Ten YCIS families from Hongqiao/Gubei campus recently had the incredible opportunity to volunteer at one of YCIS’s Seeds of Hope sponsor schools in Shandong Province. Over three days, the group taught fun lessons and games to students at the Seeds of Hope School near Qufu, Shandong Province, while also taking in a few cultural sites and discovering aspects of rural life.  The Qufu Seeds of Hope School has been a beneficiary of our support since 2011 and this important partnership has helped the village school to flourish by improving facilities and updating classroom resources. These improvements have greatly enhanced the learning environment for the Qufu Seeds of Hope students, who were bursting with energy and inquisitiveness during the visit. For the YCIS group, it was wonderful to witness the direct impact of Seeds of Hope fundraising done throughout the school year. Trust us when we say that the small money donated in envelopes and at the food fair and carnival really add up to make a meaningful difference for these communities. The exchange allowed YCIS students to learn the value of service to others and to gain an appreciation for their own school. Most of all, they had a ton of fun teaching, and learning from, the students there. It was a richly rewarding, educational experience for parents and students alike. 

Mother of Marit EVERETT(Y3C) – Katie EVERETT

Where are you from?                           

California, San Francisco

How long have you been at YCIS HQ?

3 years

What do you enjoy most about teaching here?

Students get to learn Chinese and English in a multicultural education system.

Tell us an interesting fact about you?

I grew up in Hawaii and I have 2 big dogs.

Can you share a favourite quote or some words of wisdom?

Positive mind, positive vibe, positive life.

 

Interviewed by: 

School Captains – Deeraj SIVAKUMAR & Shuyu (Sophie) SHEN

Where are you from?

Shanghai

How long have you been at YCIS HQ?

1 year

What do you enjoy most about working here?

I enjoy meeting children from all over the world.

Tell us an interesting fact about you?

I enjoy traveling. Black cats are my favourite type of cat even though some people think they are bad luck.

Can you share a favourite quote or some words of wisdom?

No pain, no gain.

 

Interviewed by: 

School Captains – Deeraj SIVAKUMAR & Shuyu (Sophie) SHEN

The ‘Shanghai Chess Academy’ has been one of our ASAP external providers since August 2012. We were very happy to host them for their ‘Dragon Boat Festival Chess Tournament’ on Sunday, 28^th May. 106 Students from 21 different schools in Shanghai competed for the best chess player and best chess team of the day.

We were proud to have the most students represent their school with a total of 13 students from YCIS Hongqiao Campus.

We look forward to hosting the ‘Shanghai Chess Academy’ again as part of our ASAP programme in 2017-18 and starting in August 2017, we will also welcome them on our campus on a Saturday and Sunday. More information about this went home earlier this week.

We look forward to working with them again in 2017-18 and to many students joining their classes as part of our weekday and weekend ASAP programme.

Character Education Coordinator – Jana van Zyl

 

Now that the end of the year is just around the corner, in K4C we have been attending some additional activities. The activities support the children’s transition from K4 to Y1. In recent weeks, we have attended Violin sessions with the violin teachers, ICT with Mr. Gareth and K4 Assemblies with Ms. Jana. We are looking forward to having some additional PE lessons, spending some time with our Y1 buddy class and attending a Y1 Character Assembly. 

 This is an exciting time for our children, it has been great to see how much they have grown and developed over the past year. They are now starting to show us their readiness for their move up to Y1 and the new exciting experiences that will bring. 

  

K4C Co-teachers – Douglas ARNOLD & Mango WANG

Year 2 have had a fantastic few weeks learning about ‘Famous People.’ The children created their very own ‘Hall of Fame’ thinking about what they would like to do in the future. They loved learning about The Wright Brothers and were interested to learn about Amelia Earhart and her significance in the aviation world, as well as her importance as a woman. By the end of the two weeks’ children understood when these significant events took place and were able to place it on a timeline. Much to the children’s delight we were also able to design and make our very own airplanes and see how far they travelled. Children gained a firm understanding of the impact these individuals have had on our lives today. They were also really amused to compare airplanes designed by the Wright Brothers to ones we travel in today. It was clear after the lessons that many of the children were considering a career as a pilot.

Y2A Class Teacher & Team Leader – Suhirtha Chandrarajah

In recent Chinese studies classes, we have learned about Tea Culture. During this unit, students read the legendary story of how Shen Nong, an early Chinese emperor and herbalist discovered tea. We’ve also learned the origin and many types of tea including how to distinguish different types of tea from the production process, color and taste. People can enjoy particular kinds of tea, which are best for the season. Students had a warm discussion on tea’s medicinal function. They showed great interest in the tea ceremony. Then students used tea leaves, rose petals and chrysanthemum petals to make their own Tea Leaves Paintings. Look! Some of them were colouring, some were busy with cutting and sticking, and the rest of the students were arranging the leaves on the paper. In the end, we made tea pots and tea cups with coloured clay which were full of imagination.

After learning this unit, students have a better understanding of Chinese Tea Culture and the seeds of interest have been planted in their hearts.

 

Y4E Chinese Teacher – Sophia XU

We were honoured to host Dr. Yeung Yu, the Head of Instrumental Studies and Artist-in-Residence Programmes, from the Yew Chung Education Foundation, as well as soloist performer with the Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra in China and the Ohio Metropolitan Theatre Orchestra in the USA, for a ‘Master Piano Class’ on the 16^th May. Students went through a piano audition and were nominated to attend this special lesson with Dr. Yeung Yu.

We were also honoured to host Mr. Jeremy Williams (violin/viola), Founder/Artistic Director from the Sydney Strings Alive Academy, on the 17^th May. Mr. Williams held a special ‘Master Violin Class’ for our Hongqiao String Ensemble members.

Our students were privileged to draw from the great experience and wealth of knowledge that Dr. Yu and Mr. Williams brought, and they worked with the students and supported them to identify areas for their further development.

We are grateful that we were able to give our students this wonderful opportunity to work with Dr. Yu and Mr. Williams, and trust that they have benefited in many ways from this experience.

Music Education Coordinator-Cherry CHEN