kids.

Lately I've been helping my mom prepare for the beginning of the new school year. Summer went by way too fast! I'm going to miss having my mom around while she's at work. Since we came back from China 4 weeks ago, it's been "Jessica and mom's great adventure." We fill our days with randomness and it's been really wonderful to relax and be together.

Today at mom's work, (3rd grade), as I sticky-tacked, scissored, and stapled; my thoughts drifted to my PhD thesis (I'm weird). I just got to thinking about how colorful my mom's classroom is. It's vibrant and encouraging for children's imagination, creativity, and wonder. It's presh. I won't completely bore you to death with the random thoughts I have about education, culture, blah blah blah. I've just been getting nervousioso about starting school again in September after several months off - so I've been mulling over my proposal in my head at the most random times. Poor mom having to listen to me, ha.

BUT I do want to show you this precious video I took in 2009. This is the primary school across from my apartment for the past 2 years. As an assignment in my masters program I had to observe English classes of different age groups. My classmate just walked into this school and asked them if we could go in. They told us to come back the next day. After a random, half-understood in Chinese meeting with the principle, we ended up being excorted to the back of this 3rd grade classroom...

The kids were learning the colors in English and were using a computer graphic as a teaching aide. As they said a color, they would paint a little man on the screen. They kept painting the man's face yellow - as opposed to white or black. Sitting here in Amer.ica, I realize this wasn't the most politically correct thing to laugh about - but at the time it was hilarious to us as the kids kept painting the man a flourescent shade of banana. ha. It was entertaining to say the least.











"Red and blue, they are wonderful when you are children, yah." Fun. Cute. Ha.

Notice how many kids there are in the classroom and the way the classroom is set up - highschool style. Very unlike my mom's class of the same age kids. The red bandannas around some of their necks are symbols that that child has been tapped to be a member of the Comm. Party when they are older. Each year is a chance to gain or lose the 'danna based on behavior, grades, yadda yadda.

I had to come home and re-watch this video just for fun after a day in mom's classroom. Hope you like it too.


Walk Slow. xoxo.