An Unforgettable Chinese Class on Aerospace

For a long time, I have dreamed of becoming an international Chinese language teacher, hoping to teach Chinese language and introduce Chinese culture overseas to foreign friends. In 2021, I took the first step to realize my dream as a volunteer Chinese language teacher; in 2022, I participated in the Korean CPIK volunteer program for elementary and secondary schools, and continued my journey to pursue my dream.

During this period of time, China's space industry has been full of achievements, which has inspired me in my Chinese language classes. I taught my students a unique Chinese class on aerospace to introduce the achievements of China and to help them better understand a true , multi-dimensional and panoramic view of China.

The elementary school where I teach is located in the southernmost part of Korea, in an island village called "Goheung", which is also a rocket and satellite launching center and a base for aerospace education in Korea. Large sculptures of rockets and satellites can be seen everywhere on the island.

It is also a place where a group of children who love space and Chinese language are gathered. One day, I was teaching a Chinese lesson when the rumbling sound of a rocket launch interrupted the atmosphere of the class. The children were so excited that they started blurting out "Rocket! Rocket!" in Korean. Then they asked me, "How to say aerospace in Chinese?" "How far has China's space development advanced?" "I've heard of the Dong Fang Hong!"

Listening to the children's questions, I sank into contemplation. Indeed, the successful launch of the Dong Fang Hong No.1 satellite ushered in a new era in China's aerospace history, but that was already more than 50 years ago. In recent years, there have been many new achievements in China's space industry, catching the world's attention, but the children here know very little about them. I decided to teach them a lesson on China's space industry.

With much preparation, the long-anticipated class on China's space industry began! The class focused on learning Chinese vocabulary related to aerospace, as well as introducing the history of China's aerospace and latest achievements. To make it more interesting and interactive, the classroom was provided with a display wall of Chinese space culture, a video from the "Tiangong Class", and experiential learning content such as space suit fitting, Chinese character space puzzles and space phrase making.

During the class, students followed China's Tiangong Class to experience various amazing experiments and learn Chinese space vocabulary through watching videos. Afterwards, they stopped at the "Chinese Space Culture Display Wall" to read about the history of China's space industry and expressed their admiration for China's aerospace achievements in recent years. The students also enjoyed making space vocabulary notes, putting the Chinese space vocabulary they learned into the notes and practicing them over and over again. The space suit fitting and space puzzle games were also very well received by the students.

After the class, the students shared the space vocabulary they had just learned with each other, wrote "航天""航空" on the water writing cloth in Chinese, and came up to me to express their appreciation for the Chinese aerospace class. Several students who aspired to be astronauts in the future said they never thought that China's space industry has reached to such a high level, and they wanted to work harder to learn Chinese language, hoping that they could visit the Chinese space station after becoming astronauts. Some of the children said that the Chinese "Tiangong Class" was so fascinating that they hoped they could understand more Chinese when the next lecture was held.

Through this Chinese aerospace class, students mastered the Chinese vocabulary related to aerospace in a relaxing and enjoyable atmosphere, improved their ability to understand and use Chinese language through various games and interactions, and boosted their motivation to learn Chinese. They witnessed the successful launch of the Mengtian space lab module and the wonder and fun of the "Tiangong Class", and learned about the tremendous achievements of China's space industry. From the progressive development of China's space industry, they discovered the China's story of starting from scratch, overcoming obstacles, becoming independent and reaching new heights, which also encouraged them and inspired their dreams.

For me, the class design and preparation for this lesson also provided me with valuable practical experience that would help me better integrate Chinese language teaching and national context and culture introduction in the future. This class brought me closer to the students and left me with unforgettable teaching memories. More importantly, I gained a deeper understanding of the responsibility and mission of volunteer Chinese language teachers, and I sincerely hope that more people will enjoy learning Chinese language and understand China better through our efforts.

In the future, I will also work harder and march forward on the journey to realize my dream!