Lisa reflects on her summer at SPICE in Hong Kong

SPICE Programme (Hong Kong), Volunteers' Stories 28 Sep 2019

Lisa was chosen as one of the UK volunteers for SPICE this year, she is now back at Edinburgh University……..

This summer I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to travel to Hong Kong to volunteer for 7 weeks alongside 4 other UK students. I was volunteering with SPICE, a summer English programme for disadvantaged children. Looking back at my time, there are many highlights, experiences and challenges that I will always remember. Arriving in Hong Kong I was taken back by the beautiful scenery, the area we stayed in was residential but had great views. The accommodation was basic, but nice with a small kitchen and fridge we could use. The staff in the village were very helpful and the grounds were lovely, with a swimming pool and running track you could use if you wanted. There was also a big shopping mall with lots of food options and MTR station a 10 minute walk away from the which was really handy.

 

We spent the first two weeks of the trip getting to know the Hong Kong interns and planning the programmes. Each class was led by two Hong Kong interns and one UK volunteer. We helped to plan some activities, as well as practice delivering them. There was also time to explore Hong Kong during these two weeks.

Before I knew it, I was in the first of three schools taking a class, along with two Hong Kong interns. For each programme we taught a class of between 12 and 16 children aged 10-13, each programme lasting 7 days. The days were not like a traditional school day but consisted of fun activities to encourage the students to speak English through activities including games, crafts and sports.

A definite highlight for the kids (and adults!), were the outings to Epicland and Hong Kong Country Club, as children were able to have fun and try new activities, they otherwise wouldn’t have had the chance to.

Some classes were more challenging than others, with children ranging from having no English to being more able speakers. However, it was very rewarding to have a child progress from having little confidence to speak English at the start of the week, to chatting in English by the end of the week. Some children even taught us a bit of Cantonese!

The trip was a great way to experience life in Hong Kong and find out more about education, culture and the history of Hong Kong, compared to just spending a short holiday in tourist areas. Although this summer was not without its challenges, with Hong Kong facing its own political challenges, it did not ever feel unsafe. With the help of the locals we were able to keep ourselves up to date with what was taking place, it was a fascinating time and interesting to gain different perspectives on what was taking place. Overall, I would recommend SPICE programme to anyone who has the chance as it was an exciting an

SPICE Programme (Hong Kong)

28th September 2019

Lisa reflects on her summer at SPICE in Hong Kong

Lisa was chosen as one of the UK volunteers for SPICE this year, she is now back at Edinburgh University…….. This summer I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to travel to Hong Kong to volunteer for 7 weeks alongside 4 other UK students. I was volunteering with SPICE, a summer English programme for […]

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SPICE Programme (Hong Kong)

28th September 2019

The SPICE Programme in Hong Kong completed its fifth year this summer

The programme brought together 10 Hong Kong undergraduates and 5 UK undergraduates to run three 7-day fun English camps for a total of 240 children. Apart from competitions, activities and games in the classrooms they all spent the day at the Hong Kong Country Club, one of HK’s most exclusive members clubs as well as […]

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SPICE Programme (Hong Kong)

28th September 2019

Neil is now back in Edinburgh after his summer in Hong Kong

He reflects on the programme and has also prepared the short video below…….. The SPICE English programme makes so much difference to approximately 200 children over the 3 7-day long programmes which run through the summer, and it makes an enormous difference to the interns and volunteers involved too. It is a great opportunity to […]

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SPICE Programme (Hong Kong)

1st January 2019

Amos returns to university after his summer at SPICE

Amos who is from Singapore and studying engineering at Edinburgh joined other students from Edinburgh and Leeds in Hong Kong this summer and here he recounts his experience…….. What began as a mere ephemeral thought, became reality as I begun packing my bags for this two-month long adventure in Hong Kong. An adventure towards self-discovery, […]

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SPICE Programme (Hong Kong)

28th November 2018

A Video of the SPICE Summer Programme HK 2018

This video was taken by the coordinator of the SPICE Programme  which ran in HK this summer.  This video was made during the second of three 7 day English ‘camps’ that run each summer for disadvantaged children. This one was held in the port area of Kwai Chung. (See the second part of the video […]

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SPICE Programme (Hong Kong)

24th October 2018

Roshan taught in HK this summer with 4 other UK students and 10 HK undergraduates

SPICE 2018 – Hong Kong It is safe to say that these past couple of months in Hong Kong will never be forgotten. Upon arriving, I was greeted by the other UK volunteers who arrived a couple of days before me and we walked back to our accommodation at the Wu Kai Sha YMCA Youth […]

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SPICE Programme (Hong Kong)

23rd October 2018

Melanie Reflects on a Summer Teaching in Hong Kong

Melanie returns to her studies in the UK and looks back on a summer at SPICE in HK……..  After spending two months in Hong Kong I have now returned to the United Kingdom. Being back home, I reflect on my time with SPICE and I wish to share personal thoughts about the programme as well […]

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SPICE Programme (Hong Kong)

26th August 2017

A Group of UK and HK students teach together at the SPICE Programme

Every Summer  we take a small group of native English speaking volunteers to work with HK undergraduate interns to run the Summer Programme for Immersion in Communicative English (SPICE) for disadvantaged local children. This programme is made possible by the generous support of Chow Tai Fook Charity Foundation and the Chinese YMCA of HK.  This […]

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SPICE – Summer Programme for Immersion in Communicative English

This project is run jointly between Just Volunteers! and Chinese YMCA of Hong Kong The SPICE project now has its own website https://www.justvolunteers-spice.org Please follow the link for the latest details HONG KONG