[Sandra Soltero-Torres]

Stella, I agree with you in how scary the living conditions are in China in regards the the severe pollution. Even tjhough we do have pollution issues here in the United States, we  are spoiled because we don't have the extreme health issues that are affecting Chinese people.  I feel like we take our lifestyles in the United States for granted believing that other people live the way we do.  When I heard the lecture and some of the extreme health issues that are a direct result of the severe pollution problem in China I was astonished.  I hope the Chinese government continues to try to be proactive in their pollution epidemic!

[Sandra Soltero-Torres]

I think this lesson on Confucius would also work well with my 4th grade English Language Learners.  I thought that the idea of teaching Confucius philosophy to elementary students  is great.  In this lesson plan it is done in such a way that the information is simple enough for elementary school students to understand the main ideas that Confucius focused his teachings on.   The use of visuals and vocabulary that tie everything together would enable my students to be able to discuss working in small groups.  This whole lesson meets my students language needs and allows for different stategies while learning about a very important Asian philosoper.  I will definitely try this lesson in my classroom!

 

[Sandra Soltero-Torres]

Hi Stella, 

     Your lesson plans were awesome!  I am not familiar with working with students with such severe special needs.  It seems that you have been very specific and your lessons plans were differentiated to meet the needs of your students, while still giving them access to learning about East Asia.    I teach elementary school and I like how your lesson plans were based on activities that are also accessible for my students to learn and accomplish.  My favorite was the Kabuki masks.  Last year my school hosted Chinese teachers and stuents.  One of the teachers did a lesson on Kabuki masks with my students and they absolutely loved learning about China while making their own mask.  They were excited to take the masks home and share the information they learned with their families.  I will definitely be referring to your lesson plans to try them out with my srudents as well.  

 

[Sandra Soltero-Torres]

I enjoyed reading about your field trip. I  thought that your trip to Manhattan Beach was a fantastic hands on learning experience for your students!  The articles they read on China was a great way for them to understand how severe the pollution is around the world.  A great lesson to teach our students is that although we can't change things in another country we can begin by keeping our own environment as clean and as healthy as possible.  During my next school year I plan on teaching my 4th graders about pollution, recycling and anything else that affects our environment.  We don't have a lot of funding for buses, but I thought I could take my students on an environement  walk around the neighborhood to clean up and pick up any trash that may harm our earth.  

[Sandra Soltero-Torres]

Jacqueline thank you for posting this website. I took the time to browse through this website and I thought it was a great resource for upper grade students, but especially for teachers.  There was a diverse amount of information on different East Asian countries.  The links to each country have an immense amount of information on Asian history,  Asian philosophy, Arts, learning how to speak Asian languages, and the list goes on.  I think mthe information is written and presented more for a high school audience or for teachers.  In addition, there is a teachers' association for each country.  I would definitely recommend it and visit it again for additional information and resources.

[Sandra Soltero-Torres]

Professor Yamashita's lecture on the Origins of Japan covered many different topics.  When he addressed the question of what is the historical significance of fast foods such as soba, tempura, and sushi my eyes lit up because those are some of my favorite foods!  I enjoyed learning about the history of these foods because I know that my elementary school students would appreciate learning about the history of Japanese foods.  I learned that sushi has evolved and is now much more sophisticated than when it first originated.  Whenever I visit a Japanese restaurant I see Bento dishes on the menu and now I understand that they were created with the purpose of providing convenient food at a faster speed.  It connects directly to the idea of living in an urban area.  People are usually in a rush to get to their next destination to the extreme that even sitting down for a meal has a limited time period.  Professor Yamashita provided me with a historical background on Japanese food that I can now share with my students when we discuss culture and foods.  I also appreciated his recommendations on great sushi restaurants!!

[Sandra Soltero-Torres]

     During the "Cultural Revolution" many of China's people were encouraged by Chairman Mao to join the "Up to the Mountains, Down to the Countryside Movement."  The economy was weak and not generating many jobs.  The propaganda pictures that were shown only displayed happy faces of people who were eager to go.  As a result, there were many volunteers that went willingly.  When these individuals who were know as the sent-down youth arrived to the countryside the novelty of being on an adventure wore off.  The difference in diet was huge.  The portions were only 40 llbs of rice and 2 ounces of protein per month.   They were also quite surprised to see their new housing.  Their new lives in the countryside were not what they thought it was going to be.  According to Profesor Dube in his lecture, the three main reasons why they were encouraged or forced to go to the countryside were due to the lack of jobs and education. Second, this would help in the processof purifying and re-educating China's population.  Lastly it was seen as a way to pacify the cities.  The result was that by the end of 1979, the majority of the sent-down youth returned to the city. After having lost their youth they moved back to live an urban life that they were completely unfamiliar with.  This sounds like a tragic life story to me.  It appears to me to be quite unusual that a group of people be sent away to be reducated.  The concept of "going away" for such a long period of time and to then be brought back into urban society merely to benefit the economy is an unacceptable way of governance.  The propaganda that was shown was deceitful and I believe that the sent-down youth were robbed of a different type of life that they should have been able to choose.

[Sandra Soltero-Torres]

     I found Cheng's, Preface to Outcry, to be a wonderful piece of literature.  It entrigued me because the idea behind it was so simple, yet so complicated.  "Citizens of an ignorant and weak nation, no matter how healthy and sturdy their bodies, can serve as notghing more than subject matter for or spectators of meaningless public displays."  Her dream to be a doctor was shattered by a simple image that tainted all she believed in.  What would be the purpose of saving a human body if the spirit was a damaged one?  So this became the beginning of Cheng's quest to arouse change through literary movement.  The words Cheng used to describe the feeling of emptiness she experienced after her first publication failed made a lot of sense to me.  "....if a proposition is met with approval, it encourages you to go forward; if met with opposition, it encourages you to fight back.  The real tragedy strikes when one raises one's voice among the living, only to elicit no response, be it approval or opposition, as if one were helplessly stranded in a boundless wasteland."  These words describe a type of limbo or loneliness that can overtake the soul.  Cheng's literature is inspiring because it speaks about a type of loneliness that many choose to not address.  Her words are thought provoking and encourage the reader to delve deeper into their meaning.  I truly enjoyed reading Cheng's Preface to Outcry.

[Sandra Soltero-Torres]

I found Professor Dube's lecture during session 9 interesting and informative.  One of the questions Profesor Dube asked mid lecture was, "What is the difference between growth vs. development?"  The answer was that growth produces more while development produces more without outputting more labor and cost.  The outcome is that economic development is so much more valuable than just having economic growth.  Another important point in the lecture was that in the 18th century the traditional government was not that ambitious.  The government was able to retain power through security.  In order to maintain their security they increased the taxes.  By the time the 19th century came, the government had lost its control and failed at collecting taxes.  Soon thereafter the Industrial Revolution came about and the United States played a big role in 19th century  China.

[Sandra Soltero-Torres]

I found Professor Dube's lecture during session 9 interesting and informative.  One of the questions Profesor Dube asked mid lecture was, "What is the difference between growth vs. development?"  The answer was that growth produces more while development produces more without outputting more labor and cost.  The outcome is that economic development is so much more valuable than just having economic growth.  Another important point in the lecture was that in the 18th century the traditional government was not that ambitious.  The government was able to retain power through security.  In order to maintain their security they increased the taxes.  By the time the 19th century came, the government had lost its control and failed at collecting taxes.  Soon thereafter the Industrial Revolution came about and the United States played a big role in 19th century  China.

[Sandra Soltero-Torres]

Jacqueline, I was also a fan of how Profesor Yamashita presented all the information in his lecture on Japan.  My historical background on Japan was minimal at best and after the lecture I felt like I had basic knowledge on the origins of Japan.  The outline he provided for us with guiding questions prepared me in advance for the information he was going to present.  I think this is a great strategy that allows students to prep themselves for discussion as well.  I especially enjoyed when Profesor Yamashita lectured  about the five types of Pre-HIstorical evidenc  in regards to the origins of Japan.  I found his presentation to be quite informative and engaging.  I believe this was because of how he organized the information into periods and because of the specificity of the questions he asked.  It was all meant for us to spark our interest and focus our thoughts.  I will definitely take this strategy and use it to formulate questions for my own students to keep them interested and focused.

[Sandra Soltero-Torres]

Christine,  I think your lesson plan on Chinese culture is a great one!  I like your approach about teaching students that culture gives people a sense of who they are.  Culture has such a varity of different meanings to different people that it is important to establish a working definition of culture so that students can identify and be aware of all different cultures.  I like the idea of using the film to have students have other perspectives as well.  This lesson is one that I can see myself using in my class with my fourth graders.  Thank you for sharing!

[Sandra Soltero-Torres]

     I found the East Asia seminar to be an amazing experience.  I was able to expand my knowledge on East Asia and I learned about many different topics that I had limited knowledge about prior to the course.  I loved listening to the guest speakers and I am looking forward to participating in another seminar like this one! 

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[Sandra Soltero-Torres]

Cristina, thank you for sharing this website on Chinese cooking.  I agree that it is definitely a valuable resource for someone who is interested in learning how to cook authentic Chinese food.  The Chinese chef provides many varieties of different recipes from different regions.  The recipes offered are based on the availibility of ingredients  in different regions.  I especially like how the chef teaches about different Chinese ingredients and encourages visitors to the sight to creat their own Chinese dishes.  This is definitely a website that I would recommend and return to when I am ready to try to cook my own Chinese food!

[Sandra Soltero-Torres]

     Hi Juan, I teach 4th grade English language learner students.  I think your idea about using haikus to brainstorm sensory language in narrative writing is great!  I find the idea of specifically writing a haiku for each specific sense very valuable.  I plan on using this strategy in my class because my students definitely need more practice in developing sensory and descriptive language in a stess free setting.  This will allow them to be creative  and have fun at the same time.  In addition, I also thought this lesson would be excellent to do after a visit to the gardens at the Huntington Library.  I hope to plan a trip next year with my 4th graders and follow up our visit with  some Haiku poetry.  Thank you for sharing your strategy. I will be trying it out with my students!

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