GLOBE Mandarin Sprouts

Friday, September 12, 2014

|WATCH| The Fruity Song

Our children wanted to sing The Fruity Song to encourage healthy eating at the GLOBE! :)
How many fruit names can you pick up?
Parents, please refer to the Mandarin Journal for lyrics. And don't forget, the journal should always stay in your child's book bag.

Week of September 8-12, 2014

When I used to teach at a traditional public school, I was pretty relaxed on Fridays. Fridays are generally assessment days. That is the day you test the students on Math, Reading, Grammar, and Spelling. All the tests would have been printed/ copied and ready to go. All I had to do was to show up for work, pass out the test, watch my students fill in bubbles, and call it a day. Sometimes we ended the day with some sort of parties to celebrate the ones who followed directions and always turned in their work for the week. I did that for seven years, and it wasn't until now I realize what a treat it is to be able to teach and have fun. There won't be copies ready to go on my desk Friday mornings, or any morning. There are copies of songs or poems ready to be cut and pasted on children's Mandarin Journals though. Other than that, I am here to inspire and teach a lifelong skill - speaking, listening, reading, writing, and appreciating Mandarin. One of the oldest and most difficult languages in the world is taught here, and it's being done. It's rewarding to hear all the wonderful things you are saying about how much your child enjoy the new adventure. Always a treat!

This week we expanded vocabulary words in greetings, colors, fruits, and animals. Continue to work on number sequencing as well as teen numbers and counting by 10's. In science the students planted seeds under three conditions - with sun exposure and water, with sun exposure but no water, without sun or water. The students made predictions and drawings for the outcomes.

Dot Art and Chopsticks during Literacy Center

Computer Lab

The children picked a name from a pool and each said something nice to another person.

It was a lovely exercise where we practice to focus on the positive.

Taste Testing - Most children love grapes.

Thanks Julie for donating organic grapes for the class!

Wednesday, September 10, 2014

|WATCH| Kinder Mandarin Advice

Nervous about Mandarin Immersion? Are you new to GLOBE? Is this your first child? Is this your first child attending an immersion school? I hope the wise words below will ease some anxiety for both you (mostly just you) and your child. :)

Friday, September 5, 2014

|WATCH| Essential Words for the Daily Routine...

Here is the Routine Phrases video as requested!

Enjoy and Practice! :)

Below are a few essential daily routine phrases that have been introduced since the first day of school. This will be added to your child's Mandarin Journal this week. A fun video will be added upon request... :) Comment below.

Thursday, September 4, 2014

Thank you Donors!!

Thank you to the generous donors who came together to secure funds for the three brand new iPads for the class. The students already enjoy them very much, and we will sure be utilizing them for more than just Application games (although they are really engaging and interactive), but also for researching and FaceTiming purposes.

Thought you might appreciate this convo from center today...

Girl: Hey, it's your turn to go on the big phone.

Boy: Huh?

Girl: The B-I-G P-H-O-N-E.

Boy: You mean the iPad?

|Newsletter| September 2014

Here is the monthly newsletter that goes home with your child this week!

Thursday, August 28, 2014

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.