Week of September 15-19, 2014

:: Project Alert :: A home project will be assigned at the end of this month or early October, get ready! You and your child will dine at an authentic Chinese restaurant while your child converse with the waiters/waitresses. To make the project more worthwhile, we will be practicing basic greetings and ways to order water and tea. The feedbacks from last year's families were positive, so I am excited to hear what's in store this year! 

Writing - The children continued working on an Opinion Piece. They copied the statement and illustrated. Next week, we will be brainstorming on why readers should eat certain vegetables or fruits. You will find their writing in English to be similar, that is because the teachers collaborate frequently to ensure understanding. 

Reading - It is important that your child is familiar with the Routine Phrases in their journal by now. I will continue to assess and provide one-on-one support during center. 

Math - Please review numbers in Mandarin (1 to 10) with your child. Encourage him to count objects (cars sitting in traffic, trees, crackers...etc) in Mandarin and perhaps even make words out of pretzel sticks. 

And as always, pack water bottle and fresh fruit/veggie daily! :)  

|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! 

|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. :)

|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. 

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!