Lilly in Ballet



Lilly's classroom at school



Lilly's first day of school



Lilly has been going to a Chinese speaking pre-school for the past 18 months.  She started out going three days a week and this year started attending 5 days a week.  She is starting to pick up some of the language and often times speaks a kind of English/Chinese mix.  I find it so fascinating how quickly kids can learn a new language!  Her class is taught English for an hour every day and sometimes when I pick her up early I find her at the front of the class teaching them all new words.  She has a lot of fun with it.  To help her transition and to meet new friends we decided to enroll her in a ballet class taught at her school after school on Fridays.  The class is also taught in Chinese.  Lilly loves to dance!

At first Lilly was a little reluctant to follow the movements her teacher was doing.  You see, Chinese ballet is much different than ballet taught in the United States.  In the US a child might be taught how to spin, etc.  In Lilly's class the first thing she was taught was how to do what we call an "egg" pose (we don't speak Chinese to know the technical term).  Basically, you kneel down on your knees and place your hands on the floor (one on top of the other in a cupped position, elbows bent) and then tuck your head in between your arms (looking at the floor).  This is how dances are started and typically end and Lilly has mastered this move.  ***See the video at the end of this post***

Lilly's Ballet Class - Her school teacher is sitting next to her for support and to translate for the first day.  :)

Lilly really enjoyed the class and after bribing her with McDonald's Chicken McNuggets for dinner she decided she would follow the teacher's directions (as much as she could understand).  We were not able to be at the final recital because we were traveling back to CO but I was able to go for the dress rehearsal.  Most of the kids were older than Lilly and she truly does not like being on a stage (nothing like her Mom! ha!) so she decided she didn't want to perform for the video.

Enjoy!

NOTE:  Some interesting things about the way a Taiwanese daycare works: 

• Parents drive up to the front of the building and the teacher comes out, unclicks your child from his/her seat belt, and takes them inside.  After school the teacher brings them out to the car, clicks them into their seat belt, and you drive away (EASY!)
• The teachers are required to put clean clothes on the kids and do the girl's hair before they go home with their parents
• The kids have homework starting at the age of 2
• The kids go on field trips every week to places like the grocery store and train station to teach them life skills