包餃子 Making Chinese Dumpling

耶誕節假期，林友友請朋友到家裡來玩兒，

During Christmas holidays, You-you  Lin invited many friends over to his house,

大家要跟林媽媽學包餃子。

Everyone wanted to learn how to make dumplings from Mrs. Lin.

林媽媽從冰箱裡拿出幾包餃子皮

Mrs. Lin took out a several packages of dumpling wrappers from the refrigerator.

和一大碗有肉、有菜的餃子餡。

And a large bowl of dumpling stuffing made from pork and vegetables.

林媽媽說：來！每個人先把一湯匙的餃子餡放在餃子皮上，然後再把皮折起來。

Mrs. Lin said: here! Everyone put a tablespoon of the dumpling filling on the dumpling wrapper first,

Then fold the wrapper over.

大家學得很快，不一會兒，已經包好了一百多個。

Everyone learned quickly, and very soon, more than one hundred pieces had been wrapped.

林媽媽煮了一大鍋水，等水開了，

Mrs. Lin boiled a large pot of water, after the water boiled,

大家幫忙把餃子放進鍋裡,不一會兒，餃子就煮熟了。

Everyone helped put the dumplings into the pot,   after a while, the dumplings were cooked.

好香啊！大家吃着自己包的饺子，

They smell wonderful! Enjoying the dumplings, they made by themselves,

覺得特別美味可口。 Everyone thought they tasted especially delicious.

林媽媽笑著說：快過年了，誰在餃子里吃到杏仁，

明年一定很幸運！

Mrs. Lin said with smile: “Chinese New Year will soon be here! Whoever finds an almond in your dumplings, you will be very lucky next year!

她才說完，每個人都吃到了一兩顆。

By the time she finished speaking, everyone bit into one or two pieces of almond.

友友說：一定是我媽媽包的。

You-you said: My mom must have put them there.

大家高高興興地說，謝謝林媽媽！

Everyone merrily said, thank you Mrs. Lin!

馬馬虎虎So-So

很久以前，有一位畫家，Once upon a time, there was a painter,

他不但喜歡畫馬而且喜歡畫老虎。He not only likes to draw horses but also likes to draw tigers.

有一天，他的朋友請求他畫一幅馬。One day, his friend asked him to draw a horse.

朋友走了以後，After his friend left,

他就在剛剛畫好的老虎下面，畫了一個馬的身體。The painter is added a horse body under a tiger’s head that he had just finished.

他想這樣送給朋友就行了。He thought this would be good enough for his friend.

他的大兒子看見了，問道：His elder son saw it and asked:

爸爸！ 您在畫什麼？Daddy! what are you drawing?

畫家回答：哈哈！我在畫馬呀！The painter replied: Haha! I’m drawing(painting) a horse!

大兒子心想:哦,原來有一種馬,牠的頭長得很像老虎。The eldest son thought: Oh, I see. So, there is a kind of horse whose head looks like a tiger.

畫家把畫好的畫掛在牆上。The painter hangs the finished picture on the wall.

小兒子看見了，問道：The younger son saw it and asked:

爸爸！ 這是什麼動物？ 是老虎嗎？Daddy! What kind of animal is this? Is it a tiger?

畫家說：嗯—也沒錯！The painter said: Well — that’s also right!

小兒子想：原來有一種老虎，身體是這個樣子。The youngest son thought: So, there is a kind of tiger whose body looks like this.

有一天，大兒子遠遠看見一隻老虎，One day, the eldest son saw a tiger in the distance,

他還以為是馬。He thought it was a horse.

他忽然聽見老虎吼的聲音，才連忙逃走。Suddenly he heard the roar of a tiger,

Then he ran away hurriedly.

又有一天，小兒子看見前面有幾匹高大的馬，One another day, the youngest son saw several large horses in front of him.

他认为一定是老虎，所以就把牠们射伤了。He thought for sure they were tigers,

So he pulled his bow and shot them with arrows.

馬的主人找畫家賠錢。The owner of the horse came to the painter to demand compensation.

他們看見牆上的這張畫就問道：When they saw the picture on the wall, they asked:

這是什麼？ 不是馬也不是虎，好奇怪！What’s this? It’s neither a horse nor a tiger. How strange!

畫家回答說：哎，大兒子以為是馬，The painter sighed replied: “Ai, the eldest son thought it was a horse.

小兒子以為是老虎，才發生這些事。The youngest son thought it was a tiger, that’s why all this misfortune happened.

大家聽了，忍不住哈哈大笑，Everyone listened and couldn’t help burst out laughing,

後來，馬虎和馬馬虎虎變成了成語，Ever since, house-tiger and horse -horse-tiger-tiger became idioms,

表示不認真、不細心的意思。Which means doing something casually and carelessly.

馬馬虎虎還有so-so的意思。It also means so-so.

我不姓王My Last Name is Not Wang

張先生是一個很不細心、很馬虎的人，

Mr. Zhang was a very careless and sloppy person.

他常常寫錯字，也常常認錯人，

He often wrote wrong characters and often recognizes the wrong people,

所以大家都叫他馬虎先生。

So(therefore) everyone called him Mr. Sloppy.

有一天，張先生在路上看見一個朋友，

One day, Mr. Zhang saw someone on the street,

他說：゙嗨王老師，你好嗎？

He said: ﾞHi Teacher Wang, how are you?

那個人還沒回答，The man hasn’t answered yet,  (before the other person had a chance to answer)

張先生又說： 啊！ 王老師，你變了！
Mr. Zhang said again(continued said): Ah! Teacher Wang, you have changed!

你沒有以前胖，而且也沒有以前高了，
You are not as heavy as before, and you are not as tall as before,

你比以前黑多了，你的身體還好吧？

You look much darker than before, how is your health?

那個人說：對不起，我不姓王！

The man said: I am sorry! My last name is not Wang!

張先生聽了，Mr. Zhang heard,

忽然大聲說：Suddenly said loudly:

你真的變了，你看你連姓什麼都變了！

You really have changed! Look, even your last name has changed!

那個人聽了，忍不住大笑起來。

When the person heard this, he couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

感恩節大遊行Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

感恩節快到了！ It was almost Thanksgiving.

星期二早上。 明明全家坐飛機去奶奶家。

Tuesday morning, Ming-Ming’s family flew to grandma’s house.

飛機上坐滿了人，好像都是趕著回家過節。

The plane was packed with people, and everyone looked like they were rushing home for the holidays.

飛機飛了六個小時才到紐約市，The plane took six hours to get to New York City,

姑姑和表弟表妹也到了，Auntie and two younger cousins were there already,

大家在機場見面，高興的抱在一起。When we met at the airport everyone felt so happy and hugged each other.

奶奶說，明天去看梅西大遊行，Grandma said, we were going to see the Macy’s Parade tomorrow,

大家聽了都很歡喜。Everyone was excited to hear that.

奶奶說一定要早去，不然交通會太擠，車子走不通。
Grandma said that we needed to go early, so that we would not get stuck in the heavy traffic.

(Otherwise, the traffic would be too crowded. The car gets stuck.)

感恩節一大早，大家吃過早飯，就開車上路了。Early on Thanksgiving, they got on the road soon after breakfast!

因為來得早，所以佔到路邊的好位子。Because they arrived early, I got a good seat on the side of the road.

十點鐘左右，樂隊過來了，吹吹打打很熱鬧。Around ten o’clock, the marching band came over, and playing trumpets and drums is very lively.

哇，卡通氣球也有一個個過來了，有chicken little– Wow, cartoon balloons are coming one by one, like chicken little–

哦！還有SpongeBob，這些氣球都非常的大，Oh! There was SpongeBob, All the balloons were so big.

每個氣球都是由一、二十個人拉著走。Each balloon was pulled away by ten or twenty people.

All the balloons were so big that it took 10to20 people to pull each one.

今年參加遊行的卡通人物很多，Many cartoon characters were participating in the parade this year,

孩子們高興地一直拍手叫好，All the kids were so thrilled they kept clapping and shouting.

The children clapped their hands and shout happily,

明明和姊姊也拍了許多照片。Mingming and her sister also took a lot of photos.

胖胖的耶誕老人公公來了，Finally, the pot-bellied Santa Clause showed up!

這是每年遊行的最後一個節目，This was the last show in the parade every year.

因為感恩節一過耶誕節就快來了！Because after Thanksgiving Christmas was right around the corner.

回到家以後，全家說說笑笑一起準備感恩節大餐，

After returning home, (After getting home)the whole family chatted and laughed together to prepare the Thanksgiving feast.

孩子們做蔥油餅和小蛋糕，The children made scallion pancakes and cupcakes,

其他的食物都有大人們準備。The rest of the meals are prepared by adults.

晚飯時，飯桌上有烤火雞、紅莓醬，洋芋泥、玉米麵包、南瓜餅等可口的食物，

During dinner, the table was laden with such mouth -watering dishes as roast turkey, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, cornbread, pumpkin pie,

另外還有香噴噴的蔥油餅和紅莓小蛋糕。As well as great smelling scallion pancakes and cranberry cupcakes.

明明、姊姊、表妹、表弟，一起抱著奶奶，Mingming, her elder sister and younger cousins hugged grandma together,

感恩奶奶給他們一個最難忘的感恩節。Thanking grandma for giving them a most unforgettable Thanksgiving.

Continue reading

石頭湯 Stone Soup

很久以前，有一個農村，

Once upon a time, there was a village,

這裡的村民都很自私又很小氣，所以大家很少有往來。The villagers were all very selfish and stingy, so they hardly saw one another.

(So they rarely communicate)

有一年冬天，有個老人來到這裡，

One winter, an old man came here,

他帶來一個大鍋子，He brought a big cauldron,

他把冰塊和雪放進鍋子裡，

He placed ice cubes and snow into the pot,

就在路邊生火煮了起來。

They built a fire by the side of the road and started cooking.

老人又從皮箱裡拿出一個小石頭，放進鍋里。

The old man took out a small stone from the suitcase and put it into the cauldron.

他高聲叫道：美味的石頭湯唷！
He shouted: “Delicious stone soup!”

快來吃，不要錢唷。 Come and have some, free of charge.(no money required.)

大家一聽，不要錢！ 就連忙打開大門，拿著碗出來，

When everyone heard it was free, they hurriedly opened the doors and rushed out with their bowls,

大家圍著大鍋子等著喝美味的石頭湯。

Everyone gathered around the cauldron and couldn’t wait to taste the delicious stone soup.

老人用大湯杓攪著攪著鍋里的湯，自言自語地說：

The old man stirred the soup with a ladle and murmured to himself,

如果再加點兒胡椒，蔥和油，

If we add a little ground pepper, scallions, and oil,

就是世界上最美味的湯了！

It will be the most delicious soup in the world!

有人想：這些都是小東西，要不了幾個錢，

Some people thought: These are trivial and don’t cost much.

於是，他們就回家拿來了。

So, they returned home and fetch them.

老人把這些東西加進湯里。

The old man added these ingredients to the soup.

老人喝了一口湯，說道：不錯！ 不錯！

The old man took one sip of the soup and said: Not bad! good!

假如湯里有自己最愛吃的東西，那就更好喝了！

If the soup has everyone’s favorite thing, it would be even better!

大家聽了，覺得老人說的話很有道理。

Everyone listened and felt that what the old man said was very reasonable. (thought it made sense.)

於是，匆忙回家把自己最愛吃的東西都拿來了。

So, they hurried home and brought back their favorite food.

老人把大家拿來的肉、玉米、白菜、青豆、杏仁、洋蔥芹菜、番茄—都加進湯裡。

The old man added the meat, corn, cabbage, green beans, almonds, onions, celery, and tomatoes into the soup.

石頭湯果然更香了。

Which of course smelled even better.

於是，大家高高興興地吃著。

So, everyone happily consumed the soup.

這時候老人忽然不見了，

At this moment, the old man suddenly disappeared.

只見鍋子上有“合作”兩個字。

I saw the word “cooperation” on the caldron.

這時候大家才明白：

Then everyone finally understood:

每個人拿出一點兒食物，

Everyone chipped in a little food,

合在一起才煮成這麼美味的湯，

Combined to make such a delicious soup,

從此以後，村民們互助合作，過著幸福快樂的人日子。

Since then (from then on), the villagers learned to help and cooperate with one another and lived happily ever after.

感恩節說笑話比賽Thanksgiving Joke Telling Contest

感恩節前學校有一場說笑話比賽，

Right before Thanksgiving, the school held a joke-telling contest.

今年參加比賽的同學很多。

There are many students entering (participating in) the competition this year.

中中第一個上臺，他說，

Zhong-Zhong was the first to go on the stage,. he said,

各位老師，各位同學，大家好，

Dear teachers and students, hello everyone, (Hello, teachers and students)

你們知道火雞最喜歡哪個國家嗎？

Do you know which country turkeys like the best?

他們最喜歡土耳其，They like Türkiye best,

因為這個國家的英文名字叫Turkey。

Because it is the English name of the country (Turkey).

台下的人聽了哈哈大笑。

The audience heard and roared with laughter.

安安本來要說一個感恩節遊行的笑話，

An-An was going to tell a joke about Thanksgiving parade,

可是他一上臺就緊張的全身發抖、滿臉通紅。

But as soon as he got on the stage, he become so nervous that his whole body trembled and his whole face flushed(turned red).

他才開口說：感恩節—–三個字，就說不下去了，

As soon as he started sayed: Thanksgiving —– three words, he couldn’t continue (go on),

最後他只好抱著胸、低著頭走下臺去。

Finally, he could only cross his arms, lower his head and walk off the stage.

這時，台下響起一片掌聲。

At this time, there was a round of applause(came a wave of clapping) from the audience.

有人說：火雞最怕過感恩節，安安表演得好像呀！

Some people said: Turkeys are afraid of Thanksgiving, and An An’s acting seems like it!

(An An gave a wonderful performance!)

最後，安安得到了說笑話比賽第一名。

In the end, An-An got the first prize for the joke-telling contest.

摘蘋果Picking apples

草原村的半山上, In the hills of  the Meadow Village,

有一片蘋果園。 There is an apple orchard.

秋天到了，紅紅的蘋果掛滿枝頭，

When the autumn arrives, red apples hang from all the branches,

遠遠看過去美極了。What an exquisitely beautiful view from afar.

中文學校的家長和學生，常常輪流上山摘蘋果，

Parents and students of the Chinese school frequently take turns going to the hills to pick apples.

然後做成蘋果餅，分送到老人院去。

Then baking apple into apple pies and distribute(delivering) them to various nursing homes.

這個星期六，有六家人一起上山，

This Saturday, six families went up the mountain(orchard) together,

果園主人笑眯眯地說：

The orchard owner said with a smile:

在這兒吃多少都不要錢，

No matter how many you eat here, it won’t cost a dime (for free; no money).

帶走的每箱五塊錢。

But it costs five dollars per bucket to take them with you.

果園很大，果樹不高，蘋果香甜可口。

The orchard was rather large, the fruit trees are not very high, and the apples fragrant, sweet and delicious.

大家一邊摘一邊吃，跑跑跳跳，

Everyone ate apples as they picked, running and skipping around, and enjoyed themselves all the way

一直玩到太陽下山才回家。

till sunset when they had to go home.

第二天一大早，每家人都忙著做蘋果餅，

Early the next morning, all the family were busy making apple pies,

吃完中飯以後，After lunch,

大家把蘋果餅和許多蘋果，送到老人院去。

They delivered the apple pie and many apples to the nursing home.

許多老人早就在客廳里等著了。

Many seniors had  already been waiting in the lobby (the living room).

當孩子們捧著香噴噴的蘋果餅走進來的時候，

When the children walked in carrying the delicious smelling apple pies,

他們高興地拍手。

They clap their hands cheerfully.

老人們高興地吃著蘋果餅，大家一起唱歌一起說笑，老人院裡充滿了歡樂。

While the seniors enjoyed the apple pies, everyone sang and talked and laughed together. The nursing home was fulling of joy.

工作人員陪他們去看病房裡的老人。

The staff members accompanied them to visit the seniors in the infirmary.

中中說：老爺爺，願你快點好起來，祝你好運！

Zhong Zhong said: Grandpa(Sir), I wish you a speedy recovery and best of luck!

明明說：老奶奶！ 這些蘋果送給您，祝您好運！

Mingming said: Grandma! These apples are a present for you, and our best wishes to you!

老奶奶開心地說：小天使，謝謝你們！

The old grandma said happily: “Little angel, thank you all!”

孩子們的笑臉像紅紅的蘋果，

The children’s smiling faces, which looked just like red apples,

溫暖了老人的心。

Warmed the heart of the seniors.

他們說：謝謝你們來！ 願你們永遠平安快樂！

They said: Thank you for coming! May you always be safe and happy!

在回家的路上，明明心中充滿喜樂。

On the way home, Ming Ming’s heart was filled with joy.

明明說：原來，帶給別人快樂，能使自己更快樂。
Ming Ming said: It turns out that bringing happiness to others can make oneself happier.

(Making others happy can actually give me feel even better) Continue reading

我是一個小小的紅蘋果。

I am a small red apple.

我能照亮孩子們的笑臉，

I can illuminate the smiling faces of children,

我能溫暖老人們的心窩。

I can warm the hearts of the elderly.

我是一個小小的紅蘋果。

I am a small red apple.

我能使運動員充滿活力，

I can fill the energy of an athlete. (energize athletes),

我能使遠行者不怕口渴。

I can quench the thirst of a traveler.

我是一個小小的紅蘋果。

I am a small red apple.

我能使生病的人有信心，

I can give confidence to the sick,

我願人們永遠平安快樂。

I wish people peace and happiness forever.

我是一個小小的紅蘋果。

I am a small red apple.

我長在樹枝上，

I grow on a branch,

請快來摘下我。
Please come quickly to pick me off.

你們都是天才You Are All Geniuses。

今天是開學日，同學們好久沒見，有說不完的話，Today was the first day of school. The students had not seen one another for a very long time, and they had so much to say to each other.
放學以後，就到速食店去吃東西、談天。After school, they went to a fast-food place to grab something to eat and to chat.

中中說：字跟字說話，真的很好玩。Zhongzhong asked: Words conversation games are so much fun.

我們再來玩，沒人反對吧？Let’s play again(let’s play some more), Does anyone object?

大家都說：當然不反對！Everyone said: Of course, no objections!

於是，明明在一張餐巾紙上寫了張、第、考、孝、冒帽、式和試幾個生字。

So, Mingming wrote on a napkin several Chinese Characters Zhang(open), Di(rank), Kao (test), Xiao(filiality), Mao  (risk)Mao (hat), Shi (type)and Shi (examination)

明明說：誰先來試試？Mingming said(asked): Who wants to try first?

中中說：我來！ 考對孝說你的兒子真孝順。Zhongzhong said: I will! Kao(test) said to Xiao(filiality),  Your son is so filial.

孝說，是啊，我走不動的時候他就背著我。Xiao replied, Oh yes, when I am unable to walk, he carries me on his back.

友友說：我來試試！ You You said: Let me try!

張問第，我們要去打獵了，你的弓呢？Zhang(open) asked di(rank), we are going hunting now, where is your bow?

第說：弓在我的背上。Rank replied: The bow is on my back.

青青說：式跟試說：考試的時候不能說話，把言拿掉吧！Qing Qing said: Shi(type) said to Shi (examination): You can’t talk during an exam, so why don’t you remove Yan(talk)!
試說：不行！ 考試是用筆說話。Shi (examination) saying: No! you talk with a pen during an exam.

明明說：我也來說一個。 帽問冒：你的頭巾呢？Ming Ming said: Let me also try one. Hat Question: Where’s your headscarf?

冒說：我就是忘了帶頭巾，所以才感冒。Mao (risk) replied: I just forgot to wear a headscarf, that’s why I caught a cold.

青青的爸爸也來參加他們。Qingqing’s dad also came to join them.

他說：用這個方式學習中文字，真是高明！ 明明你是怎麼想到的？He said: Learning Chinese characters in this way is really clever!

(This is excellent way to learn Chinese characters.)How did you come up with the idea?

明明說：我看過一個數位小笑話，是這樣的，9問6你怎麼又倒立了？ 6說我在做運動。

Ming Ming said: I read a little joke about numbers, and it goes like this, 9 asked 6 why did you upside down again? 6 answered: I am working out.

明明說：看了這個笑話，我就想到了這個方法。

Mingming said: After read the joke, I came upon this method(idea).

青青的爸爸說：明明，你真是個了不起的大天才！

Qing Qing’s father said: Mingming, you are a remarkable genius!

你們也都是天才，因為你們會舉一反三。And you are all geniuses too because you know how to draw inferences from one example.

(apply what you learn from one area to another)

我發現你們是天才，所以我也是天才。Since I find that you guys are geniuses, I’m a genius too.

大家聽了都笑了起來。Everyone all laughed after hearing this Continue reading

上課= Class is starting 問候= greet 老師=teacher 要=have to 做到=Accomplish 做= do 到=reach 站起來=stand up 行個禮=take a bow
恭敬= Respectfully 感恩= Appreciate 教導= guidance 說聲 = say 忘了= forget Continue reading