On Sunday from 1:30pm to 5:00pm, the Roslyn AYLUS branch helps and works with teachers from the Chinese Cultural Association of Long Island.
As a teaching assistant (TA), you are required to tutor the students while the teacher is in class. Because these fundamental concepts are so important in Chinese, we go over them every day to help the children form sentences. Whether a teacher’s hands are busy with another student or they need to direct the student somewhere, it is our responsibility to support them when they have difficulties while assisting a pupil. Additionally, we try to set a mood for the kids. We understand that we must provide students with the required learning atmosphere rather than seeing these experiences as a burden, even though it’s crucial to make sure they’re safe and finishing their job. Our intention is to interact with the kids in our classrooms through dialogue, learn about their interests, engage in conversation with them until they feel comfortable approaching others, and motivate them to participate in class. It wouldn’t be appropriate to allow a child’s shyness to get in the way of their education since it is crucial for them to be encouraged to speak out and engage in class.
Treats would be enjoyed by kids during snack or break time. Before eating their snacks, they must wash or sanitize their hands because it’s better to be safe than sorry. Although the kids occasionally ask to trade food because someone might be allergic, we strictly forbid it.
After a while, cultural lessons started. During arts and crafts, we let the students to try their hand at creating origami tigers, with the help of a basic instruction sheet that was attached to the sheets. The teacher and I helped to provide children who were struggling to follow the processes with clear instructions. Since the tiger is one of the animals on the lunar calendar, we encourage students to focus on the process and give it their best effort to construct the intricate design of the tiger, even though some would prefer to use their origami paper for other purposes. Despite its absurdity, the tiger enables them to engage with the culture rather than just having unrestricted creative freedom.
Members who participated include:
Leah Chen (3.5 hours), Charleen Fu (3.5 hours), Matthew Zhong (3.5 hours), Chloe Wu (3.5 hours), Hunter Chen (3.5 hours), Simon Long (3.5 hours), Jasmine Wang (3.5 hours), Tiffany Lin (3.5 hours), William Wei (3.5 hours), Mingyao Xu (3.5 hours)
