Every year, hundreds of international students travel thousands of miles to study hard in China, leaving their homes and native languages behind. As some of them devote themselves to Chinese language study at Tongji University in Shanghai, one unique task helps them bridge the miles that lie in between — writing a letter home in Chinese.

The letter- home activity has become an annual tradition in Tongji’s pre-university Chinese program. After months of studying vocabulary, grammar, and composition, students from all over the world are tasked with writing a letter to their families, entirely in Chinese.

“At first, this activity was operated in a few classes. But when other students saw the letters on show, they began to write home letters on their own,” explained Zong Qian, director of the International School of the university.

As the letters started coming in, the teachers were impressed and touched by the students’ efforts to express emotions across cultures. “We realized that these letters offered a special window into the students’ experiences and growth in China,” said Zong. “The letters were very moving to read.”

Chipo Bard Shanzuwa Chintu from Zambia wrote about her adjustment to life in Shanghai: “I think Shanghai is beautiful and safe. Learning to write Chinese characters is very challenging but rewarding.” Neth Chanranuth from Cambodia described his progress after settling in: “Time flies and my Chinese language ability has improved a lot. I’ve gradually adapted to life in China.”

For the students, letters are a more special way of communication. Once they are received, that physical paper held in hands becomes a lasting memory one can revisit again and again.

It’s a classroom. Instead of being told to sit quietly and listen, you are encouraged to stand up, jump around, imagine and act out. It’s a class full of laughter and applause (鼓掌), emotion and energy. Welcome to drama class, one of my favorite classes at high school.

In drama class we used to play a lot of “drama games”. We would improvise (即兴表演), copy and above all use our imagination.

My favorite game was called “Spotto”. One person stood in the front of the class and performed a scene, completely out of their imagination. When one audience member yelled “Spotto!”, the performer had to freeze. Then the person who had yelled Spotto had to get up and improvise a new scenario (剧情) based on the position the first performer froze in. This went on as more and more people were added to the scene. Eventually the entire class would have joined the scene. Then the performers would start to leave in reverse (颠倒的) order.

It was a lot of fun, and a good test of everyone’s imagination to see what they would come up with. Drama class at my school often involved a big performance at the end of the term as well. We would work on a production throughout the term and put on a show for our parents and the school community.

It was a great experience to perform on stage in front of a large audience. Drama class can help shy children, like me, to come out of their shells. It helped them become more confident and developed their public speaking skills. Drama class is also a great place to express oneself, and a way for children to use up some of their energy.

For many years, school children in the US have been taken on “field trips” to cultural institutions such as museums of art. Educators arrange them in the belief that schools exist not only to teach economically useful skills, but also to produce civilized young people who appreciate the art and culture. While there are parents who will take their children to cultural places in their free time, there are plenty of other children who will never have this kind of opportunity unless schools offer it. So you could say that taking school students on field trips is a means of giving everyone equal access to their cultural heritage.

However, the attitude towards field trips in recent years is changing, with the number of tours organized for school groups falling significantly in museums all around the country. The most obvious reason is the issue of finance. Because there are increasing demands on their funds, after all, computers and sports facilities aren’t cheap, schools are forced to make a difficult choice about how to spend the limited money they have. Faced with this dilemma, field trips are an obvious thing to cut since they are seen by many as a luxury.

Additionally, the nature of these field days is also changing. Schools increasingly use trips to amusement parks or sporting events as a treat for students rather than an opportunity for cultural learning. This shift could have a basis in general differences between teachers’ reasons for organizing days out of school. A recent survey conducted among 500 Arkansas teachers showed that older teachers were significantly more likely to take the primary purpose of a field trip as a learning experience than younger teachers, who view it as fun.

Some evidence shows the trend of fewer trips may have a negative effect on children’s development. A research led by Jay Green e at Arkansas University found that students who received a tour of an art museum greatly improved their knowledge of and the ability to think critically about art. They also display stronger historical interest and were more likely to visit cultural places in the future. The researchers warn that if schools cut field trips or switch to less educational destinations, valuable opportunities to broaden and enrich children’s learning experiences are lost.