China - Days 5 and 6

Today we began working with Chinese administrators. The Assistant Superintendent said as she opened the Professional Development that this was the first STEAM presentation EVER in China.  For me, this was a scary moment.  They were looking at us as models for innovative and extreme change.  Wow!

Most of these principals and lead teachers did not speak English so we would say a sentence and then a translator would say it in Chinese. It was a different experience.  Our first presentation was mostly us talking but after lunch we had them do a project like we would the students.  They had to build the tallest tower with only paper and tape that would hold an apple for 10 seconds. They were really excited and very competitive.  Just like students.  As Ms. Taber said, "Smiles are universal."

We also spent some time with about 7 students on a building project.  One of those students had the best smile!

After training was over we went shopping at the Pearl Market. Four floors of souvenirs, electronics, pearls, jade ... FUN!  I made a great new friend named Luna.  We practiced saying Chinese words and discussed what our Chinese names should be. Ms. Taber's new name is Egg Drop Sue because she dropped one on her leg!  I will show some of my treasures when I get back.  Dinner out, a quick trip to the mall, and then back for rest ......

Day 6

Today was the second day of our Professional Development for administrators about STEAM, Teacher Leadership and Brain Gym.  Our part of the day was to work with them on the Egg Drop project.  Just like students, they got a bag of supplies and had to create a device that would keep the Egg from breaking when dropped from the 2nd floor.  We weren't sure how it would work but wow, were they excited.  They worked, they tested, they laughed, they popped balloons, they had FUN!  It was like watching light bulbs going off all over the room.  We also asked them to write the steps of the Engineering Design Process just like we would with students,

About an hour with the students and then we're back to test the Egg Drop devices. It was crazy. They had a blast dropping them down the stair well.  Ms. Taber and I posed with each team and their posters. 6 out of the 8 eggs survived. We finished the afternoon with a closing ceremony.  Many teachers talked about what they learned and how they might use it in their class. Pretty cool.

We took a ride to an old military base that had been turned into an artist colony and then to dinner at the mall. Everywhere is decorated with beautiful lights and statues for the Spring Festival.  School is out for one month and businesses are closed for 2 weeks. There are more decorations than even during Christmas in the US. Early to bed tonight...