trevordayschool

2 1 T R E V O R D AY S C H O O L n W I N T E R 2 0 2 1 – 2 0 2 2 "We even have students create their own rap in Chinese!" Ms. Hong exclaims. One area most Trevor students are familiar with is Chinese cuisine. ey usually have both eaten it and appreciate it, notes Ms. Hong, playfully bragging, "Of course! Everyone loves Chinese food!" She makes extensive use of cooking classes. "e cooking unit is included in our Upper School Mandarin 3 curriculum. As a final project, each student will make a professional cooking demo video. It includes preparing the food, cooking it, serving it to families, and getting their feedback, all in Mandarin. It's a super-fun and practical experience for our students." Ms. Hong routinely uses holidays as another effective learning tool. In early 2019, she took the Upper School students to Chinatown for Lunar New Year." We watched the fireworks, and dragon and lion dances; we shopped in the new year's market; we ate dim sum and traditional Chinese food. … It was crowded and chaotic, but students experienced the true happiness of Lunar New Year." March 2020 brought the sudden need to adapt the Mandarin curriculum to remote learning. Ms. Hong developed many innovative ways to keep her students engaged. One of the most effective and amusing examples involved last year's Upper School Mandarin 4 class and the making of a Zoom video entitled Paper Airplane Visit. e video, which is entirely in Mandarin, opens with Ms. Hong wondering what her students are up to. She makes a paper airplane that flies to the home of one of her students. He answers that he is doing his homework and sends the paper plane to one of his classmates, who admits that the plane's arrival in his bedroom interrupted his nap; another student replies and demonstrates that she is playing her guitar, while yet another is seen preparing Chinese food. Ms. Hong describes an additional highlight of the 2020–2021 year of distance learning: Every other Monday, "we had a chance to communicate with high school students from the Beijing Xu Beihong Academy on Zoom. Students from both countries learned a lot from each other and built strong relationships." Proof is this drawing that the Beijing students sent to their American counterparts, depicting charming likenesses and identifying all 24 of them. is exercise proved so popular that Ms. Hong continued the practice even after in-person learning resumed. Ninth grader Sam G. has studied Mandarin with Ms. Hong since the first class was offered when he was in 6th grade. Of this experience, he reports, "I have absolutely loved being in the inaugural Mandarin class! e class is a very tight-knit community because we have been progressing together for many years now. Every student feels comfortable asking questions to any of their peers. Additionally, Ms. Hong is very approachable. She always helps us outside of class and, whether through games and activities or interactive PowerPoint presentations, she always finds ways to make our time in class engaging. is language is important to me because it has given me a sense of community. I have loved being in this community so much that I have taken part in some of Ms. Hong's other activities including the MiniTerm Chinese Callligraphy course and the after-school Chinese Culture Club. e Mandarin program truly is one of the best programs that I have taken part in during my life as a student." Ms. Hong is pleased to report that Mandarin 5 will be offered in September 2022; it will likely focus on Chinese art. A further advanced class may also be added in September 2023. n

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