Getting to know you…

Chinese Immersion at Forest Hills Public Schools

  

 

As a Spanish Immersion teacher, I know how hard it is to visit another classroom in your own school, let alone tripping all over West Michigan to visit other schools!  So come along with me to the Chinese Immersion school in Forest Hills Public Schools.

 

There are many things I observed & loved about this school, Northern Trails MS. First & foremost, it was my very first time in a Chinese Immersion classroom!  I loved being a non-Mandarin speaker, trying to follow what was being said! 

 

I first visited Mr. Yang Du’s 6th grade class, which is a combination of 2 classes, with a total of 16 students!! Who wouldn’t like that class size??!!  This class makes very productive & authentic use of their laptops: After completing a whole class assignment, students were allowed to work on projects or practice typing the Chinese symbol-words. The most interesting part was that the students actually use Roman letters, which convert to the symbols for the words they want to use.  The written language using Roman letters is called “pinyin”. So, it actually appears that CI students learn TWO target languages in their school! Student progress is monitored through Quizlet, which is tied into a team score. 

Yang has a great rapport with the students, providing a very calm & productive environment.

 

The second classroom I visited was the 5th grade under Ms Yuqi Zhao’s direction. Yuqi has decorated her classroom with many Chinese paper decorations, crafts, and items that she has brought from China. In Yuqi’s classroom the students start their hour with snack, announcements and then immediately into partner work. At this time the students were working on writing a Chinese book. Most were working in partners, though they had the option to go solo. The book could be of any genre. Yuqi gladly allowed me to go around the room asking the students about their books, and recording a few of them reading their books to me. Illustrations were also included. I love how the students felt very comfortable in Yuqi’s classroom, having many seating options: floor, pillows, desk, table, etc. 

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Click on the video to hear a student talking in Chinese!

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From the individual/partner projects, the class moved to a whole group Reading/grammar/pronunciation lesson. Again, I was listening intently to see if I could pick up a new word or two.  (Conclusion: I definitely need more time in the CI classroom!) But it was so encouraging to hear the students staying in the target language, in response to teacher questions & with their peers. Great job, Yuqi & Yang!

 

A plus to the morning:  I have a necklace that was my mother’s. I don’t know where she got it, but it has a message inside a white jade circle.  It is Chinese, but I never knew what it said. The students in Yang’s class were able to translate it for me. It is actually four symbols in one, and all have to do with good luck.  The interesting thing is that if you hang it upside down, it means “coming”, as in “Good luck is coming to you”. What an interesting twist to language reading!

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Sheryl Dalman, Special Assignment Coordinator, WMAIE

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