Weekly Newsletter: Oct 22, 2021, YOU are on your own; Speech and Drawing contest

It was great seeing you all at Mercer County Community College last Sunday. Thanks to all room parents, parents and helpers that assisted in our transition to a new school last week. Although it seemed chaotic at times, we made it! We saw lots of happy little faces!

Here’s what you need to know and do this week. Please read carefully:

  • Self-monitor if there are any COVID-19 symptoms. Do NOT send a sick child to school.

  • Since the majority of parents would like to bring their children to class, we will not be gathering at the parking lot. You need to bring your children to the language classroom by 2:25pm and culture class by 4:15pm.

  • There will be temperature checks at the entrance of MS and AD buildings. Be cooperative.

  • If your child is in AD or MS building for language class, you need to pick up your child by 4:10pm in front of their language classroom building to either take them home or to culture class

  • If your child (T8, T9, T10) is in the SC building, the class parents will walk them over to the MEET place and direct them to their culture class location (AD, MS or outdoor).  You can pick them up at MEET place by 4:10pm if they are not taking culture class.

  • Culture class time is 4:20-5pm. Please pick up your child(ren) on time at 5pm from their culture class.

  • Again, please dress your child(ren) in a PCLS T-shirt for easy distinction. It’s also easier to identify if he/she wonders around. There will be a T-shirt sale coming up soon.

Several questions were raised in the Google Survey and verbally last Sunday. Here are the a few questions and our answers:

Q: Why are classrooms not in the same building?

A: This is the only solution MCCC can offer in order to rent us the same 18 classrooms every Sunday. It’s also because another Sunday School has already rented the LA building and part of the BA building. MCCC even offered their AD building to us which is normally not available for rent. We internally have more than 6 hours of discussion on how to assign classrooms and make this work because we know this will be a concern.

Q: Why do we go to MCCC? 

A: Our admin staff have contacted more than 20 schools in the greater Princeton area. We settled on MCCC because of (a) its central location to most of our families coming from West Windsor, Plainsboro, PA, Lawrencevillle and Princeton, (b) cost and (c) ability to accommodate our needs in a quick turnaround time. We really do not have a lot of options because the majority of the private schools can’t rent on Sundays due to the concerns of their own students returning on Monday morning. Many local school districts (e.g., WWP, Princeton, Lawrence) are not renting. In Nov/Dec, if PDS allows us to rent their facility, we will go back to PDS. If not, we will plan to stay at MCCC until the end of May unless there are unforeseen circumstances.

Q: I prefer to bring my kids to the classrooms, can I do that instead of waiting in the parking lot?

A: YES. Starting this Sunday, parents will need to bring their kids to their language and culture classrooms. There will be no gathering at the parking lot or at MEET place. You will also need to pick up your children at their culture locations at 5pm. The majority of you have said you would like to bring your own kids to the language and culture classes. See results from our survey below.

Be sure to follow the MCCC rules below and do not risk it. We pay a hefty security deposit and we need to get every penny back.

  • No Pets Or Animals on campus. Do not bring any animals unless they are service animals.

  • Respect the facility and leave everything the way you found it.

  • No smoking on campus

  • We are limited to the usage of 18 classrooms with the four buildings (AD, MS, BS and SC). Do not venture into fenced, gated or locked areas of fields and facilities not rented by us.

Messages from the Academic Director 

In-Person Class

The language class time is from 2:30-4:10 pm with a 10-minute break. Please arrive in class on time. If you must bring a snack for your child, please bring something easy to eat and something he/she can stand and eat. There’s no table outside to put the snack on. Bring a bottle of water as well.

Speech Contest

We will have the “In-person” speech contest on 12/5 and 12/12. Registration google form will be sent out in two weeks. Don’t miss out this opportunity for your child(ren) to practice public speaking IN CHINESE!

Messages from the Culture Director

Culture Class Changes

Taekwondo – based on feedback, this class will take place in MS204 going forward. Please go directly to the classroom.

YoYo – this class will take place outdoors at all times in QUAD due space needed for this class.

“Year of the Tiger” Virtual Drawing Contest

Registration for the “Year of Tiger”  virtual drawing contest is now OPEN.  Students, please complete your drawing on paper, independently at home and submit your scanned art work using this Google Form.  It’s a great way to earn extra coupons so mark your calendars for submission by 11/21/2021!

ANJCS Poem Recital Contest 朗誦比賽

It will take place at 9:30 AM on Saturday 12/4/2021 in Holmdel.   Please review this document for contest details. If you are interested in participating, please contact me, PCLS will submit registration together on behalf of all participants as a school.  Prize: 1st place – $60.  2nd place – $30.  3rd place – $15 (when there are more than 5 teams in a group).

Messages from the PTA

Thank you to all Class Parents and direction helpers! Without your help, we couldn’t have a smooth transition last week.

If you have signed up for parent duty this week, please meet PTA lead, Suet Lam in front of the MS building at 2:10pm. The duties have been modified. You will not need to ring bells between classes. Instead, we will ask you to do the temperature check and monitor the entrance to the MS and AD building until 4:15pm when language class is dismissed.