The epidemic made the students start online learning again, but it could not stop their learning enthusiasm. The students from SHSID Pudong Campus have gradually adapted to their online learning at home since March of this year. Various meaningful activities have been carried out in their online morning homeroom meetings and PG classes, to enrich their daily life and inject new energy into their growth.

The whole day’s work depends on a good start in the morning. Grade one to three students at SHSID Pudong Campus all start their E-learning days with happy morning meetings.

Grade One

Grade one teachers set different themes for each morning meeting. On Monday, weekly stars were announced by teachers to commend the first graders’ excellent performance during the online-learning period. Apart from that, many fun games, such as Scavenger Hunt, Zoomed-in Zoomed-out, Dance & Freeze, and many more, were prepared for them to power up. Tuesday and Wednesday mornings themed on reading, teachers read Chinese and English stories separately on the two days, so that the students could develop a habit of reading and enjoy reading. In Thursday’s morning meeting, students focused on English writings full of imagination with their teachers. On Friday, the show and tell day, the children could happily display their favorite toys, books, or anything fun to the camera and introduce them! They not only had fun in these activities, but also improved their reading and presentation skills.

Grade Two

Every day is a special day. The second-grade morning meetings always start with the question “What’s the special today?” The answer could be the Qingming Festival, the International Museum Day, the International Nurse Day, etc. After introducing the stories or the history for the special day, teachers and students had a lot of fun activities throughout the week, such as mini talent show, book recommendation, meeting with Music or Art teachers, making a story with teachers, and more! Meanwhile, the second graders had the chance to choose their own morning activity theme by trading dojos points which they have earned during their online courses. Some liked making crafts, some chose to learn a recipe, and some decided to read a favorite book. Everyone showed independence, leadership and great talents. They were not limited by distance at all!

Grade Three

The third-grade teachers also prepared different special themes and activities for each day through the week. In Monday’s homeroom meeting, apart from the weekly stars, students also watched the pleasant Art Gallery videos, in which they showed their exquisite artworks made in last week’s art class. On Tuesday, the versatile 3rd graders watched their interesting online mini talent show videos, after which everyone participated actively to share their feelings and reflections. Then came the most popular Wednesday homeroom meeting! The beloved music and art teachers were invited as secret guests to bring students fun class activities. On Thursday, the reading day, students and teachers shared books they read recently. They were able to explore more genres by finding the recommended books that interested them in class Epic. As the last school day of the week, the third-grade students enjoyed the sporty meeting in the early morning. Nothing is more refreshing in the morning than fun exercises. They love Friday, not just because the weekend is around the corner, but also because they could earn the invitations for the joyful tea party afternoon. The students who turned in homework on time were invited to the class tea party. They could have special snacks, catch up with their friends, and watch fun videos together online. If we can’t see each other at school, let’s meet up online!

Through weekly online PG classes, the fourth and fifth grade students have gained the joy of growth in emotion management, social communication, and even life skills since online learning started.

Grade Four

During online learning, grade four teachers have paid great attention to students’ mental health. It’s a well-known fact that staying connected keeps us mentally healthy. The first thing we often want when we relax is a connection with the people we enjoy spending time with. G4 teachers introduced to students various ways they can stay connected with the people who matter most to them when meeting face-to-face isn’t an option. Students can take a virtual tour of museums around the world or design a virtual fashion show. Students also came up with some more good ideas such as drawing pictures and chatting online with friends. They’ve recorded and screenshot their time together and posted their moments in the forum.

Grade Five

The fifth-grade students, as the seniors of Pudong campus, received a special task in PG class—sharing housework with their parents. They shared house cleaning work, took care of pets and plants, and even became family chefs. The recipes provided by teachers every week were deeply loved by the students, which helped them become masters of desserts! Every single job required their true effort, and by doing these tasks students learned to enjoy and cherish family time. In addition, the students shared their learning strategies about taking notes and time management on the linkedClassroom platform in PG class. Although they can’t meet each other in person, from their words, we feel that the students’ independent learning ability is constantly improving.

All kinds of wonderfully themed morning meetings and PG classes have played a positive role in helping students form good habits, enrich their daily life, adjust emotions and improve their life skills, connecting students and teachers with love and support. We wish that every student grows happily in our online classes and we look forward to the day we can meet again on our beautiful campus!

Written by｜Deng Yan, Yang Qingjia, Li Haoruo, Zhang Lei, Jia Lu

Pictures by｜Pudong Campus Teachers and Student Parents

Edited by｜Huang Shiyuan, Kristjan Butler