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Sunday, April 17, 2016

谢谢 Xièxiè - one of the many Chinese words we've heard over and over

Chance's Chinese teacher will be moving to another state this summer. Chance is really bummed about it as he has really liked her as a teacher.  She has done a good job of getting the kids excited about learning Mandarin. Chance talks to us in Mandarin all of the time.  The fact that none of us know what he is saying doesn't seem to bother him much.  He just prattles on telling us stuff in Mandarin and chuckling when we don't know what he has said.  If Chance says something in Chinese that I feel I need to know about as his mother, I make him say it in English too.  It is a little game we play sometimes. He talks to me in Mandarin and I answer him in Dutch.  Neither one of us has any idea what the other one is saying, but the smiles and giggles say it all.
Chance's school teaches one more year of Chinese for Chance and then he will have taken all of the Chinese classes that are available.  He is excited, but now a little nervous about a new teacher.  He hopes the new teacher is as good as the one he has now.  She has been really good to work with from a parent's perspective as well, very informative and willing to work with the kids and truly desiring them to succeed. She is passionate about Mandarin and her enthusiasm is passed down to her students.
We are going to miss her.