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The CEC (Chinese Education Connection) selected Mrs. Janis Coffman and her daughter, Mrs. Sarah Sensibaugh to teach Summer School in , China. Sarah Sensibaugh is a math teacher and team leader at West Central in Francesville, Indiana. Janis Coffman is the Social Studies teacher at Bellmont Middle School here in Decatur, IN. Hangzhou is a city of over 9 million people.

The CEC fosters the development of Chinese teachers, has a vibrant visiting teacher program, and provides cultural travel for U.S. students with internships in China. The vision statement: the CEC teaches students in China to be life-long learners through the differentiated teaching styles of teachers from the United States. This interaction will help students to develop their creativity, be productive global citizens, and embrace international education through the collaborative efforts of educators from the United States and China.

The Chinese Education Connection enjoys a close relationship with officials in the Provincial Department of Education. Because of this, they are able to match Indiana schools with Chinese schools in that province, which is Indiana’s sister state in China. Having a sister school opens many opportunities for schools to exchange teachers, students, curriculum, art work, and all sorts of projects.

Both teachers taught English through STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Math), Team Building, and Cooperative Learning, along with American songs and activities. Sensibaugh taught grades 1 through 4, while Coffman worked with four classes of seventh grade students. Both taught a total of 100 students each. Coffman also worked on the Periodic Table (chemistry) while at Shengli Experimental School in Hangzhou. Both teachers were hosted by the school during evenings and weekends. The ladies visited a night market, Silk Museum, Pottery Museum, The Grand Canal, Leifeng (a national tourist attraction), and the famous with “Dancing Waters.” The Leifeng Pagoda was built in 971 during the northern . It is the highest point around West Lake and exhibits local customs, Buddhism, and ancient relics.

Both Sensibaugh and Coffman were observed by student teachers, the Chinese Education Department, and local teachers while they taught. Sensibaugh said, “There were about 20 extra people in the room watching you, and I loved when the students were working and laughing, this made all the visitors extremely happy.” Translators were available in the classrooms, whenever necessary.

A highlight of the Summer Program 2017 included a cruise down the famous Grand Canal. The Grand Canal is known as the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal. The Canal is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is the longest canal or artificial river in the world. It starts at Beijing and passes through Tianjin and the provinces of Hebei, Shandong, Jiangsu and Zhejiang to the city of Hangzhou, linking the Yellow River and Yangtze River.

A final program was presented by all the classes with songs, dances, piano and speeches by students. Teacher Sensibaugh brought the trending “Cup Song” idea for each classroom and a set of cups was presented to the school. A farewell dinner was hosted by the Hangzhou schools, where teachers were presented with calligraphy scrolls that were professionally created by the art students. Discussions were made about exchanges of artwork and letters between the U.S. students and Hangzhou students.

Attachments of photos included.

Janis Coffman, Bellmont Middle School ([email protected]) and ([email protected]) cell: 260-223-3867