Create high-quality English context, discover children’s highlights, and lead students to go global

Fung Kai Innovative School With the core of cultivating students' biliteracy and trilingualism and improving students' inquiry and innovative thinking, students can become confident, loving and SMART SUPER STARs. "PEACE" is the general direction of education at Fung Kai Innovative School, which respectively represents Positive Education, English, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Chinese Culture and Experiential Learning. The English represented by "E" is very important to children. Principal Liu Liqing believes that immersive English learning can provide students with a strong English learning atmosphere. Therefore, the school provides children with rich learning resources and diversified English learning experiences, arranges strategic curriculum planning, and leads students to international middle schools, etc., so that they can improve their English skills through practice and experience, and also allow them to face the world and expand their knowledge.

Step-by-step course planning to lay a good foundation in English

In terms of English curriculum planning, the school adopts a step-by-step teaching strategy to help students lay a foundation in English at the junior primary stage. Starting from the first grade, the class teacher will guide students to use English naturally, arouse their interest in learning English, and get used to using English in daily life, making it a part of their lives. The school encourages students to interact with foreign English teachers so that they can have basic English communication skills and be willing to integrate English language into their lives.

Principal Liu pointed out: "If we want to improve students' English proficiency, reading is a key." Therefore, in the first grade, the school first arranges for foreign teachers to conduct an international standard reading proficiency test (PM Benchmark) for each student to evaluate their English reading ability. In the second grade, the school launches "Guided Reading", which divides students in each class into four groups based on their reading ability and English level. They are assigned English books suitable for their learning levels and taught them question-answering skills to better connect to upper primary school English courses.

As students move from primary school to high school, transitioning to secondary school is their key concern. Therefore, starting from the fourth grade, the school curriculum planning will make special arrangements and adaptive teaching, and carry out targeted treatment to integrate English into the learning content of different subjects. For example, students are arranged to read STEAM-related English books so that they can be exposed to more English vocabulary in different areas in advance. This not only expands students' knowledge areas, but also helps them to enter English secondary schools in the future.

Cooperate with international schools to broaden international horizons

Principal Liu uses resources flexibly to create a better educational environment, broaden students' horizons, and help them equip themselves early. To this end, the school has launched cooperation and exchanges with the international school International College Hong Kong ("ICHK"). Principal Liu said: "In the past, ICHK only cooperated with other international schools, but they appreciated our educational philosophy and held the concept of helping students and being student-oriented, which prompted the two parties to establish a cooperative relationship." Fung Kai Innovative School is the first Hong Kong subsidized primary school to cooperate with ICHK. In September, the school arranged for sixth-grade students to go to ICHK for experiential learning. ICHK carried out learning activities in conjunction with the school's school-based curriculum, such as STEAM teaching, and arranged for students to attend experience classes at the school, taking the opportunity to experience the life of an international school.

As for the next semester, ICHK’s middle school students will come to school to attend classes with the children, organize activities together, and enhance communication with each other. Through this experience, students are not limited to local middle schools, but have the opportunity to understand the teaching model of international schools. On the one hand, the learning environment of international schools can help students immerse themselves in the English context. Through communication and exchanges with teachers and students of international schools, they can apply the English knowledge and skills learned in the classroom; on the other hand, it can help them establish an international perspective and understand the big world and the practicality of English as an international language. The school hopes that students will use this as a foundation to provide them with more possibilities when they enter higher education in the future.

AI learning platform inspires children’s creativity

E-learning can help improve learning and teaching effectiveness. In order to improve students' English writing skills, schools introduce AI platforms for English writing. This platform is different from other systems that assist in writing and correcting articles. It is a learning tool that can be used to inspire children's creativity and improve their English skills. Students only need to input English writing content, and the platform can generate a four-frame comic based on text prompts. On the one hand, it trains their English writing and expression skills. On the other hand, it provides more picture assistance during the writing process to help their creative thinking and imagination, and inspire children's creative thinking. Principal Liu said: "When children find that they can generate a picture through their own creativity, they will have a great sense of success."

Designing diversified and enriching courses to unleash your potential and demonstrate your strengths

Principal Liu said: "In addition to studying, children actually have a lot of room for development. The school hopes to help them have more opportunities to express and develop." For students who are more advanced in English, the school provides them with appropriate and diverse enrichment courses. For example, English drama, debate and writing classes are offered to enable students to further develop their English talents. Students benefit a lot from enrichment courses and can fully demonstrate their talents in areas of interest and achieve success in different fields. For example, he won the third place in the English Debate Competition; he won the Outstanding Stage Effect Award, Outstanding Collaboration Award, Outstanding Ensemble Performance Award and Outstanding Actor Award in the 2023-2024 Hong Kong School Drama Festival. Students in the English writing class also created their own masterpieces and completed an English e-book. Some students even won the top three places in the preliminary and finals of the 2023-2024 Canadian English Writing Contest "Yazhuo Cup", and won the runner-up and third runner-up in the finals.

Create a display stage and use English confidently

Language is a tool for communication between people. If you want to learn English well, "dare to speak" is a key. The school actively creates a platform for students to demonstrate their skills and cultivate their confidence in English conversation. The school specially trains English Leaders and arranges them to participate in different activities, such as serving as tour guides when guests visit or visit the school. Principal Liu said: "This experience is like an internship. In addition to training in English, it is also a training in leadership and confidence. Children can confidently communicate with others in English when facing parents, teachers, and even interviews." In addition, the school allows students with relatively outstanding English skills to host English morning gatherings to train their courage and adaptability.

Hire multiple foreign English teachers and experiential activities to add fun

The school is committed to creating an international English learning atmosphere, hiring 4 foreign English teachers, and adding additional foreign teachers during special events. For example, in the "SUPER STARS English Training Day" held in mid-August every year, 30 foreign English teachers participate to lead prospective primary school students and interact with them in English. English Leaders will also serve as student assistants in the event to help the event go smoothly and apply what they learn in the classroom to daily life. In addition, during festive events such as Christmas, Halloween or Easter, the school will also arrange for more foreign English teachers to come to the school to give students more opportunities to learn authentic English through interaction.

Rich learning experience and applying what you have learned in daily life

Learning is not necessarily limited to the classroom. Diversified English learning experience is also a way to learn English. The school organizes overseas trips to Australia every year to immerse children in the world of English and improve their listening and conversational skills. Students need to undergo an interview before participating in overseas travel in Australia, but not only those with the best grades can go. Some children may not be so confident about their English scores, but they can do it as long as they are willing to do what they say.

The school provides a series of rich and exciting English activities. For example, on Wednesday English Day, Starry Cafe will provide children’s favorite snacks or drinks to create a life-like situation. Under the guidance of foreign teachers, students use English to shop. During recess, foreign teachers also organize English activities for children. Students can go to the English room to play games, make crafts, dance and sing, etc. Principal Liu pointed out: "If you want children to learn well, you need to stimulate their learning motivation so that they will be interested in learning."

The school also arranges English × STEAM activities to conduct experiments with foreign teachers. Play, learn and use at the same time. There are different activities every day. Children can choose their favorite activities and gain a sense of satisfaction and competence. This allows them to understand that the English knowledge they learn in class can actually be used in daily life and playing games, and they will be more motivated to learn.