The Week Ahead

Lunchtime breaks at Wellington College International Hangzhou are undergoing a dramatic and exciting change over the next few weeks. Progressive multinational employers like Google, Accenture, Hilton and Facebook long ago realised that to support their employees to work their hardest and reach the pinnacle of their capacity for creative thought, the employees needed to be encouraged to take breaks from their work during the day. But unfortunately, many employees do not take breaks at work. Instead, they grab a sandwich while typing emails or rush a coffee while replying to WeChat messages. These behaviours are not healthy, nor do they produce the optimum conditions for work or, in our context - for learning.

Knowing this and observing our pupils on a break but not relaxing has compelled me to try something new. The Common Room is being set up with a range of board games and card games to play, plus table tennis, a pool table and table football. Pupils learn about healthy competition, collaboration, and turn-taking, and they have fun while relaxing in between their lessons. Outside, we are also encouraging a greater range of physical pursuits, including dodgeball, basketball, ultimate frisbee, table tennis and badminton. A healthy body leads to a healthy mind. By facilitating opportunities for engaging with physical activity, we help promote a lifelong love of sport and skill development, plus the achievement of physical health and success. Please rest assured, these activities have one very clear intention. They are to ensure our pupils relax and recharge to reach the absolute pinnacle of academic excellence in their learning. An additional bonus from my perspective is that we insist that any pupil who enjoys these activities must speak in English while playing frisbee, Monopoly, basketball or uno, further promoting our agenda of English immersion and supporting the vital development of basic interpersonal communication skills. Everyone is a winner with the Wellington College International Hangzhou lunchtime activities programme.

Stewart Brown

Head of Senior School

What do we want for our children? A summary of most parents' answers would be "to be happy and healthy". So what do we do at Wellington College Hangzhou to help build our pupils into happy and healthy individuals?

A relatively younger field of scientific research is that of positive psychology. It is the study of what makes life most worth living and aims to improve the quality of life. Our new and exciting Wellbeing course is based on the PEEC - Positive Education Enhanced Curriculum. This is a research-based explicit positive education curriculum that has been designed by world-renowned researchers in the field of positive psychology and through years of practical experience at Geelong Grammar School in Melbourne, Australia. Schools worldwide are now adopting this programme to support their learners. 

These classes are not necessarily what pupils are used to and perhaps sit outside the vision of a 'traditional' lesson. Children's time is often spent reacting to others' demands - time to go to school, finish homework, or learn a hobby, but they are rarely given the time to stop and reflect on themselves. These lessons are an excellent opportunity for the learners to think about themselves, their character and how they want to be in the future. The programme is designed to equip pupils with skills and a way of thinking to be happier in life. 

I am looking forward to delivering this curriculum next year and witnessing its positive results in our learners. I can think of no better education than one that teaches our children to be happy.

Upcoming Events

 

 

Undergraduate Taster Series

 

 

 

 

 

University of Chicago virtual visit

 

Join current students as they lead a session highlighting important places on UChicago's campus while tying in the student experience both socially and academically. Bring your questions and get ready for some fun stories!

Date: Monday 6 June

Time: 2:00pm Central Daylight Time (3:00am China time)

Link here

 

 

University of Chicago Virtual Student Salon

 

Join us for a personal discussion with our current students to learn more about student life and academics at UChicago. These virtual gatherings are intended to mimic the small class sizes found on our campus. They will offer the opportunity to connect with current students and fellow applicants in real-time. Bring your questions about campus life, and be prepared for a lively conversation. Please note that UChicago Student Salons are only available for prospective students.

 

Date: Tuesday 7 June, 2022

Time: 6:00pm Central Daylight Time (7:00am China time) 

Link here

 

Hatty Leung

Head of Sixth Form

As we enter into the final six weeks of the academic year, distractions and stress can increase for pupils. Teachers and leaders, we are well aware of this busier schedule and teach resilience, perseverance and coping strategies explicitly through our PEEC curriculum.

PEEC is an acronym for Positive Education Enhanced Curriculum. It is a curriculum that has been designed to support teachers and value-add to their practice wisdom and experience in delivering Positive Education.

We recognise that every classroom is different. The relationship and rapport that a teacher has with their pupils is the best Positive Education tool available. That is why it is important to customise these lessons to best suit the needs of our pupils. These lessons are well-researched, but the personal stories and the safe environment that a teacher facilitates are paramount.

Below, our Assistant Head, Megan Gallagher, guides us through an introduction:

Matthew Coleman
Head of Primary School

Countless studies have proven that children playing together is critical for developing their social skills. At Wellington College Hangzhou, we ensure our pupils develop core skills such as empathy, trust and respect for others to help them to grow into happy, healthy and well-rounded adults. 

We do this by employing different methods of play: 

As a result of this play, it is our goal to promote in them many different values of:

Timothy Schulze

Head of PE

Martin Bailey

Dukebox Presenter