This fall Sunny School has added a new dimension to its international program; virtual classes connecting our kids with Mandarin students from English-speaking countries. The goal of this new program is to facilitate engagement between our students and their foreign counterparts in order to mutually benefit their respective foreign language developments. At Sunny School we believe that, in addition to traditional, textbook-style teaching, our foreign language program must include an immersion element where our students are forced to apply their abilities in live, everyday situations.
Our most recent connection saw the international program’s 3rd and 4th grade classes connect with a 2nd grade class from St. Catherine’s School, a private, all-girls school located in Richmond, Virginia. With the help of their Mandarin teacher, Kefu Dorion, we were able to organize a 40 minute class. After introductions, a few songs, and a discussion on the Chinese Moon Festival the class engaged in a question and answer period which really saw our students put their language abilites to good use. The reaction from this new program as been positive and we look forward to continuing our connection with St. Catherine’s and expanding its scope to include our other classes.