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Chinese Language Students Make Connections

McDonogh’s fifth grade Chinese language students are making global connections with their peers in China and putting into practice what they have been learning in class. Despite the 12-hour time difference, World Language Teacher, Fangfang Ma, coordinated the connection with students from Hujialou Elementary School in Beijing and Guangzhou, China, who had planned to visit McDonogh last winter. Ma says the students were still eager to meet and thanks to Zoom, she has arranged for a series of conversations in October, both on virtual days and when middle schoolers are on campus. The students are learning about each other and their favorite snacks, what their homes look like, what pets they have, and what subject they take in school. They quickly connected over their cultural similarities and embraced their differences as well as a few things that surprised them. 

The students from both schools are enjoying the opportunity to meet their peers from across the world and are optimistic that they will connect in person in 2021. Ma says she hopes the opportunities for global connections help our students understand cultural competency and the world; and that they will be prepared to be real global citizens and make the world a better place.