US First Lady

 

In a US classroom decorated with paintings of Chinese folk tales 民间故事（mín jiān gù shì） and characters, a dozen children are performing popular songs 流行歌曲（liú xíng gē qū）in Mandarin, such as Daddy, Where Are We Going 爸爸去哪儿 and Stars in the Sky.

Seven-year-old Anna has studied Chinese for two years.From Monday to Friday every week, Anna spends two hours learning Chinese at the school, writing characters 写汉字（xiě hàn zì）, playing games 做游戏（zuò yóu xì） and reciting the Three Character Primer, or San Zi Jing 三字经（sān zì jīng）, one of the ancient Chinese classic texts.

During class, Anna and the other children were eager to introduce themselves and teach visitors how to say “hello 你好（nǐ hǎo）”, “thank you谢谢（xiè xiè）” and “goodbye再见（zài jiàn）” in Chinese.

When she grows up, she will definitely have to communicate with Chinese. I hope she learns Chinese as early as possible,” says Anna’s mother. “I have to spend more on this, but I think it’s worth it, because what they will get is a lifelong skill.”

In March, the children shared their trips to Chinese cities such as Beijing 北京, Xi’an 西安 and Shanghai上海 with US First Lady Michelle Obama.

The first lady 第一夫人（dì yī fū rén ） told the children that it is extremely important for American students to immerse themselves in foreign languages and cultures at a school like Yuying, if they truly desire to learn more about other countries.

Key Learning Points:

mín jiān gù shì
民间故事
folk tales

liú xíng gē qū
流行歌曲
popular songs

xiě hàn zì
写汉字
writing characters

zuò yóu xì
做游戏
playing games

sān zì jīng
三字经
Three Character Primer, or San Zi Jing

nǐ hǎo
你好
“hello ”

xiè xiè
谢谢
“thank you”

zài jiàn
再见
“goodbye”

Beijing Xi’an Shanghai
北京 西安 上海 ，中国的三个国际化都市。

dì yī fū rén
第一夫人
The first lady

 

 

 

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