Tuesday Update: China

Greetings from China, Students, Families, and Staff! (Written by Dr. Bjoin)

Our group had a safe flight from Chicago to Beijing, China. During our 13-hour flight, we flew from day, into night, and back to day. As we flew over Siberia, the outside air temperature was -86 degrees Fahrenheit. Our flight departed the O'Hare Airport at noon on Saturday (Letter A on Map), and we touched down in Beijing at 2:45 in the afternoon Sunday due to the time change (Letter B on Map).

A group of teachers from Primary School No. 3, a school that has sent teachers and students to visit our school district, greeted us at the airport. They took us out for dinner at a famous local restaurant called Hot Pot. The custom is to boil thinly-shaved pieces of meat and vegetables in broth at the table family-style. We also mixed our own dipping sauce by using ingredients arranged like a salad bar. 

Yesterday morning, which was Monday in China, we visited Aceleader School - a private school for students in Grades K-12. Mr. Laue and Dr. Bjoin, along with Mrs. Brovick and Mr. Getka, met with their Principal to talk about how we can partner to build student exchange programs. Below is a picture of elementary students at this school in their uniforms, which are purple-colored workout suits.

After lunch, we went to Beijing Primary School No. 3. This school is a public school that serves over 6000 students. 

We were taken on a tour of their new campus which is currently under construction. Two of the floors will be below ground, and two floors will be above ground because of limited space for new construction in the city. Their pool will be located on a level below ground.

When we walked back to their school, they showed us brochures from companies that are helping build their school. One of the companies was HUFCOR which is located in Janesville!






We visited three classrooms at the school. First, we stopped by a 5th grade classroom where students asked us questions in English about living in the United States. Then, we toured a room which highlights the 56 Chinese ethnic groups of students who are represented in their student body. Lastly, we stopped by what they call The Kennedy Classroom. This classroom was built to look like classrooms in our school district.




We also visited their library which is very different from ours. Students do not check out books; instead, teachers go there to get  textbooks.

In the evening, we were treated to a traditional Chinese dinner. Food is served family-style on a Lazy Susan while guests are seated around a large round table. Following the Chinese tradition, everyone at the table was asked to make a toast. Many of us made statements to affirm our new friendships, talk about our hopes for the future, and thank one another.

As we write this blog, our group is traveling on a high-speed train to (Letter B on Map) Nanjiang, China (Letter B on Map), which is 600 miles south of Beijing (Letter A on Map). It will only take us four hours to travel that distance.

We will write more as soon as our Internet connection allows. The country is not Google-friendly, and we are having some trouble signing to our accounts.