Chinese YMCA of Hong Kong

During these difficult days, it is important to focus on the positive aspects of life. This applies to children just as much as adults. Teaching children to “count their blessings” not only helps them learn good manners and appreciate the world around them, it also enhances their levels of happiness. In recent years, the Chinese YMCA Primary School, which lies under the umbrella of the Association, has been actively promoting real-world education specifically developed to help children count their blessings and develop positive values.

This curriculum was originally sparked by the sudden and shocking rise in student suicide rates in recent years. Both the management of the Chinese YMCA Primary School and the parents of its students agreed that the promotion of education that embraces positive values was the key to battling these terrible student suicides. Thus, the school fast-tracked the development of a teaching plan to cultivate student positivity. With the on-going social issues, the COVID-19 pandemic and the protracted suspension of school classes this year, such a curriculum has never been more important.

Earlier this year, the school’s meticulously crafted curriculum won an award for outstanding real-world education teaching plans. We hope that this award will act as a springboard that allows the school to develop more diversified learning activities which will nurture positive values and positive attitudes to life.

Miss Chow Ka Lai, a teacher for “life education” at the Chinese YMCA Primary School says, “Many parents have observed that their children behave differently in different settings. For instance, they are polite and helpful at school, whereas they act out at home with disrespectful behaviour, rarely saying ‘please’ or ‘thank you’. Our goal is to teach children to count their blessings and show appreciation to people who make an effort on their behalf, like those who prepare meals and do laundry for them at home, and the teachers who work hard for them at school. We hope that our work will help them show gratitude through both words and actions, develop a positive attitude, and ultimately be more optimistic in life.”

Miss Chow developed a series of life education lesson plans called “Joyful Gardening and Cooking”, which teaches children how to grow, fertilise, harvest, cook and share the products of their gardening work. The lessons guide them to understand and reflect on the similarities between gardening and life in general. During the lessons, students grow white radishes and red amaranths, while also learning how to cook and share their harvest with their families and teachers. The act of gardening helps children develop a sense of responsibility, as they need to take care of plants day after day; but it also teaches them to overcome difficulties and eventually learn the spirit of commitment.

“Students are fully engaged when they start gardening; they almost always enjoy the planting process. They love sharing gardening challenges and solutions with their teachers, parent volunteers and staff members; and this further promotes team spirit”, Miss Chow continued. “A student of mine once told me that she was moved and found her eyes full of tears of joy when she sent handmade cookies to one of her teachers as a gift. I was so happy to hear that, because it meant that she had learned about gratitude and appreciation.”

Miss Chow believes that parents can extend the concepts of real-world education to the home as well. In her opinion, parents should teach their children to observe the beautiful things in life, to appreciate themselves and nature, to be generous and have the courage to persevere when faced with challenges. Parents can also pray with their children when they feel disappointed or encounter frustrations, as this may teach them to accept life’s imperfections, tolerate failure with optimism, and guide them to develop the habit of reflecting on themselves and the world.

The Joyful Gardening and Cooking curriculum recently won the First Award for Outstanding Life Education Teaching Plan (non-formal curriculum) organised by the Education University of Hong Kong.

Looking ahead, besides teaching positive values to children, the Association hopes that both adults and children will learn to treat the coronavirus pandemic as a collective challenge, one that should be faced with perseverance, courage and patience.

When classes eventually resume, we hope to see continuous and on-going cooperation between parents and schools, particularly when it comes to guiding the next generation to cherish life and approach the world with a positive attitude.

Many permanent residents of Hong Kong recently received the government’s HK$10,000 cash handout. As one of those recipients, perhaps you could consider donating the money to our “Realise Love, Realise Dreams” Foundation to give the underprivileged a helping hand in realising their dreams?

We encourage everyone to donate all or part of the HK$10,000 to our foundation to help underprivileged people in Hong Kong. Please click here to make a donation!

Details of “Realise Love, Realise Dreams” Foundation can be found here.

If you or your family are in need of financial assistance, please click here for an application.

This year’s HKDSE is full of twists and turns, but it has finally come to an end. Regardless your results, YMCA College of Careers offers diversified courses ranging from sports management, hotel and tourism management, culinary, interior design to barista courses for you to choose. If you haven’t figured out your mind, feel free to check out our website to give yourself some ideas.

Learning sign language helps promote social inclusion and increase public awareness of the needs of hearing-impaired people. To make learning sign language more accessible to the public, Chinese YMCA of Hong Kong Y's Men's Centre for the Deaf has launched a free sign language course.

Running from July to December this year, the course has been sponsored by the Labour and Welfare Bureau and is being taught by staff members and instructors from Chinese YMCA of Hong Kong Y's Men's Centre. The course content will allow participants to learn more about the needs and difficulties of the hearing impaired, their unique culture, and the skills needed to communicate with them. Interested members may contact the Centre to register. Places are limited and enrolment is first come first served.

For enquiries please contact Miss Chan Yuen Han or Miss Tam Tze Yan on 2717 1754.

This August, our Christian Ministry Department will be organising a three-day music day camp. The camp content will include a section on community music experience and a workshop on understanding faith through art and rhythm. Parents will also be welcome to participate in a luncheon concert on 22 August at 2 pm, to share in the students’ learning achievements.

Date: 19-22 August (Wednesday to Saturday)
Time: 10 am to 4 pm each day
Venue: Auditorium, 3/F, Administration Building, 23 Waterloo Road, Kowloon
Target participants: Children aged 4-11
Cost: HK$1,400 per person (HK$1,200 per person for members of the YMCA Children’s Choir)
Registration Deadline: 2 August
Enquiries: 2783 3354 (Mr Ngan King Shing)