L. Paul Bellefleur, a freshman at High School North, enjoyed a four-week tour of China this summer led by Sherry Sizemore, a teacher from Community Middle School.
During the first three weeks the group stayed at Jing Mao University in Beijing and the last week toured the Shandong province. “The entire trip was an experience worth savoring,” he says. “My schedule was packed with cultural activities ranging from Chinese Gong-Fu to knot tying and singing.”##M:[more]##
During the first three weeks the students studied Chinese language and culture; climbed the Great Wall; visited the Summer Palace, the Temple of Heaven, and Tienanmen Square; and climbed the Tai Shan Mountain. In Shandong, they swam in the ocean and visited the Confucius sites central to traditional Chinese thought and philosophy.
“We went to China to improve our language skills, learn about the culture, and see China,” he says. “We went to Shandong primarily to climb Tai Shan Mountain and to see the Confucius Temple, the birthplace and burial place of Confucius.”
Sizemore, who has taught Chinese in Community Middle School for six years, began studying Chinese when she was 18. A graduate of William Jewell College in Missouri, she spent a year studying Chinese at the Oriental Institute. She received her master’s degree in international affairs with a specialization in China from Columbia University in New York City. She is married to Dan Gerstenhaber, who is with Northwestern Mutual Financial Network.
Their daughter, Brittany Gerstenhaber, who has gone on the trip several times in the past and majors in Chinese at Bucknell University, was a counselor. Their other daughter, Stephanie, recently moved to Beijing to work.
“We improved our Chinese language skills, learned about and practiced Chinese calligraphy, Chinese knot tying, Chinese Yo-yo, and carved our own chops,” Bellefleur says. “We learned how to negotiate for price in Chinese and learned about Gung-Gu Tea. We also learned about the history of Confucianism and Buddhism and a little about how Beijing differs from other areas in China.”
For information about the camp visit www.timesbook.com.
