teachers

Kids as World Citizens

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Map from Lucky Bamboo Book of Crafts
Map from Lucky Bamboo Book of Crafts

Recently my 6th grade daughter had a World Fair celebration at her school culminating from months of research and hard work. It was a gala evening where every student in her grade had a country represented with a tabletop display, interactive presentation, and oral knowledge to share with the crowds of family members. Did my daughter pick China? No, Ethiopa!

As I wandered from student to student, I was reminded again of the great opportunity parents and educators have to open up the world to kids and how eager and receptive they are to learn more, more, more. My teacher training was in elementary art and in the classroom I had it made. Each culture has such a rich history in handicraft, textiles, painting, sculpture…. the list is endless for curriculum ideas. But the bigger view of what a country symbolizes, reveres, and its unique mark on history is well within the capacity of understanding, even for young kids.

I know sometimes adults feel “art challenged” when working with kids. When you are using Lucky Bamboo Book of Crafts, perhaps a good place to start is with the Gateway to China section, exploring Chinese culture and sharing the factoids…. even jumping on to your tablet to dig deeper with specific topics on China or where questions are raised.

Then you may find that selecting and starting an art or craft project will happen more organically, based on the curiosity and interests of the kids and you all will have more confidence to be wonderfully creative.

Chinese Culture Close to Home

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Chinese School dancers in Portland, Maine
Chinese School dancers in Portland, Maine

Ahhhh Fall. The crisp New England leaves under our feet, colorful splendor on the trees, apples and pumpkins. And for this family, October also brings the new session of CAFAM Chinese School (cafamchineseschool.org) on Saturdays. My daughter is eleven now and has been attending since she was a toddler.

This connection to our local Chinese community as well as adoptive families with Chinese children has become an anchor for us and my daughter has made amazing friends that are literally growing up with her. To have a place to embrace Chinese culture and hear Mandarin spoken alongside English for even a few hours a week is transforming

As an adoptive mom, I have always grappled with the fact I may never know how my daughter truly feels about her birth country and being taken from it. I can never walk in her shoes. However I have to believe that making the effort to spend time with our Chinese friends and participating in programs, events and holidays that celebrate China and give us a deeper understanding of the culture can only be good, not only for her but for me.

Chinese organizations across the country and FCC regional chapters offer many types of language schools and culture programs and I believe ours is one of the best. We offer Mandarin, traditional dance, martial arts, character calligraphy, authentic cooking, art, and often all in one morning. I’ve enjoyed creating many workshops and crafts for the students over the years which also helped me build the confidence to write Lucky Bamboo Book of Crafts. The research required to feel equipped to write about Chinese history and traditional arts was immense.

Perhaps in your Chinese and adoptive circles you’ve found great ideas for making connections, family fun,  and learning about Chinese culture. These may be programs that exist or are waiting to be realized. Here in the Portland area we have a tireless steering committee president that does a tremendous amount of work to keep us on track, but we also rely on a huge amount of additional volunteers, guest authors, teachers, Chinese exchange students and people willing to offer different talents and skills.

All it takes is a commitment of time, good organization and a vision. Please leave a comment and share what you are doing in your area. Oh, and by the way, the girl second from the left in the photo is my daughter!

Making Art with Kids

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Lately my book marketing pursuits have led me back into the elementary classroom, where I’m asked to bring a culture project to do with the kids.  With each visit I am reminded as to why teachers love what they do, year after year.  Every time a group of children lights up as they dive into art making, I can only describe my feeling from head to toe in one word…. happy.  I’m reminded of the wonder and freedom kids have when they pick up a brush full of paint or construct something original out of paper.  They get lost in the process and in their private world of imagination and often look at their results with pride and disbelief… “did I really make that?”.

Recently I made mini-scrolls with first and second graders.  It is a great, manageable format for trying out brush painting, calligraphy or just simple drawings.  I constructed the scrolls ahead (easy!) so we could get right to it.   I offered visual reference and guidance for painting pandas and bamboo.  I was pleased when some of the students proceeded to completely ignore me and paint what meant China to them including maps, pagodas, lanterns and lots of dragons.  As only a guest author, I could not be held accountable when they didn’t stick to the plan!