|Mandarin Journal| 四季歌

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|LISTEN| Motion Song (運動)

We are learning about motion in Science. Practice the song and learn the otherwise boring vocabulary words. The song is to the tune of Shut up and Dance. 

Lyrics:
運動是變換位置
動來動去都不停
你來看我怎麼動~
喔！曲線是zigzag,
直線往前走,
我說轉一圈
旋轉很容易看我做.
快慢都是運動,我說
喔喔～前進後退停止.

曲線 zig zag
旋轉 go round and round
直線 go straight
前進後退 forward and backward
停止/靜止 motionless



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Week of October 19-23, 2015

This week we wrapped up Gravity in Science and Directional words in Math. Students experimented gravity through art, and a bouncy ball we made in class.

In language, we are wrapping out the "My Body Parts" thematic unit. Students are now able to point and name a body part (head, hair, eyes, nose, ears, shoulders, hands, tummy, knees, and feet), name how many of each body part, express if a body part hurts, and the color of a certain body part.

During language center, we continue to practice writing, recognizing sight words, reading, singing, and building sentences. The newspaper sight words scavenger hunt is a huge hit!

Next week, we will be sharing our Chinese Restaurant experience with classmates and begin to start exploring two dimensional shapes as well as motions.

|WATCH| What's the weather? Turn and Talk

So many of you are wondering what calendar math looks like in another language, or what IS Calendar Math? For starters, this is where we begin our day. The students learn about the date and day of the week. There are counting involved (counting forward, backward, skip counting, patterns) and there are skills we spiral throughout the year. So whatever we are not focusing on in Math, we may still be reviewing at this time. This is such a key event of the day, it sets the tone.

In the video below, you will see how my kindergarteners turn and talk. They each asks, "What is the weather today?" and their partner has to respond, "The weather is_______ today". The language structure is the foundation and paves the way of new and more complicated sentences later on.

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!