The children's parent-teacher meetings were on Saturday afternoon. They are both doing well in school. Their school is trying to develop their program to be more progressive. That means more opportunities for children to learn more things outside the basic curriculum. I'm quite excited by that possibility, as children do need to know more about life than what is in their language textbook, and as the principal said, elementary school is the best time to broaden children's horizons. Kyle's teacher is going to teach her class watercolor painting and music. She is also starting them on writing Chinese stories in the proper format. She posted a few pictures the children had drawn outside her classroom. This one of Kyle's brought such happiness to me.
Hannah is a very happy little student, too. We had a funny incident in class regarding the Flora Expo. I didn't realise how much she wanted to go, and kept telling her we are waiting until a bit later to visit. Her class is going on a field trip there. She piped up, "Mummy won't let me go to the Expo!" The teacher had to double-check with me.
Both children are well-known for their love of reading. Teachers were asking me how I got them to read so much. I explained how I read to them every night before bed. This is not something Taiwan families do. Of course, I also love books and reading. My big mouth then got me into trouble of sorts. I have been put in charge of upgrading the school library, to make it "more like a Western school library." Part of me is going to love this, and another part is thinking, "WHAT WERE YOU THINKING??" Afterall, half the library is in Chinese...
And then we move on to languages. I have been working as a volunteer mother a morning a week, teaching children English while the teachers have their meeting. This semester, I have been hired to teach extra afternoon classes. These classes, and the others offered at school like Taichi and calligraphy, are mostly free for students. So, if you would like your children to learn these things but don't want to go to afterschool classes, consider moving to our school. Friday is my first day to teach the afternoon sessions. I was looking at the textbook last night and the realisation that I am reentering education hit me. Now I am a little nervous. But, it's also exciting to be helping these students, many of whom are very different from the wealthy kids I taught back in cram school before I got married. I even made my first poster to hang up at school!
So, now one of my projects when I go back home is to dig around my old school library and see what I can adapt to put into the library here. Wouldn't it be great to have a fun, dynamic library in the school, where children can really actively learn how to research and be passionate about literature? Oh, me and my ideas. When I told Richard about this, he just laughed and said, well, you do love the library.
Multiculturalism and Maling
When we put the kids into this school, I didn't realise how multicultural it is. Kyle's class has six students. Three mothers are not from Taiwan. Hannah's preschool is also half-filled with mixed-culture children. There are also a number who are being raised by grandparents or who are in single-parent families. As a result, teachers try not to send too much homework home, as many children just don't have support to finish it. And, as one teacher said, the aim of homework is not learn anything or test how much you know, but just to give the average student a little more practice. Very capable students don't need it unless it is special extension work, and students who need help need to get extra tuition and support at school. So, there is a homework support system for students who really need it. Then, there are extra-curricular classes for other students. I am keenly awaiting that list to see what Kyle can do.
Hannah's teacher is doing a study on multicultural families and how they handle education of their children. She has asked us to take part in her study. This could be quite interesting, to see how she interprets our views and experiences.
