It’s Tuesday here and we’re off to do some community service at Minquan Elementary School, a 15 minute walk from the junior high school.
The elementary school is enormous. 1500 students up to grade 6. That includes 2-yr olds who attend preschool here, too.
First they gave us instructions in a “school history” room (where they store trophies and plaques honoring past principals) that had a stage with professional lights for filming news broadcast-type work.
The kids were shuffled off to stations around the school, while we had hot tea with the principal. Did I mention that it’s 91 degrees today?
We’re off to get a tour! The school is an English immersion school that also offers 10 sports extracurricular activities if you are the most dedicated. They are not joking around. Do you want to practice ping pong 6 hours a day? Dedicate 4-8pm every day including your weekends to swimming? How about badminton with world class instructors? We learned that many of the teachers work year around so they can instruct the top student in these activities in addition to classroom instruction.
Next we entered a room that simulated an airport and customs entry, where you can practice buying tickets and exchanging currencies. But the most impressive was when we rounded the corner and found an entire section of an airplane donated by China Air to simulate flying. Complete with a steward cart to order drinks!
On to badminton courts!
On the wall above the court are signatures of former students who became Olympians!
Including the 2020 Olympic gold medal winner, Yang Lee!
Ok, that’s pretty intimidating. Maybe ping pong is more our style. After all, Pan Laoshi WAS the captain of his high school ping pong club a decade ago 🙂
Just when we’re getting the hang of it, an instructor sneaks away and grabs two third graders from their class and trots them out. Oh my goodness! They would absolutely wipe the floor with us in seconds haha
Needless to say there were no challengers among us and we left impressed, to check in on our students.
The elementary students were having a fun day where you walk from station to station testing your English skills with our students.
Get the answer right and you get a stamp on your passport.
One station was their Augmented reality and AI room, where older kids practice coding a robot at tables, and the younger kids draw on large touchscreens where an AI takes a guess at what they have drawn.
They served us bubble tea as a reward at the end.
Hopefully the tea gives them some renewed energy. It’s only lunchtime, and we’ve got plans back at the Junior High. More to come!…