandarin and building confidence. Please have fun doing it! (Even when your child says you are wrong...) 

 Song 1 - How are you? 你好嗎？

Song 2 - Where is my friend? 我的朋友在哪裏？



I hope this helps! Stay tuned for weekly updates! 

1st Week of School!!

Welcome and good-bye to the first week of school at the GLOBE! Can't believe first year has come and gone and here we are. I am sitting at my dining table blogging, and my head is literally spinning. There has been moments when I wasn't so sure I was meant to teach five and six year olds...but those smiles, those innocent and honest words have made it worth it. This week at the lunch table, I listened to two boys having a conversation about what would happen if you swallow a whole watermelon versus if you cut it up first.  This is when you realize silence is not golden. It is the sweetest and precious moment that you want to preserve forever.

So, I welcome you join me for school year 2014-2015. Let's have fun, laugh, create, stay positive, make a mess, and sometimes, take a nap when needed. There will be bumps on the road, but let's build the village our children deserve, and be problem solvers.

This week your children were introduced routines, basic greetings and farewells, and numbers - and yes, all in Mandarin. Some were unsure at first, but most jumped in like brave little sailors. Because each child learns at different rate, I am never worried about the ones being silent and shy at the moment. Some children are simply taking it all in. 

Friendly Reminders - 
* I have sent out an email to all parents, if you have not received an email from me, please email me ASAP at vliu@theglobeacademy.net so I can keep you in the know!
* Fresh fruits or veggies for snack daily! It is important that we keep snack break at ten minutes maximum so it does not impact instructional time. Please pack palm sized fruit that your child can enjoy without making a lot of mess. 
* Water Bottle is essential to keep your child hydrated. Please label water bottle and lunch bags as these items get lost quite frequently.

Bare yet organized space ready to be filled with children's work!

 Fresh Fruit Keeps our Mind Sharp!

Top Left: 1st Grade Mandarin Kids Lending a hand.

Top Right: Learning to Count in Mandarin!

Bottom Left: Making Mandarin Characters with Sticks.

Bottom Right: Math Matching Game