Time can seem to pass slowly in the lazy days of summer, but it goes by fast at Pao School's summer camp. Students are immersed in a wide range of activities that make learning fun - which is especially important when we're taking a break from school.As one student aptly commented, "I had a great time at Pao School's summer camp, learning about the school and Mr. YK Pao, studying English drama, meeting teachers (Joe, Ada) and classmates (Danny, Kris, Mathew).I felt like I have experienced some wonderful moments in these ten days!"
Every summer, Pao School offers a large selection of activities during its different camps. Not only do students act in plays, but they also study STEM, Chinese and English, try their hand at singing and playing the Ukulele, brush up on their baking skills and stay fit playing ultimate Frisbee.
2019｜Summer
One of the students' favourite summer camp is the Choral Course, during which they sing along to the teacher's piano playing. At the Wuding Campus, students study choral singing to learn about the rich expressiveness of music, build their teamwork skills and even improve their English - the language of many of the songs. During the afternoon, they spend time reading quietly in the library and also do an hour of exercise.
Al Shlosha D‘Varim is a Hebrew songThe meaning of the song is:the world needs truth, justice and peace. Pao School has a knack for making learning about Chinese culture fun, and this is especially true at summer camp, which includes a wide variety of related activities: Four Seasons Nursery Rhymes, Seasons in Tang Poems, Chinese idioms, The Wisdom of Chinese Knots, Interesting Chinese Numbers and Chopsticks, to name a few.
Learning "The Goose Poem": The poetry makes us feel like we're in the painting.
Chinese Residential Camp focuses on consolidating language learning through practical activities, allowing students to fully interact with native Chinese speakers and achieve language immersion learning. At the same time, in this course, cultural activities and drama performances boost students' awareness of Chinese culture and build their confidence in their ability to express themselves in Chinese.
Zheng Duoen, who lives with her family in South Korea (she normally speaks Korean) and comes back to Shanghai every summer, is in her third year at Chinese Culture Camp. She told us in fluent Chinese: "In the Chinese camp, I have met many new friends from different countries such as South Korea, the United States and Indonesia."Create your own advertising to promote food and drink sales
Students visit a grocery store as part of an activityShe keeps returning to Chinese Culture Camp because she can always learn something new, such as how to play "Journey to the West" in Chinese. She told her mother that it's really an interesting experience to study Mandarin at Pao School's summer camp.Zheng Duoen's Chinese is really impressive. She even knows how to use Chinese idioms correctly - no small feat for a non-native speaker!Selling goods to Chinese students
A Chinese summer camp student’s parents wrote a thank-you letter to the school following the child's completion of summer camp activities. In their letter, they lauded the camp's rich course content and skilful teaching methods, emphasizing that their child had an excellent experience which was both educational and fun. Every day when she returned from camp, she was in great spirits, they said.
On the Songjiang campus, in addition to the Chinese Cultural Camp, many campers come to learn English drama and science. Beyond the three hours daily subject-specific studies, the rest of the time at camp is spent engaged in a wide variety of activities,including different sports (swimming, ultimate frisbee), hand painting, cooking and music (learning to play musical instruments, studying about Shanghai's music culture). During the activities, students are often required to work in groups to develop their teamwork skills.
Open the student's summer camp journals and you will find that they have written down many happy memories from their experience.
"I have had a very enjoyable summer vacation at Pao School. Our teachers are always smiling, never angry, respectful and enthusiastic. I will always remember my great experience at summer camp – our school is the best!"
“My first drama class included a lot of fun games, which made it easy to fall in love with drama and acting. Our teacher taught us what we can and can't do on stage as well. The teacher taught us about the famous quote about drama - 'The show must go on.' Tomorrow will be the first time I act in a play on stage; I am so excited. I love acting!”
A key feature of Pao School's summer campis the presence of a junior counsellor, a Pao High School student who serves as a teaching assistant after a rigorous interview and selection process. During summer camp, junior counsellors can be seen everywhere on campus – taking the team through the classrooms, in the wellness centre to comfort homesick students, and in the library to help students with their homework. Junior counsellors play an integral role at camp, providing key support to both students and teachers. And it is clear from talking to them that the experience helps them grow as people.
