Lots of art stuff
Art classes have been pretty busy these few weeks with the mural, props and backdrop for the play as well as the preparation for the tie-dye project. Here are some pictures.
                       

5th and 6th graders had started on the "Starry Night" mural right outside of the auditorium about two weeks ago. This is the progress so far, I'm so excited! It's been pretty hard for the kids because we only have art classes in the afternoon, and these poor kids have to work under the blazing hot sun. But we have two teams switching back and forth covering each others with umbrellas. Their hard work will be paid off soon, I can't wait for them to finish it!
                     

This week I've started Tie-Dye projects with 3rd to 6th graders (Using Yongfeng logo T-shirts! yay). So far, we have done two different designs with 4th and 5th graders. It has been a hassle because the water it's very unpredictable this week, it's coming and going whenever it pleases. However, it's so much fun doing this with the kids. 

4th Grade Tie-Dye 

                                                       5th grade Tie-Dye

                                          

Big Update

Here are some quick updates to the various goings-on at Yongfeng. So much has been happening lately, I don’t even know where to start...

One thing that has changed the dynamic of this semester is the weather. Everything is happier with the sun and longer days. Next years’ fellows, don’t despair first semester, the cold nights will make you cherish every beautiful day in Spring and Summer that much more. Everything is green, and it smells like blooming flowers all over the Yongfeng campus. Even Xi’an has even seen some relatively clear days, too! Sometimes the students are just too hot to do anything for too long in P.E., so that means a lot of heads-up seven-up and random dance parties (see video).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8uyxC3uRpk

Children’s Day:

Every grade is preparing their own performance for Children’s Day, on June 1^st, so everyone is very busy. I couldn’t help but laugh at the performance my 1^st graders will do. Their homeroom teacher has made sure each of them correctly display “spirit fingers,” and precisely the right amount of body and head jiggling. Check out that video below too, you won’t regret it.  Unfortunately, the Children’s Day preparations and rehearsals means we’re constantly fighting for times with the kids to tutor, brush teeth, and rehearse our own English play.

http://youtu.be/3RTj8TokWss

Charlotte’s Web:

For our performance of Charlotte’s Web—which will take place when Bob arrives in early June, we could only choose 20 students, 5 from each grade (3^rd-6^th grade) to be actors. The turnout for auditions was huge, meaning we could only spend a couple minutes auditioning each student. The audition script included the following (we made the script much simpler so it would be easier for our students to understand):

Narrator 1: Wilbur is scared. He looks at Charlotte.

Wilbur: Is it true?

Charlotte: Yes…

Wilbur: I don't want to die! I want to live!

Charlotte: I am going to save your life, Wilbur.

Wilbur: How!?

Charlotte: I don't know. But I promise.

At times the auditions were painful to watch, but mostly they were hysterical. I’ve never thought of how hard it would be for students to insert emotion into the English lines. They tried their best, but it usually came out sounding pretty strange. Most students got so caught up in the lines that they sounded like little robots. We only chose students who put effort into the acting of their lines. I’ll compile some footage of the auditions soon.  

6^th Grade Spelling Bee:

I recently challenged my 6^th graders with the first round of a “Spelling Bee.” I was pleased to see that about half of them made it to the next round, including some underdogs (I’m looking at you, Gary and Betty!). Just like the auditions, the Spelling Bee created an unfamiliar situation for my students, who aren’t used to being under this kind of pressure in English. It was so entertaining watching each student rack his brains for the correct letters of some very simple vocabulary words. As Colin tried to focus on the spelling of “fever,” it seemed to help him to cross his eyes. I had to hold myself back several times from mouthing the correct letters to my students. So painful!! I tried to capture some of the nervous energy in the pictures:

Gary

Allen

Mark

Peter (he missed a letter and then ran out!)

Ruby (clearly one of the last standing)

Betty

Betty still thinking...

Tom

Laura

Harry

Saying Goodbye

            As the weather gets warmer, it’s hard not to think about the fact that spring semester is coming to an end. We just had our midterm exams, and there are only about 6 weeks left of the school year at Yongfeng. At first I pushed the thought of goodbye out of my head, but in the last week I’ve started allowing myself to think about it. Saying goodbye to my students will be one of the most painful experiences of my life, and I can only make myself feel better in small ways...

1. training next year's students in both dental and library projects, so I know they'll run smoothly

2. making sure my 6th graders know how to use their email accounts

3. promising to visit again soon

 I truly never thought that a year teaching these students would change me so much. I went from seeing them as misbehaved evil students to admiring each of them from afar for their hard work, to feeling a deep love for each of them. These are the first and probably the only students I’ll ever teach, and for that I’ve become more than their teacher in my mind. I’m so thankful that this program has given me an opportunity to touch and hopefully change some of their lives for the better. 

            As the year comes to an end, we’ve all begun to have thoughts about the future of Yongfeng, and exactly what we brought to it this year. The tests have put me in a difficult position, as I know that is the main way I’m being evaluated by local teachers and the principal. And, as much as I hate the tests, I know that they are a logical assessment for my progress this year. I know I could have improved more, and I can only hope I left my English students with knowledge they’ll hold onto past the final exam. Has my inexperience hurt my students’ development in English? Should I have pushed my science students to learn more? With such a young program, it’s too soon to tell, and may be too difficult to quantify in the future.

On the other hand, my disillusionment with the tests has made me even more motivated to pursue projects outside of class. In my eyes, the Spelling Bee, Tutoring Groups, Dental Hygiene, and the Final Performance provide students with paths to success alternative to the exams. Similarly, they give me an opportunity to help the Yongfeng program outside of strictly improving English exam scores. After preparing for our presentation to the Education Bureau in March, I’ve come to understand the important role that extra-curricular activities play in building students’ confidence. With the local teachers being assessed entirely by their scores in Chinese, Math, and English, there isn’t much incentive to spend time planning a meaningful science, P.E., music, or art class.

At this time, my goals lie in making the Dental Hygiene Project efficient enough that this year’s 4^th and 5^th graders can run it next year without too much help from foreign fellows. I’m also struggling to find a way to tell each of my 6^th graders—who will graduate this year—that they can and should break out of their difficult situations. That their self-worth does not rely entirely on being number one or two, and that I see a unique strength in each one of them. Leaving them makes me tear up whenever I think of it, and Heidi and Niki (who are luckily two very mature 6^th graders) have already caught me with tears running down my cheeks.

Last Thoughts

One of the most important changes we’ve made to the program this year is in our (mostly our program manager Su Yan’s) dedication to creating continuity between this year and next year. We’re already started coaching next year’s fellows by subject, grade, and projects. This is an advantage we have over most programs like ours, and I’m confident it’s going to make being a first-year teacher at Yongfeng much easier for future fellows. I’m also excited because it means I’ll be in more contact with the fellows (and students!!) next year, when I’m having reverse culture-shock in the States.  

Sorry for the long-winded blog post. It’s been a while, and like I said, there's a lot going on now!

Operation YF Tooth Brushing: Day One

I hereby declare Day One a success!!

Yesterday Annie and I made our way into the fifth and sixth grade classrooms and explained the process. Our diagram divides the mouth into 18 parts, and the students spend 10 seconds brushing each part. They were very excited to get their cups and toothbrushes, and several students sprinted back from lunch today to get started

Here is a photo update of the process so far. More to come!

Annie and me preparing the 5th and 6th graders

Every grade gets a different color cup

Zhai (6th grade math teacher) teaching me a thing or two in front of everyone

(I'm just as scared of him as the kids are)

Zach (new student this year!) demonstrating his technique

First graders being jealous

Gary indecently pointing out the blood in Robert's mouth

Concentration...

Peter showing off his extreme makeover

This little hooligan dares to sit on the sink as he brushes

Video 1: http://youtu.be/PQ7kDWMvE8U

Our conversation (video 1)

Me: What section (of the teeth) are you on? 

Allen: Number 1 

Zach: I'm on Number 3 (demonstrates beautiful circular technique)

Video 2: http://youtu.be/3c9LBB8LWys

Tony sharing his very contagious post-brushing smile

Video 3: http://youtu.be/uhv_8OKe8kM

Me: Has everyone brushed their teeth?

Kids: YEEEAAAAHH!

Me: Miss Annie, has everyone brushed their teeth?

Annie: YEEE-- No. No, they haven't.

Sunny Lei Feng Days

Hi everyone!

Unfortunately, I must apologize for not writing recently (as every blogger does eventually). We’ve really hit the ground running this semester, so we have lots to catch up on and not enough time to do it.

Luckily, I gave my kids a test recently, so it’s been an easier couple days in terms of preparation.

First of all, watch this video. It's my 1st graders playing "Wooden Person." 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkqY_wDUOD8&feature=youtu.be

Better Weather

               

Following Bob’s rainy visit, we’ve had some of the most BEAUTIFUL days ever in Yongfeng and Xi’an lately. After weeks of gloomy pollution, we’ve finally had some clear skies and sun. The four teachers managed to attract more stares than usual walking around our Xi’an apartment complex. With the sun, some of us have started wearing shorts and other leg-bearing clothing. Annie heard that Chinese people don’t like to show their legs in spring, because the “地气” (ground vapor) is bad for your knees. So, even on these super warm days (sunny and 75 degrees!), you won’t see a single Chinese person without leggings or pants on.

                On the other hand, the warmer weather has been severely affecting the smoothness of my 1^st grade P.E. classes. Without fail, after three warm-up laps, my students need to peel off their heavy coats immediately. I don’t blame them, and usually let them take “20 seconds” (more like 5 minutes) to run back to the classroom and leave them in the room. However, some of them choose to stay instead, pulling their coats backwards and up above their heads, so that they look like tiny winged creatures running in circles. The sight is especially ridiculous when there is another P.E. class in progress. Mr. Yang’s main activity with the upper grades is military marching, so the contrast is pretty funny (video of this to come).

Lei Feng Day

                A couple weeks ago, in honor of Lei Feng, a selfless soldier of the People’s Liberation Army, Yongfeng cancelled classes to “做好事” (do good things) like Lei Feng would. I refreshed a bit about the Communist icon of Lei Feng in the days leading up to Lei Feng Day. I learned he was a soldier who didn’t live long, but his “self-sacrifice and patriotism” became an important icon in the 1960s during the Great Leap Forward. In cities and online forums, the idea of “Learning from Lei Feng” has been become a bit of a joke. But, at Yongfeng—and other rural schools—the tradition remains strong.

In the days leading up to Lei Feng Day, there was a lot for us foreigners to learn about him. I asked a group of my fourth graders to fold up some posters after science class. They stayed in my room for almost 15 minutes, lining up the edges with such precision that I thought they were joking. When I asked them what they were doing, Annie (an outspoken fourth grader), told me “We are doing it just as Lei Feng would! If it’s not perfect the first time, we do it again!” Even my first graders had something to say about Lei Feng. They told me stories as told by their uncles and fathers. When I asked them why he is important, their answers were practically in unison.

When it came down to it, it seemed like Lei Feng Day was an excuse for the students to run around, set up our new tooth-brushing sink (!!!), and drag giant branches across campus to clean up for Bob’s visit the following week. (Below are some pictures of special Lei Feng moments with some of my students and me.) Annie and I even tried to emulate Lei Feng by starting to work on the garden. We went over with tools and tried to weed, but soon enough teachers came over to laugh at us city folks and tell us the ground “wasn’t ready.” We tried, Bob!

Okay, that’s all I have for now. Here are some photo updates of the students and of Bob’s visit!

"The Diplomacy of Mr. BOB"

Shaking hands with the Yu Cai Middle School Principal

I took this on one of my first days back!

4th Grade Skeletons project

David looking confused

Chen Jun Hong--wearing his sister's hand-me-downs I presume

First Graders!!

Ate this during only 4 days at Yongfeng...peanut butter is currency here

This was a funny story, one week Rachel returned to her room to find a group of teachers and strong sixth graders pulling a rope attached to a fallen tree outside her window...

just, what?

My students excited to miss class

4th grade body outlining for our systems unit!

Nils being himself

Lei Feng Day (My student Heidi's finger in the corner)

this was the Mr. Yang's idea--I guess he thought I needed a work out