Learning Through Song
It has been an exceptional week here at Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai. This week, the pupils in all Early Years’
classes sang for their parents and extended families; an emotional event for some yet a chance to shine for all. To sing
in front of an audience can be a daunting prospect for a seasoned performer. To sing in front of an audience when you
are 2, 3 or 4 years old, relatively new to a setting and new to a language is to be both acknowledged and celebrated.
Our pupils sing every day, the whole year group gathering together in the library, reception or multimedia room to
choose their favourite songs and learn new ones. The repertoire increases every week, as does the confidence of the
pupils. By promoting
Learning Through Song, we expect that the
pupils will not only increase their vocabulary in English and Chinese, learn amazing facts about the world around them,
reinforce numeracy and literacy skills and appreciate a time to be silly (please do ask your child about Miss Vanessa’s
green frog song) but they will also become increasingly confident in themselves. When a child sees an adult enjoying
singing and performing, they see it as a positive experience. There is no embarrassment, no self-awareness, only
feelings of self-esteem and confidence. Our teaching teams are wonderful role models in that they actively encourage
participation regardless of ability – enthusiasm is key, all children can sing and this is to be nurtured, promoted and
celebrated at every opportunity. Please do ensure you come and see your child sing when you can. Singing for the
families will be a regular occurrence every month, the reminder dates will be sent through the Wellington Weekly.
Introducing the class logos – our own Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai identity
I was delighted to introduce you to our Wellington Values logos last week. The stickers are already on order and Nikki
Street (EY3 Teacher and Wellbeing Co-Ordinator) has been working closely with Jane Williams (Curriculum Co-ordinator) on
supporting the teams as they introduce the concept of wellbeing throughout the setting, signposting discrete
opportunities to embed the values in to curricular activities and learning opportunities.
We understand the need for the pupils to have a visual identity, something that they recognise as theirs and this is
crucial to their sense of belonging and the acknowledgement of where they are within the world. To support this, we
decided that the classes would each have a class logo, a visual reference point within the setting that would be
consistently used. Once again, I must credit this
to
Jackie Saha who led on the graphic design, bringing
our vision to life. As with the values logos, these class logos are simple images, appealing to children and beautifully
coloured. Over the next few weeks, you will see them start to adorn our Wellington tree, situated on the staircase in
the library. The pupils will then add to the tree over the course of the academic year with their works of art, bringing
it to life.
Parent Representatives have been appointed!
We are so pleased to be able to announce our twelve parent representatives for this academic year. Having Wellington
parents represent the Wellington families strengthens our partnership, supports communication between the College and
the community and affords parents the opportunity of getting more involved in College life, creating a greater sense of
belonging for all. In addition to the parent representatives being the link between the College and the parent body, the
representatives have also been asked to volunteer for specific roles, including:
- Events
- Finance
- Food committee
- Communication
Important News – EdFest is only a few weeks away!
Who would have thought that only six months after our official opening, we would be venturing in to offering our first
Education Festival, specifically designed to meet the interests of our Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai families.
We are delighted to announce that our speakers are coming to Shanghai from all around the globe, intent on bringing
their wealth of experience and expertise to our setting. EdFest at the bilingual setting runs over two days (19th &
20th October), in conjunction with the Education Festival (http://www.festivalofeducation.cn) event at the International
School which follows (21st & 22nd October). This is an exceptional opportunity to hear world-class speakers – don’t
miss out! Over the coming days, our parents will be given opportunity to purchase early bird tickets to the bilingual
event. The cost of a ticket (for one day) is RMB100 – there are limited tickets available.
Here’s a taster of what you can expect at Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai:
Wednesday 19th October
- How to Help My Child Succeed in Life: Redefining Success with Sheri Hansen, Co-founder of Character Education
International (CEI) Hansen
- An Hour in the Life of Early Years at Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai with our own team of educators,
Vanessa Szucs-hussain, Yuki Gong, Jane Williams
- Move It Monsters: Physical Activity in Children Ages 2-6 with Ilija Dimitrovsk, GPPT, BScPT, Physiotherapist/ Lead
Physical Therapist at Olivia’s Place
- Understanding the Connection Between: Learning, Child Behaviour & the Power of Positive Reinforcement with
Jamie Fanelli, MSEd; Learning & Behavior Support Lead at Olivia’s Place
- Build a Sustainable World with our Youth with Terance Lai, Co-founder of Creatry creative consultancy ltd co, and
a sustainable design innovator
- Will your child be ready for the sustainable future? How do we prepare our children for a world driven by change?
with Karlen Chang, Co-Founder of mixMotion, a design firm focused on bridging the digital world with the physical
world
- Being a Wellingtonian: How Wellington prepares you to succeed with Harry Randall, Old Wellingtonian and
‘Wellington College ambassador’
Thursday 20th October
- Stories and Singing for Language Acquisition / Home Learning for School Learning – Sue Carpenter, Principal, Dubai
British Foundation
- Learning to Learn / Building Character – Michelle Stone, Head Teacher of an Outstanding First School, UK
- Creativity and Play / Learning Through Play – Clair Watson, Education Consultant, Seychelles
- The Wellington Character – Harry Randall, Old Wellingtonian, Wellington College UK
- The Changing Landscape of Education in China: The Wellington Perspective – Dr Ahmed Hussain, Director of Schools,
Wellington College China
Please do keep checking for updates – this event is not to be missed.
We are closed for National Day Holidays from Monday 3rd – Wednesday 5th October. We look forward to welcoming you back on Thursday 6th October. Enjoy the break.
