<p class="ql-block">We are thrilled to share our students’ joyful experiences and celebrate their learning journey with you in Week 2 of Little Dragon Summer Camp! Our students are enjoying an exciting blend of learning and fun as they reinforce and expand their Chinese and English language skills, develop their abilities on the basketball court, and express their creativity through Chinese painting. They are also deeply engaged in Chinese cultural learning, enriching their understanding in meaningful ways. Each day is filled with engaging activities that encourage communication, teamwork, and imagination, helping students grow with confidence and enthusiasm.</p> Basketball <p class="ql-block">The fun series of basketball lessons provide students with an engaging and active environment to develop fundamental basketball skills while building teamwork and confidence. Basketball activities typically focus on practicing core skills such as dribbling, passing, shooting, and defense through a variety of drills and structured games. Coach Ma often incorporate fun challenges, mini-competitions, and team-based activities to keep students motivated and excited about learning.</p> Chinese Language Arts <p class="ql-block">In our Rainbow Flower (七色花) unit, students immersed themselves in the story through multiple modalities—beginning with a shared reading and a movie analysis to examine how the main character used each petal. They then brought the story to life by crafting their own character hats and rainbow flowers for the final performance, while simultaneously building language skills through peer reading, speaking, writing, and singing activities. The unit seamlessly integrated comprehension, vocabulary, sentence construction, and creative expression, culminating in a thrilled and memorable final showcase where every student shone on stage.</p> English Language Arts <p class="ql-block">Ms. Matre led two English classes. She integrate a wide range of interactive and student-centered activities to support language development and literacy skills. Students engage in creative dramatics by acting out stories after listening to read-alouds, as well as participating in games such as songs, chants, and phonics-based activities to strengthen vocabulary and phonemic awareness. Storytelling and writing tasks encourage students to retell events, create their own stories using prompts or objects, and practice reading independently, with peers, or with adult support. Drawing activities connected to nature observations further reinforce descriptive language, as students share and write about what they see.</p><p class="ql-block">Additionally, the plan emphasizes fluency, comprehension, and communication through Readers Theatre, singing games, and diverse reading experiences, including fiction and nonfiction texts. Hands-on activities like nature walks promote observation and descriptive speaking, while structured and spontaneous conversations help students express ideas, share opinions, and build confidence. Overall, the lesson fosters creativity, collaboration, and meaningful language use through engaging, experiential learning opportunities.</p> Chinese Painting <p class="ql-block">This week, Chinese painting introduces students to traditional brush techniques through a structured, week-long progression. On Monday, students practice basic brush strokes using a bamboo brush while painting lily flowers and lily pads to build foundational skills. On Tuesday, they expand their technique by adding elements such as frogs, tadpoles, and water grass. By Wednesday, students combine their learning to create a more complex scene including frogs, lily flowers, and lily pads, reinforcing both artistic skills and composition.</p><p class="ql-block">On Thursday, students explore painting crabs while continuing to recycle and strengthen previously learned brush strokes. On Friday, students use what they learned to create drawings. Throughout the week, students revisit and refine their techniques, applying them in new contexts. Creative thinking is encouraged as students develop different stories to match their paintings, integrating art with imagination and language development. Overall, the lesson emphasizes skill-building, repetition, and creative expression through progressive learning.</p> Recess and Break Time <p class="ql-block">We hope you enjoy seeing all the amazing moments from camp as much as the students enjoyed experiencing them. Wishing everyone a joyful and relaxing time at home—we can’t wait for more fun, learning, and adventures ahead! Have a wonderful Fourth of July week!</p>