Sunday, April 19, 2010
Today was a day I have been looking forward to for a long time. I had the opportunity to visit The Second Experimental School for the entire day. Remember that the student school day lasts from 7:00-7:20, every day. The day begins with the entire school (4,000) doing exercises or jogging to get the day started off right. I began the day sitting in what is very similar to our Friday coordinator meetings. The purpose of this weekly meeting is to review the previous week, set the calendar for the upcoming week and discuss any concerns that may be brought up by the student council or teachers.
Next I went to a 6th grade class to listen to the daily announcements and observe the flag raising ceremony. Unfortunately it was raining outside. So, the ceremony was done indoors, over the announcement. The students stand and as the national Anthem is played, they sing it with gusto. This is similar to our way of doing things before sporting events or like we do when we have the Pledge of Allegiance led by Professor Tron. A bit of a great was that they also said part of the announcement in English for my benefit, which was pretty cool. Along with the flag raising ceremony there is a theme or two for the week. This week the themes were Earth Day (4/22) and Reading Day (4/23). The students were reminded to be good stewards of the earth: recycle and don’t pollute. The message for Reading Day was to “read to enrich your mind”.
Next I sat in a 6th grade math class where the students were working on linear equations with two unknowns. They worked individually, then in groups answering questions. Then in their groups the students checked each other’s answers and ranked them. The students then went over their work, presenting to the class. They also did “board work” and wrote short answer responses to how they got their answer, the steps they did to get there and if they had any other ways of finding the responses.
The students’ day consists eight forty-five minute classes, lunch/recess and a self-study period.
After the math class I went to a 7th grade English as a second language class. The teacher spoke English the entire time. The days discussion centered on what the perceptions were to American schools regarding homework, vacations, cell phones, testing, intensity of studying, students learning what they like, school uniforms, hair length, etc. I was given the opportunity then to respond to the class what we do at Helfrich Park about these topics. So, I answered their questions, differentiating what was fact and what was myth. It was an enjoyable period.
Next I went to an art class where they were learning about the different masks performers where in one of the Chinese operas. The teacher used a power point (every teacher used a power point) to illustrate the different masks and what the various colors represented. She also played part of the opera for the students. A key to painting the masks is to remember that the eyes, eye brows and mouth all need to be symmetrical. The students worked in groups of two for the activity portion of ties exercise in which I was fortunate to participate in.
After art class I sat in on an eighth vocal music class. There was a great deal of participation! The students were studying a love story that the song was about. The teacher showed them a power point the lesson and then sang with them. It was a good group to listen to.
After music class I sat in on an 8th grade chemistry class. The students were doing an experiment in which they were able to light a glowing stick when putting it in a test-tube with some chemicals in the test tube.
I also sat in a Physics class in which the students were reading the voltage off of meters with different types of light bulbs.
Then, at 3:15 I went to the annual English concert. This concert is done entirely in English because the teachers believe that student learn a second language better by singing songs and learning different words that way. The concert was wonderful and ten different acts performed. At the end I was tricked into singing a little tune let me tell you I won’t ever be on American Idol! It was a great concert with a lot of different costumes, music and lighting.
We ended the day at school about 5:05 PM and the day just flew by.
PUMAS, enjoy the week and make your final preparations for ISTEP next week. Remember, follow the Simple Six always and be good citizens every day!
