Project Overview
Relationship to 6 major domains
Language Learning
This is our first project. We started from reading picture books and travel magazines to know local culture. Then we made a list of people to interview, and wrote down some questions to ask. Childern practiced reading in preparing, speaking and listening in interviewing, and writing after getting information. Childern learned how to ask key questions, get points in what elders said and search more information. After getting information by searching, reading and interviewing, they started to practice their writing skills in order to write fluent articles. It is a precious experience to promote their language abilities.
Chen, Sheng-Jin is doing guided reading of Traveling Around
Matsu(馬祖卡蹓卡蹓).
Chen, Wen-Yan is doing guided reading of Baiming(擺暝).
Lin, Cheng-You is doing guided reading of Heroes of the North Sea(北海大英雄).
Chen, Bing-Hong is doing guided reading of The Family of Lighthouse(守燈塔的家族).
Social Studies
The main purpose of elementary schools' social subject is learning their relationship with the society they live in, especially their hometown. Xiju is where they live and grow. Through this project, Having Fun in Xiju, they learned about environment issues, humanity issues and historic stories about Xiju. We guided them to express features of Xiju, care about this island, and to admire the unique culture there. We studied historic, geographic and modernizing influences, and thought about differences between traditional and modern ways of life, as well as our dialect and old names of this island. We found many factors which made Xiju so unique. We'd like to share the beauty of Xiju, to attract more and more people to visit this wonderful island.
We searched what bloggers said about Xiju.
We searched books about Matsu in our classroom and surfing the
internet to make a book list.
The chief of Tianwo is demonstrating the meanings of offerings in religious celebrations.
We learned about the different names of this island by reading ancient maps.
Nature Science
In this project, what children learned in classes are no longer just what teachers taught in class. They experienced these knowledges not only from listening to us. Plant species are almost same as other islands of Matsu. So we read Coastal Plants in Beigan(北竿濱海植物學習手冊), and looked for those species near by our villages. We also visited Caipuao Geological Park (菜埔澳地質公園) several times to learn about its unique geological landscape. Xiju's fjord, wave, tide, monsoon and ocean currents gave her very special marine ecology. We can learn botany, geology and ecology on this small island. And what more important is, they started to care about our environment, and try to make better future for earth.
Botany study project is based on Coastal Plants in Beigan(北竿濱海植物學習手冊)
Not only listen to teachers but walk around to experience our land.
We invited a professor from NTU to explain the unique geological
features in Caipuao.
We visited Caipuao.
Art and Humanity
"Beauty is found everywhere. Our eyes do not show a lack of sense of beauty, but a lack of observation." -Auguste Rodin
Truly, we seldom admire the beauty surrounded us every day. When sketching, we heard praises from tourists, they reminded us many things we regarded as normal. Sketching helped us to stop our steps and discover wonderful sceneary in Xiju. We slowed down to watch the wind breezing through the trees, listen to the sound of wave, and imagine ourselves soaring with eagles. Children listed some beautiful spots which not mentioned on guidance. And designed their own travel map and "Information Center" stickers. Tourists can take their maps and ask people in information center to get information about Xiju
The teacher is directing students to sketch in Caipuao.
Children are painting their own Xiju graffiti.
Bing-Hong's Xiju graffiti.
Qingfan harbor is the gate of Xiju. We invited the ticket seller as a
volunteer to offer travel information and the maps which children
designed in the ticket office.
Integrated Activities
Participating in a large competition is a good way of learning. Children experienced their world with different senses in this project. We offered many resources, so children can get large amount of information via different ways. They learned how to search information and shared with others. We joined local cultural activities and visited every place of Xiju by ourselves. We also made traditional food with children's family and guided people to travel around Xiju. Children worked not only with us, but also with their parents, grandparents and our neighbors. We gathered the whole island together and feel like a family!
We learn to make fish meat ball.
We learn gooban band
Big Issue – E-Learning
3C products helped us a lot. We took photo with digital camera, copied images with scanner. And the most useful tool is the internet. We practiced to use not only cameras and scanners, but also e-mail and Microsoft Word. Internet bring us to the world even we are on this remote island. We believe that it can help children's learning very much.
Use computer to edit our film.
Use Microsoft Office to record our work.
Big Issue – Environmental Education
Children heard many things about Xiju from teachers. However, this project gave us a chance to experience Xiju with our own body. Learning by doing is more efficient than just listening.
Now we know how precious our ocean resource is, and how lucky we can share this wonderful island with those animals and plants. Also we learned to be friendly to our environment.
Big Issue - Ocean
Qingfan harbor is in front of our school. We feel breeze from the sea and listen to the waves every day. The sea condition is very important for us. It decides if we can go to another island, and also gives us fresh seafood.
Ocean is our mother, but she might be cruel as well. As islanders, we need to admire the ocean and protect her. We are not ruler of the ocean, we fed by the ocean like other creatures live in the sea.
In Xiju, we can take a walk together near the ocean shore and see the beautiful sunset.
Let's cherish the sea resource together. And use the ocean resourse wisely.
Resource : Yamamoto Legion