You Say Hello, I Say Ni-hao

By Nancy K. Crevier

You may have heard some Newtown children greeting each other in an unfamiliar language this past school year, and wondered if they had a secret language of their own. To the American ear, “hello” and “good-bye” take on an exotic sound when uttered in Mandarin Chinese. And that’s what the buzz has been, thanks to a Parks and Recreation program offered to several area children this winter.

Several groups of Newtown students, through the talents of Chinese teacher June Kung, explored the customs of China and learned to speak simple Mandarin phrases.

The most recent group of ten children, ranging in age from 8 to 13, is finishing up its ten-week course as spring approaches. They have met Wednesday afternoons at the Newtown Middle School, progressing gradually from shy “Ni hao” (hello) to asking and telling each other their names in hesitant Chinese accents.

Ms Kung, who has taught Mandarin in Kentucky and New York before moving to Newtown, uses a musical approach to help her students remember key words and phrases. “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” is an aid to greetings such as “hello,” “thank you,” and “good-bye,” while the parts of the face are memorized to the tune of “London Bridge Is Falling Down.” Counting to 12 in this Chinese language is simplified when they sing it to the melody of “Happy Birthday.” While the group sings the numbers, Ms Kung reminds them that the numbers 1 through 12 also identify the months of the year when combined with the correct word ending.

Because the tones of words are important to the Mandarin language, Ms Kung patiently goes from child to child as they repeat after her, emphasizing the proper pronunciation. In Mandarin, she reminds them, the American “i” is pronounced as “e.” The vowel sounds and vowel blends differ from English, as well, and it has taken these students several weeks to retrain their ears.

Besides some light practice homework when learning new words, Ms Kung provides each of her students with a review tape to listen to at home. Listening and practicing over and over are essential for progress in her class, as in any foreign language.

Interspersed with her classroom work, Ms Kung keeps the children interested by sharing Chinese culture with them. An embroidered red jacket and a bright red silk dress hang at the front of the classroom, reminders that red, in China, is the color of good fortune. Dolls clothed in elegant, traditional Chinese clothing, their hair elaborately done, stand on her desk next to a wax paper parasol. The beautiful, hand-painted parasols, she explains, were once used whenever women went out, but now are used only for decoration.

Examples of Chinese calligraphy are displayed behind her as she tells the class about one of China’s most famous animals, the panda. Translated from Chinese, the name in English for this animal would be “big bear-cat.” This, she explains, is because while the panda looks like a bear, the panda’s eye pupils are actually elongated, as are those of a cat’s.

Before they return to more practice on the parts of the face, she passes around pictures of Beijing, the capital of China, and of The Great Wall of China, two places she recommends her class see if they ever get a chance to visit the world’s fourth largest country.

After practice with the teacher, the class is encouraged to keep singing by themselves. Some of them do so, but eventually the song peters out and the children are left giggling at themselves. They pack up their papers to leave. It is time to say “zai-jian” — “goodbye.”