Dragonflies and Bracelets!

Fifth grade students at all three buildings - Township, Wellman and Kalona - learned how to use to Chinese knots to make dragonflies and bracelets. Many of the creations ended up under Christmas trees as nice gifts for parents, siblings, and other relatives!

Kalona Fourth Grade

Fourth grade students at Kalona Elementary played the Match Memory to learn about directions.

Wellman Second Grade

In December Principal Bill Poock visited a second grade classroom in Wellman. The students worked in three centers--a writing center, a matching memory game, and kooshball. Here are some of the activities he saw, and some of the great work the students turned in!

WT practices words for food!

Washington Township first grade students practiced their Mandarin Chinese sentences about eating different kinds of food!

Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed

"Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed" is a story poem that helps students read with fluency and competence using Mandarin Chinese.

See how well these Wellman first graders did as both individual readers and in groups! They did an excellent job!

Using Quizlet to Learn Chinese

Fifth graders from Wellman Elementary School use the Quizlet program to help learn the Mandarin Chinese vocabulary words about emotions.

With Quizlet, students can use the program to help them learn the material, and then take a test to demonstrate what they've accomplished!

4th and 5th graders celebrate Chinese Moon Festival

The Moon Festival is the second-most important holiday in Chinese culture after Chinese New Year.

To the Chinese, Mid-Autumn Moon Festival means family reunion and peace. The festival is celebrated when the moon is believed to be the biggest and fullest. To the Chinese, a full moon is a symbol of prosperity, happiness, and family reunion.

The festival has been celebrated for 3,000 years. This fall the Moon Festival was held on September 15.

At all three elementary schools, 4th and 5th grade students had the chance to try real Chinese moon cake. About half liked it--and half not quite yet!

Little "birdie" says M-P students like learning Chinese

Shuttlecock--a version of hacky sack using a badminton-like "birdie" that you kick in the air with your feet (and only your feet, not your hands)--is very popular in Chinese culture.

This is an activity that obviously has fans in both China and the United States!

Here are some first graders in Wellman, who are learning to balance the "birdie" on their heads.

And here is a fifth-grader in Kalona, who like his birdie, is catching some air himself!

Township kindergartners love Chinese!

Washington Township kindergartners demonstrate that they can color and sing two Chinese songs!

• First, a song whose song is familiar to many Americans - "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes!"
• Second, a song titled "Little Red Flower."

Just because the students are young, don't let that get in the way of multitasking with coloring and singing some beautiful Mandarin Chinese!

Here is "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes"...

And here is "Little Red Flower"!

Third Grade Chinese Expert!

One of our third grade students from Wellman demonstrates impressive Mandarin Chinese understanding and fluency as she interviews Mrs. Hussey on her way to success!

Quizlet Live

It's a race to see which team will win as Wellman fifth graders play Quizlet Live!

While the kids were excited to see who would be victorious, as the teacher I was excited to see all the students actively learning, having fun, and learning Mandarin Chinese!

A-"maze"-ing Maze Game

This Kalona Elementary fourth grader demonstrates some amazing skills as she interviews Mrs. Hussey about various aspects of nature and whether she likes them or not (nǐ xǐhuan bù xǐhuan).

The goal is to move from the starting line to the top.

Writing Chinese characters

Writing Chinese characters may seem hard, but don't tell that to the elementary students who are writing beautiful Chinese characters as part of their Mid-Prairie studies.

Students play Quizlet Life

From second to fifth grades students enjoy playing "Quizlet Life," but before they play they need to study. All the students get involved. Once they are ready, they compete to see which teams can finish first, adding an element of competition and fun to their studies.

Wellman Elementary 1st and 2nd grade prepare for China "Tour"

On May 27 the first and second grade classes at Wellman Elementary School will participate in a virtual "tour" of China, and are busy preparing for their exciting excursion now.

Each day they arrive at class having passed by the Chinese dragon guarding the hallway!

Just a few days until they are in China for "real."

Videos of Students Showing Their Chinese Skills

Ever wonder if your children can really speak Chinese? Watch these videos from KES fourth grade and you'll see how skilled they are in the language! This lesson was about School Subjects.

Students Interview Classmates for Maze Game

Second-grade KES students take turns interviewing each other for the "Maze Game." Each student finds at least seven other classmates to interview to check for understanding. When students have successfully completed the maze they do a final check with Mrs. Hussey to confirm their understanding.

Students practice cultural skills at schools across Mid-Prairie district

Students across the district celebrate Chinese New Year and practice their calligraphy, using chopsticks, making puppets for the Year of the Monkey, making a long dragon puppet, and many other Chinese language and cultural skills.

Chinese Club Celebrates Chinese New Year at KES

More than 60 students and parents attended the February 11 Chinese Club event at Kalona Elementary School at which the attendees celebrated the Chinese New Year and the Year of the Monkey.

Students practiced using chopsticks, made monkey masks, finished puzzles, played games, and the whole family got involved!

Christmas Cards in Chinese - and Happy New Year!

Fifth grade students in Wellman decorate holiday-themed cards to hang as ornaments on their home Christmas trees -- and a few gave them as gifts for their parents!

Holiday video - Chinese

Fifth grade students in Wellman read Christmas-themed words with traditional Chinese noisemakers (快板 kuài bǎn).