For most of the K2 children celebration of the Chinese New Year is a new experience.  To help them understand some of the traditions and customs, the teachers provided many fun activities. First, the children decorated their classroom with Chinese knots and couplets that they wrote themselves. Then, the children helped to clean up the classroom and now we are planning to cook some dumplings and other delicious food, visit our ECE friends, go pretend shopping for new clothes, get haircuts and count money in little red envelopes.

K2A Co-teachers – Maria SZYMANSKA & Catherine REN

The Year 5 and 6 musical students once again pulled off an outstanding performance.  This year the musical was entitled “Ali Baba and the Bongo Bandits.”  It was a long process.  The whole process started with auditions back in September.  The successful cast members then received their scripts at the end of September.  There were a lot of Practices, both after school and during school. The performers learnt their lines, lyrics to songs, moves to songs and how to act on stage.  The cast also benefited from the senior choir joining us at the beginning of January.

The students and directors wish to thank the audience that came both nights, as it was a pleasure to perform in front of a huge audience that laughed at the correct time.  We all hope you enjoyed it!!

 

Primary Resource Teacher – Leon WEEKS

 

Farewell 2017 and let’s welcome the Year of the Dog. Look, the red lanterns have been raised and the brand-new couplets have been put up. The happiness of the new year has filled up every corner of our campus!

 In Chinese Studies classes, Year 3 students learned the tale of New Year’s Eve through watching the video. They also got to know about the traditional Chinese ways of celebrating the New Year by posting the couplets, setting off firecrackers and enjoying the reunion dinner with family members. There is no doubt that the reunion dinner is the highlight of the New Year for every Chinese family. Under the teacher’s instruction, the students began to draw various dishes for the reunion dinner. After that, they became little master chefs and created the dishes with colorful plasticine. Their work included the vivid braised fish in brown sauce which symbolized fortune in the coming year as in Chinses the word “Fish” sounds like “more”. Also, there were delicate dumplings which meant bidding farewell to the old year and greeting the new one. Moreover, the hot pot with a diversity of food in it had the meaning of warmth and prosperity.

 In addition, every student took their role to draw the Fu character. Firstly, they drew the image of a dog with colourful pencils and added their favorite colours to enrich their work. After careful cutting, they stuck the character to both sides of a red square lining paper and decorated it with red braids. Then a delicate Fu Character was completed. Children were overwhelmed by the sense of achievement and happiness showed on their faces.

Y3C Co-teacher—Emma CHEN

 

“If I were a snowflake. Dancing in the mid-air in elation. I must know where I’m going. Flying, flying, flying. Somewhere on the ground is my direction.” The sweet and beautiful reciting voices were coming from the classrooms. Please do not doubt. Children were reciting the poem “The joy of the snowflake” in their lovely voices. This poem was written by Xu Zhimo and has been included in our CFL learning as Lesson One.

When walking in the A Building, you can hear the beautiful reciting sound everywhere, rising and falling like an echo. Year 2 students were having Chinese Classes on the second, third and fourth floor.

When the first snow of 2018 was falling in Shanghai, children were excited: “It’s snowing! It’s snowing!” They were standing in the snow, opening their arms and reciting the poem: “If I were a snowflake. Flying, flying, flying.”

The joy of snow has not faded, and we are looking forward to the arrival of spring. Shelley ever said: “If winter comes, can spring be far behind”. The past 20^th January was the Great Cold, which is the last term of the 24 Solar Terms. After the Great Cold, the new cycle of the solar terms starts again. “The news of spring” is a lesson in CFL. In Year 4 Chinese Classes, children proclaimed from the bottom of their hearts “Wind blows the willows. Snow bleaches the duck’s feathers.”

We wish for children to embrace a beautiful today and a better future.

 

Chinese Language Researcher –SHEN Rong

Where are you from?

I am from the USA.

How long have you been at YCIS HQ?

I have been here for nearly 5 years.

What do you enjoy most about learning here?

My favourite subject is Literacy and I am one of the Student Council representatives for my class.

Tell us an interesting fact about you?

I have been in a lead role in the Upper Primary Musical for two years in a row now.

Can you share a favourite book?

‘Wonder’ by R.J.Palacio

 

Interviewed by:

School Captains –  Owen Tianmiao BANKS & Qing Levona SHU

Where are you from?

I am from Shanghai.

How long have you been teaching violin?

For ten years but this is my first year at YCIS.

What do you enjoy most about teaching at YCIS?

It is a positive work environment and the children are very nice.

Tell us an interesting fact about you?

I actually play three musical instruments – violin, viola and piano.

Can you share a favourite quote/saying?

Music has power. It is a universal language.

 

Interviewed by:

School Captains –  Owen Tianmiao BANKS & Qing Levona SHU