School of Languages & Linguistics Research Unit for Multilingualism & Cross-Cultural Communication (RUMACCC)

Activities - Chinese Program

These activities involve going into the community and are placed in a sequence. The following are only suggestions as to the type of tasks that students can do - teachers can use their creativity to design activities that engage their students.

  Category B tasks Category A tasks Category A+ tasks

Before fieldwork

Students in groups prepare to go out into the community

  • Identify the name of shops;
  • Label shops on a local map;
  • Identify and locate shops in relation to their school;
  • Describe the distance of shops in relation to the school;
  • Tell how to go from school to a specific shop/shops.
  • Introduce oneself to a person in local shop;
  • Ask for at least 5 items of information from a specific shop.
  • Search the web for a profile of the local community such as population, countries of origin, languages spoken etc;
  • Use Chinese word processor to write a paragraph or two about the local community
  • Help category B and A team members to fine tune their preparation for fieldwork.

During Fieldwork

Students of categories A and B form a team and go out to the community.

  • Ask and give directions to a designated shop from school;
  • Name various types of shops in Chinese on site;
  • Observe and listen to Category A students' interaction with shopkeepers.
  • Name the shops on location;
  • Introduce oneself to the shopkeeper stating purpose of visit;
  • Ask for at least 5 items of information from a specific shop;
  • Note-taking: writing down the conversation between student and shopkeeper.
  • Observe on-site local shops, interview shopkeepers, note-taking;
  • Support team members giving them the confidence to use the language.
  • Category B, Category A and A+ students form a team of 4 or 5. Students go as a team to a shop, when Category B students are naming shops, asking and giving direction, Category A students can listen and check if the dialogue is correct. When Category A students are interacting with the shopkeepers, Category B students can observe and listen to the interaction, try to learn from their experience.

After Fieldwork

Students from Categories A and B form a team and give a presentation to the whole class.

  • Write a script for a role play showing how to ask and answer questions on direction to a shop selected by the team, it should also include an interaction with a shopkeeper. The role play should be presented orally to the whole class.
  • Create a web page/ create a pamphlet/ write an article for school paper with information about, for example, the cheapest place for noodles or to get the latest hairstyle. Present the web page/ pamphlet/ article to the whole class.

 

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