HESC 2019 Journey

Another year, another opportunity to educate about the Hmong Language, Literacy, and History!

​FIRST WEEK
​Theme: Being Kind "Kev Ua Zoo"

Hmong Enrichment Summer Camp started on June 10th, 2019. It was great to see familiar and new faces! First week was all about instructors getting to know their students, educating on what it means to be kind, and pre-testing. We ended the first week with a program-wide activity of tie dyeing shirts. In addition, Miss Hmong California Mina Her also participated in this activity. We are looking forward to a summer full of fun and learning.

​SECOND WEEK
Theme: My Identity "Kuv Yog Leej Twg"

Identity is who you are. Whether you’re using physical features, personalities, nationalities, roles in the family or core values, what specifically defines you? 
For our students to find value in learning, first, we must start with their identity. Aside from teaching the Hmong Language and Literacy, this week, instructors also focused on the theme My Identity “Kuv Yog Leej Twg”. Some activities that instructors facilitated to help get our students thinking about their identity were reading, painting, drawing, writing poems, watching videos, and show and tell. For example, primary students read Finding Me, which is about a little girl searching for her identity and did self-portrait paintings. In regards to intermediate classes, they talked about what their Hmong name represented and their family’s Hmong clothes. Apart from this week’s theme, on June 24th, 2019, we had a special visit from Dr. Poge Her. In addtion, throughout the week our students experienced hands-on activities such as making ice cream, building a Hmong house out of flour, and line dancing. There are always plenty of fun activities to look forward to every week! 

THIRD WEEK
Theme: My Family "Kuv Tsev Neeg"

A family is a group of people united by blood, adoption, or the same interests. For this week’s theme, instructors read Tsev Neeg Uas Kuv Hlub by See Lor which illustrated the relationships of family members from a girl’s point of view. For example, in Hmong, a girl would call her older brother nus hlob and her younger sister niam hluas. Adding on, they made family trees to better understand and visualize the connections in their family. 
For Science, primary students are learning about the animals and plants that live in the Sacramento River. They drew animals such as the "ntshuab", "qab", "cw", and "ntses". This is in preparation for their field trip to the Sacramento Hornblower Cruise where they will actually get to see a real "dej ntws" river, "tsiaj" animal, and "nroj tsuag" plants. Intermediate students are introduced to structure and foundation of a traditional "tsev Hmoob" Hmong house. After learning the terms and meanings behind the structures, they designed and created the foundation of the "tsev Hmoob" with various materials-craft sticks, dough, and paper. This project will build up to a bigger project! Wait and see what they will do!
During recess, our primary and 4th graders had fun playing competitive team sports like soccer-their favorite! They love socializing with their friends they'd just met this summer or with their cousins. 
In Enrichment, students are always challenged with the skills that their Enrichment instructor taught them. Our 7th and 8th graders are sewing their "paj ntaub" piece with so much concentration while our 6th graders are practicing their Hmong dance! Furthermore, the primary classes also did cool enrichment activities such as glue yarn ball, creating beaded bracelets, and making parfaits. 

​FOURTH WEEK
Theme: Hmong Clothes "Khaub Ncaws Hmoob"

What a fun week! For this week’s theme, instructors taught their students about the Hmong patterns, the meaning behind Hmong story cloths, clothes, and hats. Moreover, classes also made their own paj ntaub or story cloth out of yarn and paper. On top of that, on Tuesday everyone dressed up in their beautiful Hmong clothes and on Thursday each class prepared their own Hmong dish. Kindergarten had dib nrog mov, nqaij, thiab kua txob, 1st grade had dib nrog tsev thiab kua txob, 2nd grade had kua txob thiab ntsuag, 3rd grade had dib kaus, 4th grade had qaib laj, 5th grade had qaib vom tsaus tshuaj, 6th grade had txiv lwb tuav, and lastly 7th/8th grade had pob kws hau.
In the morning when learning Hmong phonics, the primary classes enjoy singing the sounds of the Tsiaj Ntawv Txiv while incorporating hand movements to help them remember the sounds of the Tsiaj Ntawv Niam and cov Cim. In addition, they also work on blending and creating words by using flip books and using the guide C+V+T= word. As for intermediate classes, they played group games such as jeopardy and spelling words. For those who are a little more advanced, they worked on reading and Q and A worksheets.
For P.E., it is always fun! Xib Fwb Pheej keeps the students entertained by doing relay games and playing sports! On Monday, the kindergartens experienced carrying two buckets of water with a foam noodle on their shoulders! They were so adorable trying to keep their balance. Other primary and intermediate students also had a relay run with the foam noodles, played cops and robbers and practiced bowling for their field trip next week!
During enrichment, kindergartens planted flower seeds into their own little cup. They learned about the necessities such as soil, seeds, and water that creates spring(caij ntuj nplooj ntoos hlav). Moving on, third grade created little puppets and put on a puppet show with Xib Fwb Yaaj. For fourth grade, they had a great time singing the Tij Laug Xab song with Xib Fwb Jerry while fifth grade got into their creative writing mode and wrote poems and raps with Xib Fwb Leej. 

FIFTH WEEK
Theme: Hmong New Year "Noj Peb Caug"
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The Hmong New Year is a cultural tradition that we have long practiced; an annual celebration that is taken place after performing rituals to pay respects to our ancestors and ask for blessings for the upcoming year. This is a colorful event where we dress in traditional or modern Hmong clothes and celebrate by feasting and entertaining with performances such as dancing, singing, pageants, and sports.
Our instructors discussed the reasons behind Hmong New Year, what materials are involved in the rituals, the foods that are prepared, what clothings are worn, and the sports that are played. For example, Xib Fwb Nkauj Hnub(6th grade) did an activity where her class braided lemongrass thread which is used for the lwm sub. Adding on, many of the classes also played pov pob swb with their students.
Moving on, this week we took our primary students out on an adventure. They got to experience riding on the Hornblower Cruise in the Sacramento River and got a little taste of what’s in Old Sacramento. Some of them enjoyed waving at the fishermen as we passed by and others went up and down the stairs to get both of the experiences of seeing from up top and below. After the cruise, we all went on a scavenger hunt to explore more of Old Sacramento. We went from Candy Heaven to ice cream shops to taking pictures on trains. By the end of the day, we got some sleepy kids on the bus.
On Wednesday, we took our intermediate students to Country Club Lanes to do some bowling! However, not only did they just bowl, but they also played laser tag and in the arcade. Many of the fourth graders enjoyed playing with the electric claw machine that had bundles of tickets. Xib Fwb Nkauj Hnub and her sixth graders all went and played laser tag together. All classes got to show their bowling skills and try out new things that they haven't done before.
​Lastly, special thanks to Xib Fwb Pheej for being our bus driver for both field trips, Jean Vang for providing sticky rice and chicken for all primaries, and for also teaming up with Dr. Lee and his wife in making ham and turkey sandwiches for all intermediates!

SIXTH WEEK
Theme: Nas Ej Phaj Ej Hmoob

Six weeks went by so fast! Many friendships were built, reunited, and made stronger. For this last week, we got to see how much the students have grown from day one to the last day. Monday and Tuesday were used to review and take the post-test and on Wednesday we did a rehearsal for the show and tell. Throughout the summer camp, students have been working really hard on their performances, when the time came, they surprised the crowd with their talents. Kindergartens sang three songs, Nyob Zoo, Kuv Yog Hmoob, and Sib Ntsib Dua. First graders performed a dance with a partner whereas second graders put on a puppet show about the book Leej Twg Hlub Kuv. Next, third graders sang a song about making and eating papaya! Primaries were really entertaining! In regards to fourth graders, they sang the Tib Laug Xab song. Fifth graders performance was something new and different, they rapped in Hmong about being Hmong. Sixth-graders also Hmong danced and towards the end of their performance, they went out to the crowd and grabbed a partner to salavang with them! It was awesome to see them include the crowd into their performance. Lastly, seventh and eighth graders talked making paj ntaub. At the end of the show, everyone was able to enjoy the gallery walk showcasing the Hmong houses that intermediate students built and ate some refreshments such as eggrolls, steamrolls, meatballs, jello, pasta, and watermelon! Six weeks of summer camp has come to an end. 
Thank you to all of the staff, students, and parents for being a part of this year Hmong Enrichment Summer Camp!