Out and About – S1-S3 English Project Week
English learning is not confined to classrooms. To promote inquiry-based learning and broaden their learning horizons, the English Department took our S1-S3 students out of their classrooms for some learning activities in January. This week was filled with fun and enriched students’ learning experience.
S1 Visits to Hong Kong Central Library
A library visit for each S1 English group has been arranged in September with the aim of introducing S1 students to our recently renovated library, in particular the English book collections, the special rooms and the equipment they can access. Students were in awe with the breathtaking sea view, reader-friendly furniture and the tranquil environment, and were given guidance by their English teacher to borrow their first book for Extensive Reading Scheme, stimulating their interest in patronizing the library at school.
Class 1B visiting Hong Kong Central Library with their English teachers
To further reinforce their reading habit, S1 students were taken by different classes to visit Hong Kong Central Library from the 13th to 19th of January, during which a guided library tour was arranged for them to learn about how to use various resources at the library. After their library research, students were engaged in an individual presentation project about a historical figure of their own choice based on the reading materials they gathered.
Guided tours conducted by the librarian from Hong Kong Central Library
S2 movie appreciation
Students filing into the cinema excitedly
On the 20th of January, S2 students went to MCL South Horizons Cinema to enjoy a cinematic experience together as part of their project on film studies. They watched the movie Strange World that explores big themes including families and respecting our living worlds through its spectacular visual effects and an allegory comparing environmental changes to the human immune system. The movie presented not only a thrilling and entertaining afternoon, but also a thought-provoking lesson to students.
S2 students’ movie appreciation experience in the cinema
S2 students worked on their film studies project,
presenting their ideas in multimodal texts (2A Yack Man Hei & 2A Zhu Tsz Kwan)
S3 Wetland Park Visit
Hong Kong Wetland Park highlighting flora and fauna and conservation
On the 13th of January, S3 visited the Hong Kong Wetland Park as part of the English Department's Project Week. Students were assigned a project considering how to persuade the Civil Engineering and Development Department of the Hong Kong government not to build public housing on the Wetland Park. Although the government does not really have such a proposal, the fictional situation allowed students to engage well with their surroundings at the Wetland Park and think critically about Hong Kong's housing problem. Seeing bats, black-faced spoonbills and fiddler crabs, students were inspired by the importance of preserving our environment and protecting animal habitats.
Students taking photographs and filming footage for their project
At the end of the project, it was clear that the experience of visiting the Wetland Park had not only raised students' motivation and interest, but also been enjoyable.
S3 students inspired by the visit to Hong Kong Wetland Park
Excerpt from student’s video presentation:
‘The government built a bridge called the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge, which connects Hong Kong, Zhuhai and Macau. It scared the pink dolphins in the process of infrastructure development because of underwater noise disturbance from construction and boat traffic. The animals that live in the Wetland Park will suffer from the same problem. Therefore, public housing should not be built on the Wetland Park.’
– 3A Ip Sze Wing Natalie, Lo Wai Yan Kitty & Chau Man Kiu Katie