Teaching Toddlers at Morgan Rothschild Academy and a Little Reggio Too!

The opportunity to work at Morgan Rothschild academy came to me in the fall of 2011.  I

knew this was a chance to do something special, and an opportunity I just couldn’t pass up.  The months that followed were filled with questions and answers about work, living, and moving.  Each step of the way was guided by Morgan, who made the process of moving to China as smooth as possible.  I arrived in Shanghai in August 2012 not knowing what to expect and excited for an adventure.  I knew enough to feel like I was ready to get started, being the planner that I am at heart, but there were many things I’d found I just had to file under “I’ll find out when I get there.”

 

Well, I have been here for just over two and a half months, and I have been delighted by the experience of teaching at Morgan Rothschild Academy and living in Shanghai.  The school has more than exceeded my expectations as far as teaching and working is concerned.  I am an Early Childhood Teacher, trained in the Reggio Way and I was interested to see how I could balance my beliefs and techniques with the schedule demands and strict curriculum that come with international education and teaching in a multi-lingual school.  I was glad to find, over the first few weeks, that though our curriculum does need to be followed, there is an honest flexibility that I think is very difficult to come by in most educational systems with such structure.  I find that meeting with Morgan, letting him know the plans I have for my students and my classroom, is all it really takes to put my educational philosophy to work.  I have definitely been able to bring the techniques that I adapted during my time at Central Michigan University’s Child Development and Learning Lab and my visit to Reggio Emilia, Italy into my classroom.  So far, I’ve been able to create an open and welcoming area for art exploration to ensue.  I have seen my toddlers beginning to explore their own creativity, which is very inspiring. 

 

Living in Shanghai is wonderful, yet still new, for me.  The initial culture shock is a little daunting, but Shanghai is a very expat friendly city.  There is always something to do, see, and experience.  I have loved learning the Chinese culture and language.  Several positives that I’ve noticed here are that there is great public transportation, living here is not expensive, it is easy to travel within China, and most importantly, Shanghai is a very fun city!  I think that my favorite thing about living here is that although Shanghai is a very international city, where you can meet and learn about people from all over the world, we get to live and work in a part of town that affords us the opportunity to learn and experience the Chinese way of life on a daily basis. 

 

I wouldn’t think twice about recommending pursuit of this opportunity at Morgan Rothschild Academy to anyone with a sense of adventure and a passion for teaching in an early childhood setting.  It has been an experience that I am extremely grateful for, and wouldn’t change for the world.

 

Sincerely,

Alexandra B.

Toddler Teacher at Morgan Rothschild Academy 2012-2013

Morgan Rothschild Academy Toddler Room News January 2013

January Plan at Morgan Rothschild

January will have an exciting start in the Toddler class.  We will have fun discussing everyone’s holiday travels, or time at home as the case may be.  January will also bring us to the all-important topic of feelings.  We will begin discussing how to identify and discuss feelings with others and we will talk about how to express extreme emotions at Morgan Rothschild Academy.

 

We will continue on learning our alphabet letters Oo through Tt and expanding our alphabet dictionary.  Our work with practicing full sentences and understanding rhyming will still be on our list of focuses.  We are looking forward to a fun and educational month leading up to the Chinese New Year!

 

January Birthdays at Morgan Rothschild

Lisa will be celebrating her 4^th Birthday on January 19^th, which she is very much looking forward to!  Hugo will also arrive to the Toddler Room just in time to celebrate his 3^rd Birthday on January 24^th!

 

Good Luck, Julian!

December was our last little while with our friend Julian.  January brings a big move to Germany for him.  Though we will miss him, we know he will thrive in his new school and we hope he is as happy as ever there.
 

Feedback from the CMU Child Development and Learning Lab Director On Morgan Rothschild Academy

I have known Morgan Huang for six years. During this time, he has visited Central Michigan University twice each year to recruit graduates from our Early Childhood Education program. China is a long way to travel for young people from the small town of Mt. Pleasant, MI. However, students soon begin to respond to Morgan’s request. As they spent their time in China I only heard wonderful things.

 

Last spring I was privileged to travel to China and visit the students and the Morgan Rothschild Academy. Morgan’s school was beautiful, clean and most of all child friendly. Each classroom was organized by the children’s age. The American teachers worked with the Chinese teachers to create a beautiful bilingual classroom experience. Morgan keeps the children to adult rations very low so each child gets the attention they need. I was excited to see that Morgan values many of the same things we do such as; parent involvement, creativity, and a multitude of experiences for the children.

 

Morgan was a wonderful host as we explored Shanghai, He is kind and caring to everyone including his employees. He is willing to help the teachers in everything they do. When talking with the teachers they expressed their gratitude to Morgan for letting them use the skills they learned in their college years and to grow as a teacher of young children.

 

I would not hesitate to recommend this opportunity to students, It is a wonderful once in a life time experience.

 

Sincerely,

Margaret E. Desormes M.A.

Lab Director

Central Michigan University Child Development and Learning Lab

Mount Pleasant, Michigan 48859

 

Morgan Rothschild Academy 2013 Toddler Room April News

 

April at Morgan Rothschild Academy

We started April off with a successful trip to the train museum!  Our toddlers had quite the long ride to the facility and were a little washed out, but recovered quickly as the first activity in the museum was the simulated train to Suzhou!  The kids were then able to trail through the museum, looking at pictures, displays, and diagrams. Hugo noticed the passports, saying, “I have of this passport!”  Myles and Riku got to simulate tracking rail cars onto a barge and Allegra and Jialin pretend to buy tickets!  After filling our head with information, we all went outside for a picnic lunch.  All the Toddlers enjoyed the trip and have been talking about it many times at school since.

 

This month awarded us the big accomplishment of finishing the alphabet at Morgan Rothschild!  We made it all the way to Z and will be celebrating with our piñata soon after we return form May Holiday.  We have expanded our knowledge about volcanoes and did an experiment to show how they erupt!  The whole class as been practicing their summersaults frequently during transition times, which has opened the door to doing yoga poses, or as Jacob like to refer to them, “Ultraman poses!” 

 

Welcome Umi!

April was also Umi’s first month with us and I know I can speak for all the Toddlers when I say we are so Happy that she’s joined us at Morgan Rothschild Academy!  Umi has made friends quickly.  She especially enjoys Allegra and Lisa’s company, but she plays with all of her new friends.  She also likes our sharing and story telling groups and playing in the pretend area.

Morgan Rothschild Academy Annual Spring Concert

The toddlers spent a lot of time this month working of learning their concert songs!  We danced and sang until our little hearts desire during our music and movement lessons.  Jules and Lisa particularly liked learning our choreography and took on strong leadership roles.  Learning our songs was fun, but making our costumes was even more so!  The class was able to participate in making their own costumes by painting handprints on them!  Myles, Nanding, and Umi really liked this art project!  On concert day our Toddlers were a bundle of excitement!  They all looked so cute and performed wonderfully!  Great Job, Toddlers and Thank You to all the parents who helped their toddler learn the songs at home and those who came to support their child at the MRA Spring Concert!!

 

May

May begins with a celebration of our Mothers!  The Toddlers will spend the week before Mother’s Day discussing how our mothers are special to us and how we appreciate them because they are so important! 

This month we will work on reviewing the alphabet, and adding vocabulary from A to Z to match our readings.  We will begin working more with letter sounds and pronunciation at Morgan Rothschild.

With the weather becoming warmer, we will be spending more time doing projects (art, science, sports) outside so enjoy the extra space and extra sun to help our learning grow. 

Our Toddlers are going to work on writing with new materials in the writing center and expanding our concepts of what writing can be used for. 

We are looking forward to a fun and warm month of May!

 

 

H7N9 Avian Flu Watch from CDC

 

Dear Parents,

 
Due to the recent occurrences of Avian Flu or Bird Flu (H7N9) in China, we are putting out a notice concerning H7N9. Thanks to Conrad’s dad, Carsten, for sharing with us H7N9 information from hospital.
Follwing is the note put out by the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Please take note of the daily precautions you can take for your children to prevent the Avian Flu.
Thank you.
Morgan Huang
Ed.M. Harvard University
Director

Watch: Level 1, Practice Usual Precautions
Avian Flu (H7N9) in China

This information is current as of today, April 06, 2013 at 17:11 EDT

Released: April 05, 2013

What is the current situation?

On April 1, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that influenza A (H7N9), a type of flu usually seen in birds, has been identified in a number of people in China. Cases have been confirmed in the following provinces: Shanghai, Jiangsu, Anhui, and Zhejiang.
This is the first time this virus has been seen in people. Symptoms include fever, cough, and shortness of breath. Infection with the new virus has resulted in severe respiratory illness and, in some cases, death. Chinese health authorities are conducting investigations to learn the source of the infections with this virus and to find other cases.
CDC is following this situation closely and coordinating with domestic and international partners in a number of areas. More information will be posted as it becomes available.
There is no recommendation against travel to China at this time.

What can travelers and Americans living in China do to protect themselves?

There is currently no vaccine to prevent H7N9. At this time, we do not know the source of this virus. CDC is repeating its standard advice to travelers and Americans living in China to follow good hand hygiene and food safety practices and to avoid contact with animals.

• Do not touch birds, pigs, or other animals.
  • Do not touch animals whether they are alive or dead.
  • Avoid live bird or poultry markets.
  • Avoid other markets or farms with animals (wet markets).

• Eat food that is fully cooked.
  • Eat meat and poultry that is fully cooked (not pink) and served hot.
  • Eat hard-cooked eggs (not runny).
  • Don’t eat or drink dishes that include blood from any animal.
  • Don’t eat food from street vendors.

• Practice hygiene and cleanliness:
  • Wash your hands often.
  • If soap and water aren’t available, clean your hands with hand sanitizer containing at least 60% alcohol.
  • Don’t touch your eyes, nose, or mouth. If you need to touch your face, make sure your hands are clean.
  • Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve (not your hands) when coughing or sneezing.
  • Try to avoid close contact, such as kissing, hugging or sharing eating utensils or cups, with people who are sick.
• http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/notices/watch/avian-flu-h7n9-china.htm

Early Childhood Education Expert to give a talk at Morgan Rothschild

Dear Parents,

With the spring arriving, we are very happy to inform you that MRA has invited an Early Childhood Education expert from the U.S. to give our parents a free seminar on “Supporting Creativity and Problem Solving Skills in Young Children” next Friday, March 29th, 2013.

 

VENUE: MRA Second Floor, Indoor Playground

DATE:  Friday, March 29th, 2013

TIME:   10 a.m. ~ 11 a.m.

 

Speakers: Dr. Regena Nelson,

Professor and Chairperson

Department of Teaching, Learning and Educational Studies
Western Michigan University

USA

Dr. Nelson is a veteran ECE expert with 20 years of research experience in the field. I am sure you will not want to miss this opportunity to learn more about the current findings regarding the early learning in the U.S. Attaches is her bio.

 

Please register in your daily progress reports by next Monday, March 25th, 2013. Seats are limited so please reserve them as soon as you can.

Cheers!

 

Morgan Huang

Ed.M. Harvard University

Director

Morgan Rothschild Academy

 

Morgan Rothschild Toddler Room October News 2012

Morgan Rothschild Academy Toddler Room October News 2012

 

What a fast month it has been!  This October was short but sweet at Morgan Rothschild Academy.  We had a long vacation, celebrated many birthdays, went on our first field trip of the year, and got to celebrate Halloween!

 

The field trip to the Organic Farm was a big day for our toddler class.  It was all very exciting, even the bus ride to the farm was as fun as could be!  The favorite activity for all the kids was definitely picking tomatoes, followed closely by going to see the chickens, geese, and ducks!  Thank you to the parents who came to learn with us!

 

The children really enjoyed our Halloween festivities at Morgan Rothschild Academy, which included making bats, paper Jack-O-Lanterns, decorating small pumpkins with melted crayon and glitter, and carving a large Jack-O-Lantern as a class!  Allegra very much enjoyed her the small pumpkin project; taking care to pick out colors and painting the glitter onto her pumpkin very carefully with true artistic ambition.

 

The Jack-O-Lantern was a big hit with the entire class.  Shota and Jules especially enjoyed describing the smell, feel, and look of both the inside and outside of the pumpkin during our class investigation and discussion.

Jacob and Shota have taken a liking to our song called “Peanutbutter” and the whole class has enjoyed learning the B-I-N-G-O song.

 

The class is making progress on the Morgan Rothschild set goals.  Our letter recognition by sight and our vocabulary words are going very well.

 

November Plans

During November, we will talk about fall and winter.  Our art projects and story lines will match these topics.  Our goals of letter recognition, playing with new friends, and understanding rhyming still remain.  Our class will talk about all things that have to do with American Thanksgiving including tradition and foods.  We will be moving on to prepare for the Annual Morgan Rothschild Christmas and New Year Concert this month as well. (Very Exciting!)

 

Birthdays!

We had many birthdays in October and we enjoyed celebrating each one! 

This November our friend Jules is turning 4 years old on the 17^th!