Cathy Lv (Y5A)
I came to Pao School from public school as a Year 5 student. During my first visit to the school, after taking the exam for transfer students, I recall clearly how I was pleasantly surprised by the cleanliness of the school’s bathroom. Not only was there hot running water, but there was no putrid odor either. There was even a toilet with a seat instead of a squat toilet. I told my mother when I returned home that day that I absolutely had to transfer to Pao School; ‘The bathroom is as clean as the bathroom in our home’, I told her.
After transferring to Pao School, I increasingly realised how it was a unique place.
Foreign teachers are interesting and have a sense of humor. They praise and encourage us.
Mr Jon, our English teacher – I still remember how he introduced himself and still laugh whenever I recall the introduction. He pretended to be serious and made a face, and said: ‘You’d better be careful. I am very awful’! What an unusual English teacher (in the best sense of ‘unusual’), I thought to myself. And I saw that there was more to English class than just learning vocabulary words and grammar. Mr Jon used many different methods to make us eager to learn, and he truly helped make us more knowledgeable people.
Mr Jon also taught us a class about the European Union. During one class about ancient Athens, Mr Jon told us that there were four classes of people who were not permitted to participate in the Athens Congress of Citizens: slaves, gentiles, women and men who were minors. Mr Jon asked us if he were in ancient Athens, could he participate in the Congress? Every student said he could. However, he replied with a sad face: ‘No, I could not, because I am the slave of my wife and baby’. Everyone laughed at the joke, and in this way we discovered it is possible to use humor to absorb and retain new knowledge.
Pao Chinese teachers are easygoing and friendly, and respect students
In our Chinese class (language class), we usually have group discussion. Teacher Lin hopes we can deepen our understanding through independent thinking. I like this method of learning very much. I remember during our first class, Teacher Lin explained her many requirements for the class to us. One of them was students should not use white-out liquid to correct their writing mistakes. Instead, she told us to cross out the mistake and write above it when writing with a pen or erase the mistake when writing with a pencil. One student asked her to explain the reason for this rule. I thought Teacher Lin would simply say: ‘Because these are the rules’. But instead she patiently explained the reasoning behind the rule. She told us white-out fluid is poisonous and harmful to children. I was surprised that she took the time to explain the reason for a rule.
Math class at Pao School is different too. It’s not just about doing exercises and drills. Teacher Fang always takes his/her time to explain the key points and usually lets students take turns to play teacher themselves. I like learning math in this more relaxed atmosphere. Teacher Fang usually uses students’ homework sheets as teaching materials, putting on the projector. For a time, she used the homework of a student named Yawen frequently. Another classmate, Amy, asked her why. I was at first concerned Teacher Fang would scold Amy for questioning her judgment. Instead, Teacher Fang explained that the mistakes Yawen made represented key misunderstandings and that they needed to be explained clearly (to help us avoid those types of mistakes in the future).
Our PE teacher Liu Kai is always smiling. Students call him “Niupai,” which sounds like his Chinese name. I often see him with students, who enjoy his company. One time I saw two students on his lap, two on his back, and one on his shoulder. As he was trying to make them get off of him, he dropped his mobile phone. Some kids tried to grab it, and yelled, ‘Niupai, Niupai, I want to eat niupai’! But Teacher Liu was not angry. He just tried to retrieve his phone. He is like a big brother to us.
Classmates are friendly and like sunshine to me
Nessa is the first good friend I made at Pao School. She warmly introduced the school to me. With her help, I slowly got used to life and classmates here. Also with her encouragement, I started to play volleyball and made the second volleyball team.
The first time I got a score of 100 on a math test, a tall girl came up to me at lunch. She said: ‘I am Lily from 5B. Are you Cathy from 5A? I heard you got 100 on the math test. You are excellent’. I saw she was sincere and felt extremely happy. When I first arrived at Pao School, I was a little embarrassed that my English level was below that of many other students. Lily’s words really brightened up my day.
All these memories have warmed my heart and made me love Pao School.
I believe that I will grow happily in Pao School.
