As I’ve mentioned before, My Panda Paws offers a variety of books, DVDs and other products to help children learn Chinese. Just in time for back-to-school, they have generously offered a 15% discount for readers of Hao Mama through September 3. Just enter Haomama at checkout. Enjoy!
The Monkey King (Journey to the West) is one of the greatest and most engaging tales for young (and old) minds ever written. My son never tires of hearing and watching the stories and knows well the details of each character and their many adventures. Asia Society has posted a video of Professor Anthony C. Yu providing a somewhat academic look at why this story endures for children over so many generations.
Read more from Hao Mama about the Monkey King.
This week marks Duanwu Jie, or Dragon Boat Festival, the most poetic of the Chinese holidays (and my favorite). In honor of it, here are step-by-step instructions (courtesy of CNN) for making the traditional rice dumplings that are eaten on this day.
For more about the history and meaning of Duanwu Jie, see my post from last year.
For many of us who live in the Bay Area, southern California can seem like a foreign country. I was reminded of this while reading about the debates now raging in Hacienda Heights over funding for a Chinese language program in a middle school there. (Read more about the debate here.) In short, opponents claim the program, which is partially funded by the Chinese government, will brainwash children with Communist dogma. In a way that only he can, Jon Stewart takes on the debate:
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
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Just came across these beautiful images composed of Chinese characters. Can’t wait to show my Monkey King-obsessed son this one tomorrow:
Through hundreds of Confucius Institutes at schools overseas, the Chinese government has been spreading its soft power through the teaching of Chinese language and culture. Now, a program called Confucius Classroom, co-sponsored by the Asia Society, which funds Chinese language programs in K-12 schools, has sparked outrage among some who don’t want American students learning what they assume will be Communist propaganda. Near Los Angeles, the community of Hacienda Heights is deeply divided over the issue:
Activist Kai Chen and former Hacienda La Puente Unified Superintendent John Kramar reviewed the materials for the district’s new Confucius Classroom on Friday.
“That’s part of Chinese infiltration into this country and the corruption of the political culture of America,” Chen said of the classroom, which will be funded by the Chinese Language Council International, or Hanban.
Hacienda La Puente Unified School District officials have allowed the public to view and provide feedback on books, DVDs and other instructional aids that will be used in the Confucius Classroom elective course at Cedarlane Middle School this fall.
After reviewing the books Friday, Kramar and Chen said they believed the Chinese-sponsored literature did not include a thorough account of the nation’s history. They were also concerned about several definitions in a Chinese dictionary they said reflect ideals of Communism.
And from another article from the right-wing New American:
“Though one tiny corner of my conscience says sure, the more the Chinese spend IN the United States the less they’ll have left to compete with and undermine us. But most of me is outraged — and a little bit alarmed.”
People sounded a similar alarm when the Confucius Institute opened at UCLA in 2007, said Susan Pertel, the program’s executive director. “Everybody was concerned we would be told what to do, what to teach,” she said. “That’s not the situation at all. It’s very much a partnership.”
“People accuse us of advancing a Chinese agenda,” said Chen. “They say the Chinese community is taking over. But one of the reasons to have the program is to make Cedarlane more attractive to all students, not just the Chinese.” But the school district’s voters might have a different idea about how to make the schools attractive, said King, the former superintendent.
“Our kids need to be taught Americanism,” he said. “This board is going to pay a price. I think the community is upset enough to vote them out.”
Americanism?
Word is that Jon Stewart will tackle the dispute in an upcoming show.
I just discovered that Multilingual Living (which I have linked to before) has a new website, which is a very inviting, useful resource with all kinds of information about raising bi- or multilingual children. That site in turn led to to another new site, Multilingual Mania, which includes personal stories, new research, book and movie reviews and more about raising bilingual children. On this site, I found a clip of the documentary Speaking in Tongues , which explores, “the provocative notion that being bilingual can be a national asset.” This clip focuses on a Chinese (Cantonese) classroom in San Francisco to show how language immersion works and the benefits of an immersion education.
For those in San Francisco, the Excelsior Branch Library will be showing the full movie tomorrow, May 26. For more information see here.
[This post is cross-posted at Bay Area Mama.)
An article in the New York Times looks at the experience of Chinese teachers who are sent to the US as part of a new government-sponsored program. Living in the Bay Area, where it seems natural to have Chinese language programs, I sometimes forget how incredible it is that places like Lawton, Oklahoma are implementing Mandarin programs in their schools. And what an odd experience it must be for the young mainland teachers to be teaching there. The article offers a glimpse:
Ms. Zheng said she spent time clearing up misconceptions about China.
“I want students to know that Chinese people are not crazy,” she said. For instance, one of her students, referring to China’s one-child-per-family population planning policy, asked whether the authorities would kill one of the babies if a Chinese couple were to have twins.
Some students were astonished to learn that Chinese people used cellphones, she said. Others thought Hong Kong was the capital.
Barry Beauchamp, the Lawton superintendent, said he was thrilled to have Ms. Zheng and two other Chinese instructors working in the district. But he said he believed that the guest teachers were learning the most from the cultural exchange.
“Part of them coming here is us indoctrinating them about our great country and our freedoms,” he said. “We’ve seen them go to church and to family reunions, country music concerts, rodeos. So it’s been interesting to see them soak up our culture.”
[This will be cross-posted at Today's Mama]
Ever since he saw his first lion dance, my son has been obsessed, regularly using a blanket over his head and an impromptu drum to dance around our living room, pawing the ground, jumping up, and performing acrobatic feats just like the real thing. This year he had a chance to be part of a real lion dance at his school which was one of the most exciting moments in his five-year-old life. Outside of the celebratory two week Lunar New Year period, lion dances are usually few and far between, but this weekend in San Francisco is a chance to again partake in the fun. The Asian Heritage Festival, Saturday from 11-6 outside the Civic Center, will kick off with a Lion Dance troup, and will also feature a variety of performers, vendors, and more. Find more information here and see their ad below:
The Mandarin Immersion Parents Council (mentioned here) has a brilliant post with ideas and specific resources for squeezing more Mandarin into your child’s daily life. It is geared toward parents who do not speak Mandarin themselves, and some of the ideas are specific to San Francisco but most could be used universally. A great resource.
