China

Confucius Classroom

In 2010, we were designated as one of only 40 schools in England to be a Confucius Classroom school.

Supported by the Specialist Schools and Acadamies Trust and the Hanban Insitute of Beijing University, we have been provided with a Chinese teacher and a wealth of resources to introduce Mandarin and an understanding of Chinese heritage and culture to our studetns and the wider community.

Our current Chinese teacher, Miss Yuan, joined us in November 2010 and has made a huge impression on school. She has taught Mandarin to all of our Year 8 students as part of their languages carousel as well as some Year 9 students. She also co-ordinated a range of activities to celebrate the Chinese New Year, organised our official launching ceremony, supported the Year 6 induction process with Chinese lessons and ran regular weekly extra-curricular activities including Mandarin Club and Tai-chi Fan Club.

More widely, she has supported Chinese national students at Stockton Sixth Form College and worked with a number of our local primary schools to support their global awareness initiatives.

As well as teaching Mandarin, she has taught our children all about New Year celebrations, customs and beliefs, tai-chi fan, how to make Chinese dumplings, calligraphy, zodiac beliefs, Beijing opera and much more.

Although we  will be sad to see Miss Yuan leave us in the Summer, we are delighted that in the Autumn 2011 we will be welcoming two Chinese teachers, including a representative from No 25 School, Shijiazhuang. This means that we can build on the work undertaken this year and offer more exciting opportunities to our local schools, families and the wider community.