Chapter 8: Operation No Race/Save Face and Fried Rice

In this chapter, Jimmy’s mom asks Jimmy when his recital is and Jimmy stalls but knows he’s got to tell her soon. The topic of Chinese TV is introduced here.

Talking Points

1. A discussion about television programs in different countries would work well here. Do your students think that American TV shows would be immediately understood in other countries? Do they think they would understand TV shows created by other cultures? What can TV tell us about a culture?

Activities

1. Watch foreign TV. Any student, for instance, who has cable can easily tune into Spanish-speaking stations. Has anyone ever seen Chinese TV? Or Japanese TV? Is it possible to find someone who has a satellite that connects to China? Or someone with a DVD of a Chinese soap opera? You can even try YouTube which has many TV shows from Japan. Have your students compare U.S. TV with foreign shows: what are the differences? The similarities?

2. Cook. If you have access to a kitchen in your school, prepare fried rice. It’s easy and yummy and your students can practice their chopsticks skills on real food. It helps to cook the rice the day before then combine it with the vegetables once they’re stir-fried.

3. Open the Imperial Dragon @ School: Open a Chinese restaurant for a day in your classroom. Give it a name. Invite parents to come and eat fried rice. Students can work at the restaurant. Hold interviews for the positions of chef, waiter, maitre d’, bus people etc. You can have more than one sitting. If possible, offer live entertainment or play a CD of Chinese music. Money charged for the meal can be used for class field trips or supplies.