I would say that my passion for studying foreign languages and learning about other cultures began at University, where I was fortunate to study in Salzburg, Austria, and Bonn, Germany. Inspiration to travel also came from my brother who moved to Yellowstone immediately after high school, and my sister who interned in Paris. Regardless of where my initial passion for travel and foreign language acquisition came from, I would forever be drawn to the uniqueness and beauty of China as a result of the two years that my wife and I lived in Taiwan to teach English in 2005.

This past summer, I had the privilege of traveling to Shanghai, China to improve my language and writing skills, interact with local Chinese people, and travel to the Unesco World Heritage Site of Yellow Mountain. It was a perfect mix of classroom learning (3 hours per day) and environment learning (every other hour not sleeping). I would walk to class every day and stop into several small shops, making basic conversation with the local shopkeepers to practice my Mandarin. If I did not stop into my local fruit store on a particular day, the next day they would ask where I was the day before. At the end of my time there, I felt like I was part of the community. While in Shanghai, I filmed several interactions with local Chinese people, using language my students can understand. I posted these videos, along with several pictures of my adventure, to my class webpage that several students and teachers followed.

2013 PROJECT SUMMARY

Joe TrsarChicago Program

On my blog, while I was traveling, one of my CPS students posted: “I can’t wait to visit China some day!”

Language, Culture & New Friends

On Top of Yellow Mountain.

Playing Go with New Friends.

My Daily Breakfast Fruit Stop.

Random Erhu Playing on Nanjing Lu.

• My FFT Fellowship afforded me the opportunity to speak Mandarin Chinese in both a classroom setting and an unstructured natural environment. This allowed me to drastically improve my speaking and listening abilities and confidence.

• I was offered a situation that allowed me to post authentic pictures and videos from China that my students could view and comment on, inspiring many of them to write “I can’t wait to visit China some day!”

• It provided the opportunity for me to create several supplementary materials and videos for future curriculum, clubs, and projects that will show my students the value of learning Mandarin Chinese.

Professional and Personal Growth

• Due to my fellowship and the use of technology, students were able to experience China with me as I traveled. They viewed pictures and videos I posted, and were able to post questions and comments about what they saw.

• During my trip, I engaged with parents and colleagues who followed my blog, posted several comments, and discussed what they were viewing with their children.

• It provided an opportunity for my school community to witness the architecture of China, the beautiful landscapes of Yellow Mountain, and several of my interactions with Shanghai locals, using vocabulary and sentence patterns familiar to the students.

Benefits to Students and School Community

• I am currently collaborating with several colleagues to produce curriculum that uses my experiences from this past summer to support and add value to other teachers’ curriculum. For example, I am working with the art department to produce the scenery from Yellow Mountain as a backdrop for a school production. For the Mandarin Chinese program, I am currently transcribing all of the filmed dialogues and creating a dictionary of new words from those dialogues for student use. Additionally, I am working with the 6th grade team to develop a comprehensive geography project based on China, which will reference my travels.

Works in Progress

Graduating From My Class.

What Do You Call Chinese Food in China? ... Just Food!

Practicing Calligraphy...Salvador Dali Style.