In addition to language class in the mornings, our afternoons were focused on entirely on teaching. We were instructed my Amity staff as well as current Teacher Volunteers as to what to expect in the classroom, teaching techniques, and Chinese culture. However, most days were spent watching ‘practice’ lessons.
Amity brought in a class of 7th graders and 10th graders, respectively, who came each day to receive a lesson from one of us. We were each instructed to prepare a 45 minute lesson based on a topic of our choice that presented new vocabulary to the students, pronunciation practice, and sentence building.
I had mentioned before that I have been quite nervous about coming into this position as a teacher, feeling unqualified. But after observing a lesson or two, I was filled with excitement, realizing that my experience in Children’s Ministry and theatre is a huge benefit. As Arnold and I created a lesson plan to teach about the four seasons, I found that it was easy for me to come up with creative ways to teach and engage the students. In presenting each season we planned activities that allowed the 7th grade students to formulate sentences in orally and in writing, while also presenting new vocabulary.