I really don't mind this sort of thing unless it becomes one-after-another, but I think a simple polite refusal or acceptance is the proper form. As for the appropriateness of the exercise, I think the form ("Hello my name is Joey I'm 7 I live in..." etc.) is a bit primitive, but the fact that real kids get to talk to real English speakers is good - all too many people in China have a nervous kind of feeling about 'foreigners' that is a result of bits of xenophobia in Han culture that stresses a 'They are REALLY DIFFERENT who knows what they'll do or say?' attitude, which often demonstrates or results in inappropriate this that or the other ('Welcome to China!' 'But I speak Chinese and have been here for 15 years.' Never mind, welcome to China!' etc. - after which it begins to be about face rather than real communication). Young kids, especially, can be talked to simply like real kids from anywhere, will respond to kindness even though it comes from a funny-looking guy whom they otherwise might be taught to fear as an ogre, and will be delighted. I really don't have much of a problem with this, unless, obviously, some parent simply uses you inconsiderately for a long period of time. The value of the exercise is not really in teaching method/learning more language, but in learning that people who look different and speak different languages are people too - as good a lesson as I know for people of any age, and a good one to acquire while young.
A countryside wedding in Lincang
Posted byAnd it was all good. Congratulations & best wishes always!
Yeah, a few more articles like this one, which connect real people in the foreign community with real Chinese people (despite occasional cultural unfamiliarities), rather than the simple recounting of relationships involving stereotypical misunderstandings on both sides that often appear in the forums.
Welcome to the new GoKunming!
Posted byI'm sorry but I don't find any improvement with the new format - I don't mean it's any worse, just that this kind of shifting of things around is more trouble than it's worth, both for the website folks & for the users. Add concrete content, okay; but don't bother with the appearances thing.
Wulong Quest 2013 or The Great Turtle Pull
Posted byReally, really stupid.
Lincang eyeglasses fundraiser
Posted byGood idea, hope people will contribute whatever they can - imagine being sent to school & not being able to afford glasses to see the blackboard! Elementary education may be free in China but there are seemingly minor expenses that prevent many poor in the countryside from taking full advantage of them - not exactly a level playing field.
Kunming: A New Perspective
Posted byIs there a 'search' button somewhere? If not, the site badly needs one.