2016 - Blog CED

English lessons at the summer camp at Thực Nghiệm School

English lessons at the summer camp at Thực Nghiệm School. The summer camp was held from the 20th to the 24th at Thuc Nghiem School where students from around Hanoi participated. At the camp, I was teaching English for about one hour a day, therefore, the English classes and the instructions for them were the main parts I got to be involved in during the camp which was a lot of fun with all of the kids!<br />
<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>I mainly taught the older students at the camp, which was really fun. For the teaching, I mainly focused on having the students speak in English and having conversations with each other while doing activities and playing games. The students were very enthusiastic to learn through games and mainly benefitted in terms of becoming more comfortable in speaking English.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">I had a lot of fun with the students</span></td></tr>
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On the first day, we focused on games and activities where the students got to introduce themselves and got to know each other. To begin with I let the students ask me a bunch of questions to let them speak English, which also worked well for introducing me. The questions from the students varied from where I was from and what I was doing in Hanoi – and all together it proved that the students were very good in English already and ready to communicate and participate in the lessons! Other than that I had the students get in two lines and gave them one question at a time, they had to discuss or introduce to the person standing opposite of them where they changed partner for each question. This worked well in making sure that everyone got to say hello and talk to each other! Lastly, we had a bit of time left to let the students identify parts of a drawing of a Volcano, related to the science class they had earlier in the day.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">The students were very good in English and ready to participate in the lessons</span></td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>On the second and third day, we continued playing games and doing activities that were both fun, educational and had the students speak English. Both the Tuesday and Wednesday lesson, we started out the class by being in a circle and having each student tell around 3-5 interesting facts about themselves – it varied how fun the students found this activity, but they did get to express themselves which was the point of the activity. Some of the students were also very engaged and kept telling more facts even when they had reached the 3 facts limit – which was great! The games and activities on those days included a board race game where the students were split into two teams and one person at a time had to run to the board and write a word related to the subject on the board. The subject could be verbs, adjectives, grammar or animals. These subjects could probably have been improved and be more educational, if they related more to a topic the children had just learned or something they could have learned at the camp. However, it was very fun to watch the children run to the board and compete to be the team with the most words within the set time limit.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">The students very especially in fast-paced games where they could win a prize</span></td></tr>
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Another activity we did in class was dividing the students into teams and having each group pick two objects – without knowing which objects – where they had to create a product out of those two objects and come up with a business plan to sell it. The groups were provided with a piece of paper for writing down their business plan, where they all started creating an advertisement on the paper, without instructions to do so. The objects could include a ruler and a thread which became a ‘Mobile Ruler’ that could be around your neck, meaning you always had a ruler ready. The students were very engaged and created some very interesting products. The team with the best business plan won the activity, which was once again a good way to engage the students. Especially, if there are prices on the line!<br />
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On Thursday, I had prepared a game on multi culture using a PowerPoint and questions with pictures and facts; both one for the older students and one for the younger students. For the younger students, the questions were a bit easier and one of the Vietnamese volunteers was very kind to translate each question for the younger students. In the younger class, the individual student simply had to raise their hand if they knew the answer, where the older class competed in teams. This was a good way to end the English lessons, where the activity was mostly a game but the students still got to show their knowledge and expand it a bit. Friday was a movie day, where we all watched a movie in Vietnamese - luckily with English subtitles! This was very nice with all of the kids.<br />
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Every day, the students were very motivated and happy to be doing something for the summer holidays. The outcome for the students from the English lessons could have been improved with a few adjustments though. I think that the outcome of the English lessons could be improved, if others - who will teach in the future at the camp - are provided with a clear outline or simple guidance from the beginning on what the teachers would like for the students to be taught. The main instructions I got from the beginning was to have the students speak English. It worked out well in class that the students got to speak in English and became more comfortable expressing themselves in English. Another time, instructions on different topics for the ones teaching could result in the classes both being more informative for the students which could be integrated more directly in some fun activities where the students speak English. Since I was unaware of the level of the students and what they had been taught beforehand; therefore, I think that I could personally have made the classes better, if I had been told that the students needed to learn something about for example past tense or a specific topic, which could have been integrated in some games.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Every day the students were very motivated and happy</span></td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>From the other volunteers, I was told that one of the problems with how classes are organized in Vietnam is that students are taught that speaking in the classroom is bad, meaning that they are generally not encouraged to talk in class. Thinking back to my own education in Denmark, raising your hand, group work, presentations etc. acted as the main way of not only improving our English communication skills but also make us more aware of how to express ourselves on different topics. During the classes, it was impressive how a lot of the students were very motivated to speak in English during the lessons and quickly, they were all speaking all at once.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">They were also very motivated to speak English</span></td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>It was clear however, that the students were very motivated to speak English! On the first day of teaching, many of the students would run up to me and introduce themselves and as the days passed, more and more would say hi and come up to me and ask me questions. The students were very interested in speaking English and it also seemed very useful and motivating for them to have someone from abroad at the camp, which meant that they had to speak in English due to my lack of Vietnamese skills. I think that it is a benefit when the goal is for the students to speak English to have international volunteers for the English classes if it is possible.<br />
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<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>All over, even though the students could have benefitted from a bit more specific learning - the students were very motivated and engaged and enjoyed getting to practice communicating in English during the camp and had a lot of fun for the entirety of the camp and it was clear they also had fun during the other activities at the camp!<br />
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<b><i>By Rebeca</i></b><br />
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English lessons at the summer camp at Thực Nghiệm School

English lessons at the summer camp at Thực Nghiệm School. The summer camp was held from the 20th to the 24th at Thuc Nghiem School where stu...

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Learning and Games at the Summer Camp in Ba Vi National Park

Learning and Games at the Summer Camp in Ba Vi National Park. From the 13th to the 17th of June, CED together with Thuc Nghiem School held its summer camp for secondary students of different ages from Thuc Nghiem School. The camp took place at Ba Vi National Park, which provided a perfect opportunity for the students to get closer to nature and explore. I was very lucky to get to go with CED to the summer camp.<br />
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<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>We took a bus to the camp from Hanoi where we arrived in Ba Vi National Park soon after and the activities, lessons and games began. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">All of the children and volunteers as we have arrived in Ba Vi National Park</span><br />
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Each day of the camp included a science lesson, where the students would get to work on their own projects. On the first day, the children were split into teams, which they would work with for the rest of the summer camp. Each group had one of the Vietnamese volunteers guiding their group throughout the camp, which worked well as there was always someone to help the students if they had questions and provided them with a helping hand. For the science classes, the students were very good at working together in groups and complete their work with only a few distractions where they would start playing games. The lessons also included showing the children different experiments. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">There was always someone to help the students if they had questions and provided them with a helping hand</span></td></tr>
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Besides the daily science lessons, the days spent at the camp also included several activities and other lessons each day. The activities included dancing and games, where the students really participated and had fun. It also became quite clear that making the activities into a competition was a good way to motivate the students – especially if it involved prices for the winning team! Prices would always make the students compete just a bit more and shout the correct answer just a little louder. The other lessons included a recycling class, a multicultural class and an arts class among more. These were a good mix of letting the students learn something but also participate and get their hands on while being creative and creating something new out of recycled things. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Some of the lovely artwork made by the students in recycling class</span></td></tr>
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Before dinner time each night, there would be sporting activities on a court where many of the boys had fun playing football and both girls and boys played badminton. They all had a lot of fun doing this and it was a nice break for all. One aspect that could be considered for the future was that few of the girl students joined and few of the female volunteers joined. The ones doing the sport had a lot of fun and it seemed like a very good break for the students doing something together which did not necessarily involve learning something. Another time, I think it would be beneficial to get more of the girls to join in on the activities – either by having a separate team for girls playing football or other sports they prefer. Thinking back to my own time doing outdoor activities as a kid in Denmark, the sporting activities were definitely a good way to bond with others, have fun as well as be more fresh and active. Many times it would be obligatory that everyone participated in different sports where there would be the means to have everyone participate and choose from many different sports.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">The students playing badminton and an intense game of football in the background</span></td></tr>
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On Wednesday we all did a hiking trip in the beautiful park where we passed by some waterfalls, lakes and lots of beautiful nature. The hiking trip was very good for the students, where a ranger was guiding them and giving them information about some of the plants we passed by and animal life in the lakes. This worked very well as an outdoor activity where the students got to interact with nature while learning something from the ranger. At the same time, it also seemed like a nice break from the classes for the students to have in the middle of the week.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYAKfd2HYiFFLWS5_8GxsAZzPBdRJETX5mPZX_e6RyhgUillCnW8npP6GC5dH7ACwfniPIucK0gjUHMgJ_B6A2drn-q_hSqeUM4RUpDT_VslO4N82Xt649MEQWu7PrpBx1lMYrcTjkHmVi/w584-h440-no/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYAKfd2HYiFFLWS5_8GxsAZzPBdRJETX5mPZX_e6RyhgUillCnW8npP6GC5dH7ACwfniPIucK0gjUHMgJ_B6A2drn-q_hSqeUM4RUpDT_VslO4N82Xt649MEQWu7PrpBx1lMYrcTjkHmVi/w584-h440-no/" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">We all did a hiking trip in the beautiful park where we passed by some waterfalls, lakes and lots of beautiful nature</span></td></tr>
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Overall, the lessons and activities were the students got to interact, be active and observe meant that the students were very motivated and active. This showed me that this education based method of interaction and observation was very good for the students and proved very useful for effectively learning something besides all that is in their textbooks.<br />
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One aspect that I would like to emphasize which could be improved would be to include more hands-on experiments, where the students themselves would get to perform experiments or take advantage of the many benefits of being in Ba Vi National Park. When I look back to my own time in school, we would often collects plants from forests nearby or look into different animals by a lake. These were both a good break for getting some fresh air and at the same time, learn something about science in practice. Of course considering the hot and humid climate in summer, the camp in Ba Vi could for example include letting the students do experiments outside or do science projects which included collecting plants or finding different types of animals. This would both give the students a break and give them some hands-on experience – while they would still learn a lot by applying it to their science projects.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4w9nnmQXIgQfVYB9jBSZhvw1vS1kDfw-oCGdBORrhTI-W8XdvWWT91Nd0x2EHTyKwnTUZsIwhz6N2e8Fupim21n7PMmIWd42s7btGw3gj0F47Z7m2PnkzNuFkxOYb1TlU5GMxZAL2-e66/w558-h420-no/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4w9nnmQXIgQfVYB9jBSZhvw1vS1kDfw-oCGdBORrhTI-W8XdvWWT91Nd0x2EHTyKwnTUZsIwhz6N2e8Fupim21n7PMmIWd42s7btGw3gj0F47Z7m2PnkzNuFkxOYb1TlU5GMxZAL2-e66/w558-h420-no/" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">From the five days at the summer camp, I gained the impression that all the young students were very interested in and motivated to speak English</span></td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>From the five days at the summer camp, I gained the impression that all the young students were very interested in and motivated to speak English. Already on the bus ride to the national park, some of the students were quick to invite me to sit next to them and no sooner, had they started introducing themselves and asking me questions in English. During the days at the camp as well, more and more of the students let go of their sometimes ‘shy-shell’ to begin with and approached me with lots of smiles and questions. The students were very open and it was very clear that they were very interested in communicating in English. It became clear early on that in terms of the students speaking English and their motivation to do, it was very beneficial that there were a few international volunteers at the camp as well whom the children had to communicate with in English. It is definitely something to consider in the future, if there are volunteers from abroad as the children just kept getting bolder and bolder and definitely better and better at speaking in English!  </div>
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The summer camp was a good mix of different activities, games, lessons and the students where everything was arranged where the students had a lot of fun and made new friendships while both learning and playing!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Me and another volunteer, Trang, also participated a bit in the arts class although it wasn’t nearly as</span><br />
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 pretty as the students’ work. :)</div>
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<b><i>By  Rebeca</i></b><br />
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Learning and Games at the Summer Camp in Ba Vi National Park

Learning and Games at the Summer Camp in Ba Vi National Park. From the 13th to the 17th of June, CED together with Thuc Nghiem School held i...