Having Fun When Learning Chinese in CIP
The Chinese course activities in 2014 Fall Semester were held in November in CIP. There were four levels altogether, nine classes and 155 students from Comprehensive Chinese courses actively participating in these activities. The activities proved to be very successful, and combined Chinese culture learning with interesting games and competitions and enhanced the relationship between the students and teachers. The following are some brief descriptions of the activities.
On November 5, two classes from Comprehensive Chinese II held an activity called “The Amazing Race-CIP”. There were eleven stations in this race. At each station, the students were required to complete a task, such as You say I guess, Introducing Chinese dishes, Solving ancient maths problems, Eating the Chinese delicacy Chou Tofu, Knowing Chinese calligraphy and writing an ancient Chinese poem. After completing one task, the students got the clue for the next task. The student who first reached destination won the race. This activity proved to be a full educational and fun.
November 10 to14 was the immersion week in CIP. There was no class this week. Students were required to go out visiting places or attend forums in CIP in order to gain more practical skills. We arranged an activity for the students from the three classes of Comprehensive Chinese IV to discover, experience and immerse themselves in Shanghai. This activity was called “City Hunter” and it was divided into five sections: Cuisine, Fashion, History, Life of the locals and Life of the foreigners. Students were free to choose any of the sections and worked in groups to make posters and videos. When we received the students’ assignments, we were surprised to see the enormous creativity and potential presented by them. The well-organized layouts, unique designs, special perspectives and good writing of characters all reflected the students’ ideas and creativity. The videos that the students made were also amazing. The students showed their ability to use Chinese in real life situations. From those videos, we could feel their passions for Shanghai and China.
On November 19, the two classes from Comprehensive Chinese I held a “Chinese Olympics” on the football field of Yan’an road campus. The aim of this activity was to encourage the Olympic spirit among the students in learning Chinese. The activities included Playing shuttlecock, I say you do, Finding friends, Lucky travel etc. The students actively participated and the final class show was a peak in the competition. They not only enjoyed themselves but also learned a lot from this exciting hour.
On November 21st, there was an activity “Let’s Wrap Dumplings” taking place in the Cafe in the IECB building.The participants were the teachers and students from Comprehensive Chinese level 3. This activity was inspired by a text in their book titled “I have a date with China”. Dumplings were introduced in that lesson and all the students wanted to make dumplings themselves. There were 35 students sitting at six tables. The ingredients and wrappers were set at each table. Then the dumpling wrapping competition started! After a short demonstration, all the students were capable to make dumplings. Not only did they enjoy a good time, but they also learned a lot related vocabulary naturally and efficiently. By this activity, both students and teachers felt closer than in a regular classroom. In addition, it made learning “lively”!
