Shen Annie (Xiaoyi) joined the Yew Chung International School of Beijing’s English Intensive Programme (EIP) in August when she became a member of our community after having attended one of the university-affiliated high schools in Beijing for some time. YCIS Beijing’s English Intensive Programme seeks to provide high level of support for students with different language skills to ensure that they thrive not only in the English language itself but other subjects as well.

Annie is in Year 10 and she is an avid book reader and one of her favourite books are everyone’s childhood favourite, Matilda by Roald Dahl. The Year 10 student has benefitted immensely from the English programme. She has her sights set on achieving even more in future. We talked with her about her experience and what tips she can give to her peers.

Please introduce yourself.I am 14 years old. In my free time, I like reading, especially mystery books.

What have been your views about the EIP Programme?I think it’s great because our teacher, Miss. Zikou always finds new ways to help us improve our English. For example, sometimes we watch some films and read some interesting books.What challenges have you faced being a part of the programme?I think learning new vocabulary and using the words to express myself correctly has been a challenge. Some words are difficult to remember so we will read passages and underline the words we do not understand and Miss. Zikou will explain them to us.

What have been your proud achievements and moments? Why?I can express myself correctly now, I can search for information online and make presentations in front of my classmates. Another thing we have done is create a book about Children’s Rights. I liked that because I think everyone needs to understand that children have many rights, too. The last one was during Anti-bullying Week I worked with my classmates and created a poster about it.

Which children’s right did you choose to focus on and why?I chose four rights the first one is;Standard of Living:, because I think children need to have a good environment to live.Education: Children also need to go to school and learn. Rest, Play and Free Time: Children shouldn’t go to work when they are very young Protection from Drugs: Drugs are very dangerous and children should not get involved in them

What did you learn during the process of creating the Human Rights Book?I learned about children’s rights that I had never heard of before like the one about free time and also to create the book we need to write our own opinions, so that encouraged us to think a lot.

What are your goals for your English learning?I want to be more confident to talk to others and I hope that I can join the IGCSE Mainstream Programme soon just like other year students.

What tips can you give EIP learners in younger grades?- Pay attention to teachers- Read English books - Most importantly, practice speaking English as much as possible with your classmates and teachers.

The language experts in our English Department are specialized in supporting students’ needs at any level and committed to prioritizing their goals and objectives. Find out how here.