MS LISA MILLER
h ead of languages MS SOPHIE BOISSERY
coordinator of french
CHINESE
TEN YEARS OF ASIA LITERACY
In 2008, The Southport School embarked on an adventurous program to enhance the teaching and learning of languages, particularly Chinese, through the Living Language and Culture program.
in situations with some element of risk, guided by teachers. Unique settings are also an effective way to encourage the boys to try new skills. As part of our languages curriculum in Year 7, students of French and Chinese go out into the community, to a patisserie or a dumpling restaurant, to order their own meal and practise what they have learned in class. In Year 8, students visit a restaurant and order their meal again, reinforcing the material they have learned in a situation likely to be repeated throughout their lives in cities around the world, such as Paris or Shanghai.
boys, let’s get that Lion Dance Troupe started again!
ORDERING THEIR OWN MEAL IN YEAR 9
YEAR 9 MONKEY MAGIC PUPPET SHOW
In Year 9 Chinese, students travel to Surfers Paradise on buses and trams to interview Chinese people about weather, transport and activities. In Semester Two students study The Legend of Monkey Magic, perform a puppet show and learn Lion Dance and stick fighting. What a great activity,
As Year 11 comes to a close this year, students are preparing CVs for mock job interviews with Ray White Surfers Paradise. They are practising speaking Chinese to visitors at Q1 and in the streets around real estate agents, while they research the potential for future careers.
As a result, we now have a record number of boys choosing to learn Chinese, many of them continuing right through to senior. This qualifies them to be among the elite number of Australians who speak, read and write some Mandarin Chinese, and will surely be an asset in their future careers.
THE GREAT WALL EXPEDITION 2018
Experiential learning at TSS through the IDEALS program is based on the principles of Kurt Hahn, founder of Outward Bound. Hahn believed that there is more to us than we know, and that students extend themselves best
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SOUTHPORTONIAN
YEAR 8 BANQUET LUNCH, JASMINE ROOM
For students who choose Chinese in Year 10, the Great Wall Expedition is offered as an alternative to the Outward Bound camp in northern NSW. Students have four days in Beijing City, and four days hiking on the wild Great Wall at Jiankou guided by the Beijing Hikers. This remarkable program provides students with opportunities to practise speaking Chinese when buying tickets to scenic sites, such as the Forbidden City and Temple of Heaven, and purchasing meals, and shopping.
