In January 2024, teacher Brad and teacher Lee Hoon volunteered at a public school, named Ban Ton Phueng in rural Fang, northern Thailand. We were invited by the school director Sriwan. The school is located in a farming community where oranges, rice, corn and vegetables are the main crops. Most of the students come from families who have migrated from neighboring Myanmar (formerly Burma) to work in the agriculture sector in Fang. Almost all of the students speak Tai Yai and Dara Ang at home with a sprinkling of other languages such as Lahu and Akha. As such the Thai language is the second language and English is a distant third language for these students. The school has about 285 students in kindergarten through ninth grade. Our goal was to help the teachers with teaching the English Language to the students as well as show them a bit of American culture.
Morning Assembly for Students
Morning stretches and exercises for students
Teacher Brad co-taught with teacher Jome, Grades 6 through 9. He shared aspects of American culture, via a virtual tour of the Statue of Liberty and provided a brief history of two animal icons - the American Bison and Bald Eagle. He also taught how to use the phone applications of Google Translate, with the hope it might expand the students’ English language skills in the future. Brad also introduced the sport of “Ultimate” flying disc which the students enjoyed tremendously. Thailand has a flying disc association and the students in Fang can now learn how to play this non-contact, fast paced game.
Teacher Jome and Teacher Brad with students during the first week of volunteering.
Students play Ultimate for the first time.
Teacher Lee-Hoon co-taught with two Thai teachers who teach English in Grades 1 through 5. She focused on listening and speaking skills for grades one through three with Teacher Khimm. The main teaching strategy is active learning that incorporates movement through songs. For the fourth and fifth graders, Lee-Hoon co-taught with Teacher Auea focusing on reading and beginning writing skills.
Students learning the Hokey - Pokey (above) and Singing Head, Shoulder, Knees and Toes (below)
Plus we were able to attend a few community activities - such as Children’s Day on January 13th.