One World, Many Stories

Reading is always what we value at our school. Students start to develop reading habits from the early age and we always encourage them to read. This week is our Book Week, which is a great way for us to expand what we value. Book Week saw a Dulwich College Suzhou first take place online, as each school participated in a tailored Book Week programme exclusively online.  

The theme of “One World. Many Stories.” was explored through multiple languages, modes and literacies, tapping into the diversity and resourcefulness embedded in our school community. Learning experiences created spaces for individual students to share their personal  “River of Reading” in this week long event. This event would not have been possible without support of families who contributed stories from around the globe in several mother tongues including English, Mandarin, Korean, Dutch, Italian, Maori, Japanese and Finnish. Students also mapped stories from around the globe, reflecting these settings and authors cherished by our community. Classroom teachers, assistants, families and our extended Dulwich College Community have made all of this possible.  

Thanks goes to the Library Team, extended Book Week Planning Team and Communications Team for the shared success of this event. Special thanks also to SS Service CCA students’ who have written, recorded and produced “Jerry Can”, our simultaneous story for 2022.  “Jerry Can”, a multilanguage(Mandarin, English and Korean), multimodal text supports and personifies Tangmama’s Water Purification projects.

Shanghai based author, CA Scully, also made several online appearances to speak with students in grades 1-8. CA Scully has authored 4 bilingual books (Mandarin and English) in the series, "The Amazing Mind of Mikey."

Throughout Book Week, two competitions have been launched across the school, encouraging literacy development and extension by way of  brevity and visual literacy – “Short and Tweet” and “Emoji Stories”.  We have received many entries.

Students explored their River of Reading and shared their experiences one with another. Further global adventures took place via padlet with “Where in the World” – pinning locations for favourite authors and/or settings, and; “One World, Many Stories” padlet aimed at sharing stories in the multitude of languages spoken in the Dulwich College Suzhou community.  

In order for the children to love Literacy, we as teachers need to love it too. We need our passion for the subject to be felt by the children. If we get excited by literacy, they get excited too!  One such way is with Mr Rowan Kohll as he hosted daily “Stories to Share with a Sandwich” in the Junior School. 

DUCKS students also shared their love of the written word by Reading the Rainbow and posting their book covers on a virtual rainbow.

In Reception ‘Handa’s Surprise’ was shared with students who had to imagined they were Handa, and nominated the different fruits they would put in Handa’s basket.