The Story Behind the Theme

The theme of 2016 Chinese summer camp is Observation and Appreciation.

How often do we bury our heads to watch computers, books, TV, and smart phones without lifting our eyes to see the changing clouds in the sky? We often desire and pursue things which can excite our hearts. On the contrary, training our hearts to tend to the great and marvelousness of nature is far more valuable than having all the means to chase at material things.

Truely as my artist friend, Noel Yang, wrote in her book, “When you have the capacity to be moved, you can transcend all earthly boundaries and leap into the realm of miracles and wonders any time you desire.”

Therefore, I hope our students will develop the capacity of observing and appreciation to the surrounding as their life-long skill to enjoy the beauty of creation.

We have hosted a Chinese painting workshop last year and gained great feedback from the audiences. I am very blessed to meet a talented art teacher from Taiwan. Thus, I think it's a great opportunity to bring this wonderful art skill to our students in 2016 Chinese summer camp.

The essence of Chinese water-ink painting is called Yi Chin (意境), the "scenario from the heart". By using the paint brush steeped in the ink and manipulated in ways of thick, thin, dry, damp strokes and lines, a painter expresses his or her emotions through observation and reaction. Moreover, the Chinese water-ink painting expresses art combining the variety of poetry, Chinese calligraphy and painting into one piece of work.

Chinese water-ink painting

The essence of Chinese water-ink painting is called Yi Chin (意境), the scenario from the heart. By using the paint brush steeped in the ink in ways of thick, thin, dry, damp strokes and lines, the painter expresses his/her feeling through the observation of the scenes combined with his/her reaction to the surrounding. Moreover, the Chinese water-ink painting may combine the variety of art including poetry, Chinese calligraphy and painting into one piece of work.

Taekwendo

The five spirits emphasized in Taekwendo are courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self control, and indomitable spirit. The students are engaged with fun exercise to warm up their body, and learn the basic punching, kicking, stances, movement, etc. The students may develop the character of controlling their body as well as their mind through learning Taekwendo.

Chinese newspaper reporting:

台灣線上圖書館（Taiwan Online Library）在聖保羅市的貝索基督教團契（Bethel Christian Fellowship），舉辦為期五天的漢字夏令營，讓華洋學童在遊戲、故事中認識漢字與含義，啟發他們對學習正體字的興趣。

今年夏令營的主題之一是「美」，希望學童透過觀察，體會大自然的創造之美；並結合觀察與心境，藉由水墨畫，把意境表現在宣紙上。

曾在法國巴黎第八大學（Paris VIII University）深造的陳育佳，在台灣有十幾年美術教學經驗，2014年起在英華中文沉浸式學校擔任美術老師。她以容易讓學童了解的語言，示範水墨畫的特性、線條表現、色彩濃淡等技巧，讓學童盡情揮灑對自然生物的畫作，如蝸牛、葡萄、蜻蜓、瓢蟲、蝌蚪等。

一些學童在學畫昆蟲後，回家還上網搜尋圖片，想要更多瞭解昆蟲的構造。陳育佳還教導學生，把宣紙貼在厚紙上，用藍色顏料繪出青花瓷的設計，頗富創意。

在公立學校教書的廖育瑩與高中生義工劉可晴，為學童念中文故事書，並帶領學童進行團體遊戲，練習聽、說中文。廖育瑩介紹象形文字，如山、水、日、月等字，說明古人如何觀察自然天象以造字，並用投影片介紹「美」字，讓學童感到新奇有趣。

營會另一個主題是「忍」，跆拳道黑帶三段的老師權克斯（Chris Kwon），用有趣的活動讓學生鍛鍊肌肉，並示範打拳、前踢、攔阻等動作，教導學生防衛技巧。權克斯解釋，「忍」字的甲骨文是刀刃切在心上，透過互動遊戲，鼓勵學生培養自制的精神。

台灣線上圖書館館長蔡玉茂設計一套電腦程式，讓學生與家長可以用手機、平板電腦在家掃描中文生詞，就可聽到中文發音，對不會說中文的學生非常實用，家長都很喜歡。