Frequently Asked Questions about CSOCL&C

卡密拉兒童文學與文化常見疑問

About Tuition:

How should we pay for the tuition fee? The tuition is suggested to be paid monthly and there is no refund if there is any absent class during the month.

When do we pay for the club? The tuition should be paid right after the first meeting or the first class. The first class is sponsored by the studio, which means that you do not have to pay for the first class.

About Club:

Do you have studio in TaiPei or TaiYuan? We have studios in TaiPei and TaoYuan. We would love to invite you to read the articles on the company website and the studio blog. Please visit our website and the blog to view more information and our teaching goal at http://www.cAmillaChiLit.com and https://city.udn.com/4912. If you have any question, please feel free to write us.

Do you hold the clubs in summer and winter vacation? We do not have the regular clubs during summer and winter vacation; however, we will arrange the summer camp and winter camp and post the latest information on the website.

I am interested in your studio. How should I apply for entering the club? Thank you for showing your interest in the studio. You might need to fill out the form of Member Data and email us after completing it. Once we receive the form then you are done with the application. Once again, thank you for your support.

What do members have to prepare for the club? Members under fourteen including fourteen years old are advised to bring their pencils, erasers, notebooks with lines, English-English dictionaries and a bag to hold their personal belongings. Members above fifteen including fifteen years old might also need a notebook and an English-English dictionary.

For The Story Club members, what should the members need to bring with them? The Story Club members do not have to buy any books or materials. We will read storybooks and make arts & crafts together. All the members have to do is spend more time in the libraries, both in the school library and the city library. We also encourage members to borrow books that they like from the libraries. Members might need a bag to hold their personal items such as a pencil box or their arts & crafts.

Does the studio only open on Saturdays? Do you have clubs during weekdays? In studio TaiPei, we have clubs on Saturdays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. In studio TaoYuan, we have clubs on Saturdays and Fridays. Please check our website http://www.cAmillaChiLit.com to make sure the open dates for the clubs.

Do you offer make-up class for the members if we are absent on the club hour?There is no make-up class offered in the studio since literature learning takes time and persistency. We hope you can understand.

Regarding the name of “cAmilla," why do you lowercase the first letter ”c” and uppercase the second letter “A”? It is our honor that you mention about the history of the studio name. Thank you for asking. You are such a careful observer. You have noticed! The name "cAmilla" not only presents a design but  also carries meanings.  The small "c" in the beginning of the word stands for humbleness and to avoid myself becoming an egocentric soul. The capitalized "A" means to do my best in every field to help the world get better. And we hope the children and adult alike in the studio are humble and always do their best to help the world get better.  We are sure that together we will be able to make a difference and carry the blessings to the universe!

How does the course work for The Story Club, Reading Club C, Reading Club B and Reading, Writing & Drama Club A? The courses for each club mentioned are designed according to members' ages. Our learning focuses on the literature and is also based on the Core Knowledge Series which are the resource books designed for kindergarten through grade six.

Will we read a new novel every time in Reading Club C and Reading Club B? We basically read one novel for two months in Reading Club C and Reading Club B.

Do parents need to stay in Reading Club C and Reading Club B with children? Parents are encouraged to stay with the children. You are always welcome to stay with them if you are interested in their learning, which helps with building up the parent-child relationship and enhances the family bond.

What is the difference between Reading, Writing and Drama Club A and Reading Club B? The great difference between Reading, Writing, and Drama Club A and Reading Club B is that the members in the former have the critical thinking skills and are always ready to offer their own thoughts, which might take more time for members in Reading Club B to master the skill.

About Reading:

My son is in grade four, should he start from Reading Club C? Thank you for showing your interest in the studio. We might need to have a meeting with you and your child so that we have a chance to know each other better before we can decide which club is suitable for him. Please kindly fill out the form of Member Data as well.

Do we need to have a language test? It is more like a discussion then a test. If it is possible, we would love to arrange a meeting for you so that we can discuss the clubs and the proper books for you to read after meeting.

If my son does not understand the international language (English at the present stage) well, is it still ok for him to join the club? We have confidence in our members. As long as your son keeps learning with enthusiasm, he is going to be fine. Once again, we are sure that we will have fun through acquiring knowledge and obtaining wisdom together in the future!

Would you recommend a bigger dictionary for my child?  We have the same feeling with you. Bigger words are indeed better for children's eyes. That is the reason why I suggest using Scholastic Children's Dictionary. However, there are some other great dictionaries that we would like to share with the children and obviously most of them use adult-size print that is too small for the eyes of children and might lead to myopia. We are doing my best to find dictionaries with big print. It might take some time for us to find the right ones for the children. We will show you the dictionaries before purchasing them.

 
Do my children need to review what they have learned from the club?  All the members are encouraged to review what they have learned from the clubs spontaneously. The parents are advised to be the children's dearest listeners and friends while they share their thoughts and feelings of what they have learned from the clubs. We will do our best to inspire our young members so that they will be responsible for themselves and will study the topics out of their own will. Instead of reviewing the story, you may encourage them to borrow books from the library, either from the school library or the city library. There are many interesting and great books waiting for them to explore. It is not a problem whether they understand the books that they borrowed from the libraries or not. They will gradually absorb the information that they need. That is also one of the amazing abilities that the children have. You will see how they might surprise you through reading. 

My son thinks that the atmosphere of the reading club is fun; however, he also admits that he can only understand the material of the class in a very limited way.  I think that is my fault.  I was not able to help him catching up the class. So after discussion, we came to a conclusion that we might skip the class before the break and then we will see whether he can catch up a little bit during the break or not and then decide what to do next. I am sorry for missing the classes.
Thank you for writing us. We understand how you and your son's feel. When it comes to acquiring new skills, children's learning appetite is indeed enormous. We are not worried about your son's ability of obtaining new knowledge. It is his learning interest and motivation that we care. As long as he is willing to devote his time to discovering the world with us, he will gradually learn to interact with his friends in the club. We will be here always for promoting literature and sharing thoughts with children and grownups. Whenever he feels comfortable, he is welcome to come back to our team again!

My daughter starts to read but she still needs some help. What could we do? We are glad that your daughter starts to spend time reading the book. Don't worry about how much she reads. As long as she forms the habit of reading every day, then she is improving. We will guide her through the chapters that she might think difficult in class.

Does my daughter keep up with the progress of study? One of the purpose of the studio is to help our young members learn spontaneously, which means that they shall be able to be responsible for their own reading. If your daughter spends more time reading than before, then she has made some progress.

My son has been reading  "Treasure Island" several  times. He even read the other two versions of "Treasure Island." I can see his desire of reading books and really happy that he enjoys reading so much. Thank you for sharing the joy with us. That is exactly the reason why we have this studio. We have always hoped to see the children learn out of their own curiosity and passion, which takes time to form the habit; however, your son has made this dream come true. We have always believed that our goal is never a castle in the air.

Others:

I can not read and pronounce the story properly. Can I record what the instructor said in the club hour so I can read with my children? Do not worry about your language skill. You will be fine. The children's pronunciation will improve as long as they spend time listening to the CDs and repeat the story afterwards.

Can I speak in Chinese to the instructor for discussing the member's learning status? Please feel free to speak Chinese or English during our conversation. We will do our best to make us understand each other. However, it will be our honor that you use the international language to commuciate with us. We will explain every question that you need to know clearly and slowly so that you can understand what we are trying to say. The reason why we choose English as the language to communicate with everyone is actually trying to offer an international language speaking environment. Through this effort, children will understand the importance of using the language. Also they might know how to respect each other while communicating with another language speaking people.

Although there might be inconvenient sometimes; however, it creates a chance for people to understand each other patiently and an opportunity to appreciate the beauty of the languages and cultures. (It is also the best way to educate the children through our interaction!) The more often we use the language, the more fluently we will be able to express our ideas. Thus we will be able to learn together. 
As Chinese speakers, we definitely need to master our own language. Speaking English is just a way to communicate with people from other foreign countries. And that is only a small part of the reasons why we focus on literature teaching. Cultivating souls and minds, realizing our own values and esteeming people are more important missions to do. As long as we think positively and have the right attitude, we will be more responsible for ourselves.
Learning English is just a beginning. It is without doubt that children have the talent of learning all kinds of languages. In the meantime, we also encourage our club members to speak local languages while discussing literature and cultures from local areas. Thus we will be able to build up human knowledge and profound thought, create a pleasant environment with the excellence of taste in the fine arts and humanities and embrace the positive attitude and values toward life. Although literature learning takes time, we have a strong belief that through children's literature and culture, we will have the ability to think creatively and profoundly. With human spirit, love and appreciation to the universe, we will be able to build up humanity and bring a more friendly environment to all the living creatures in the world!

For the summer camp, my children have quite outgoing personalities and love to argue with each other. I hope they will not cause any trouble to other members in the camp. Do you think that it will be all right for them? It might be a good chance for members to learn to respect each other. We can tell that the way they argue with each other is quite drastic yet full of love. They care about each other so much that it has become an issue while they have different ideas about doing something together. We are sure that the situation will get better as time goes by.

Do members have to prepare the gifts for Christmas? Each member are encouraged to prepare one little gift to exchange with friends on the second class in December and we will also prepare one present for each club member, which means that everyone will get two presents on that day to celebrate Christmas!

Can I read the story with my children in the club as well? And can I borrow the book from you and return it after the club? You are very welcome to read with your children in the club. Just let us know beforehand if you need to borrow the book from the studio so that we can prepare the book for you.

My son really enjoyed the camp this summer and he is looking forward to join the camp next year. We are touched with your fully support for the studio and the camp. Your trust and recognition has made our dream come true. There is still a long way for us to go. However, we do know that the future ahead of us will never defeat us. We are grateful for what we have now. There is much to do. And together, we will make our future more promising and splendid.

Thank you for being so understanding of the children during the summer camp. Can you give us some advice to help our children?
Thank you for your support and understanding. Your compliment has enlightened our dreams and vitalized us. We hope more and more children and parents realize the importance of learning through living. That is the reason why we hold summer and winter camps. Through this close contact, I have the opportunity to know the children better and they also have a chance to put what they have learned from class into practice. During this learning process, they have turned knowledge into wisdom of life, which we think is a crucial stage for them to form their characters. Children's personalities have been shaped by this process as well. They encounter problems and do their best to find out the answers and solve the problems. They meet people from different walks of life and show their respect and sincerity.

They know that life is not always happy. There might be unpleasant moments, especially while they think that the situations are out of their control, like losing things, breaking stuff or arguing with friends. However, they will always find their way out! All the adults have to do is wait and give them time to think and to make the best decisions by themselves, which you might find it difficult to do so in life of the big cities. People seem to be in a hurry all the time. We adults try to avoid "trouble" and hope that things can always be in order and organized. We clean the mess for our kids and plan things for them. However, it turns out that the more "trouble" we avoid, the more time and effort we spend on educating them, which sometimes they might even have the ability to educate themselves!  

To see what they see and to talk what they talk are the best ways to understand their thinking and feelings.  Children have doubts as adults do. They question life and how people interact with each other. It does take time before children treat adults as their true friends. And it does need a skill to maintain the relationship that holds us together. Knowledge, wisdom, humanity and consideration come with the art, literature and philosophy of life. I do appreciate your supporting the camp and making all of these dreams possible.

My child needs to take a nap at noon. Is it possible to change the club hour to morning? As for the schedule of the club, it might remain the same due to the course design. There might be a little bit inconvenient when it comes to meet each person's needs, and it takes everyone's understanding to make things work. We will do our best to help children form a habit of reading and enjoy literature and we might need your help to trust us.  Thank you for your support. We do appreciate it a lot..

My child needs to attend the school fair. Can we have another make-up class?

Thank you for informing us. Encouraging children to attend activities is very important.
They are able to have more social experiences through joining the activities, which has a lot to do with literature learning as well. There is no make-up class offered by the studio since literature learning is a long-term program and depends on their reading habit.

Do we have to translate the part that my children might have a problem to understand? Parents are advised to speak the international language as well. Translation is an exquisite skill that takes professionals to do the job. We do believe that everyone has the potential to understand a foreign language as long as we are open-minded and always patient while learning new things. If we trust ourselves and listen with our hearts, we will be able to understand the language eventually. Children definitely own the power of decoding the unknown. As time goes by, we will be amazed at how much they have learned and how much we have learned from them as well! 

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