福州西湖国际学校小学部于近期完成了历时三周的将乐研学活动，三、四、五年级学子在天籁蛟湖国际研学基地度过了充实的时光。

Primary students of Fuzhou Lakeside International School recently completed a three-week study trip to Jiangle, where third, fourth, and fifth graders spent a fulfilling time at the Jiao-Hu Skylark Field Studies Center.

行程之初，教师及家长们对此行既有雀跃期待、也有隐隐担忧：不少孩子是第一次未在父母陪同下出远门，他们能照顾好自己吗？上课场景一变，学子会不会过于兴奋以致于无法投入学习？面对原生态环境，他们如何同野生动植物相处？的确，这些担心有其道理。研学在当地展开后，众人还遇到不少先前未曾设想的窘境，比如，五年级观星课程因阴雨天气迟迟无法展开。但与此同时，学子在新环境里的种种表现又让我们眼前一亮：不少年纪较小的孩子展现出了强大的适应能力，更让人惊喜的是，即使离开了校园的全英文浸润环境，三年级学子也更习惯用英文沟通；在与当地人交流时，他们还积极帮助不擅长中文的同学，颇为友爱。

At the beginning of the trip, teachers and parents were both excited and worried: it was the first time for many children to go out of town without their parents, would they be able to take care of themselves? Would the students be too excited to focus when the classroom environment changed? How would they get along with wild animals and plants in nature? Indeed, these concerns are justified. Once the study began in the area, the group encountered a number of difficulties that they hadn't previously envisioned, such as the 5th grade opportunities for astronomy lessons at night being taken away due to rainy weather. But at the same time, the students' performance in the new environment was very impressive: many of the younger kids showed great adaptability, and the amount of English used even outside of class was surprising. 3rd graders tried hard to help each other and to speak English around students who don’t have a strong Chinese speaking ability, which was quite a friendly gesture.

"Human experience is so much bigger than here and now." 此时此地的我们为何向往彼时彼地？或许，不断开拓边界、获取新经验正是生而为人的本能，是走出狭隘、让人生变得更加开阔的一步。我们为不同年级的学子设计了不同主题的研学课程，关于物质，关于自然，关于社会情感学习。独立生活能力变强是大部分研学学子共同的收获。也许是有生以来第一次，他们要扛起照顾自己的责任：定制作息、整理衣物被榻、与同伴商量洗漱时间……这大大促进了孩子社会情感的发展。在这段时间里，每个孩子与同学在一起的时间骤增，团队合作的重要性也更为凸显，课堂内外，学子都需要通力协作，获取更全面的探究成果，或在竞赛中赢得胜利。四年级教师观察到皮划艇课上的一幕：前行过程中，有个学生落在了全班后头，但他并没有被抛下——所有人大声为他加油助威、鼓励他直至小船抵达终点。

"Human experience is so much bigger than here and now." Why do we in the “here and now” long for the “there and then”? Perhaps it is our natural instinct to keep exploring boundaries and acquiring new experiences, and it is a step out of the narrowness of our lives to become more open. We have designed a variety of curricula for different grades with different themes, about matter, about nature, and about social-emotional learning. A common gain for most of the students is the ability to live independently. Maybe for the first time in their lives, they are responsible for taking care of themselves: customizing their routines, keep their personal items organized, and plan bathroom and shower schedules with one another… This contributes greatly to the social-emotional development of the students. During this time, each kids’ time with classmates skyrockets, and the importance of teamwork becomes even more pronounced, both inside and outside the classroom, as learners need to collaborate to gain a more complete picture of their investigations, or to win a competition. A fourth-grade teacher observed a scene in a kayaking class in which one of the students fell a little behind the rest of the class, and everyone banded together to shout encouragement for this student as he approached the finish line. “This kind of experience shows the camaraderie and team spirit of the students in this class.”

研学课程的设计更贴近日常生活。五年级学子在挚爱的烘焙课上通过下厨观察“物质”状态变化的过程；务农课程得到大批学子热烈欢迎，由此他们明白了饭桌上的食物如何从农田来到商店——有一组四年级学生甚至在收割完了自己那一列水稻后，主动返回农田帮助他人，原因很简单（或许也令人有些意外），因为他们觉得干农活实在太带劲儿了！五年级学子打完谷子意犹未尽，有人用一次性杯子将谷粒收集了起来，如获珍宝，有人缠着教练问了许多后续工序问题。事实上，此次研学处处可见学子因强烈的兴趣主动探索的例子：起初，有些小朋友十分害怕自然环境中的虫子，但随着“与自然学习”的主题课程逐步展开，他们甚至好奇地捕来几只细细研究，并非因老师下达的指令——只是单纯兴趣所致！

The design of the curriculum is closer to daily life. 5th graders observed the process of how matter changes different states in their favorite cooking classes; the farming classes was enthusiastically received by a large number of students, who learned how the food on their tables comes from the farm to the store - one group of fourth graders even went back to the farm to help others after harvesting their own row of rice, simply (and perhaps somewhat surprisingly) because they found it so exciting to do the work! Fifth-graders experienced the threshing process; some collected the grains in disposable cups as if they were treasures, while others asked the instructor about the follow-up process. In fact, this study trip was full of examples of students exploring on their own initiative due to their strong interest: at first, some students were very afraid of insects in the natural environment, but as the theme course " Learning in and about Nature" gradually unfolded, they were even curious enough to catch a few and study them carefully, not because of the teacher's instructions - it was purely out of interest.

掌握新经验新技能的同时，学子或许也具备了换位思考的能力：从前，他们未曾思考过家人无微不至的照顾意味着什么，也不知食物的来之不易。但如今，在亲身体验过一切后，孩子学会了珍惜。

While acquiring new experiences and skills, students may also have the ability to think differently: once upon a time, they did not think about what it meant to be well taken care of by their families, nor did they know how hard food was to come by. But now, after experiencing everything for themselves, kids learn to appreciate it.

对老师而言，这未尝不是个丰收的季节！在自然主题学习中，三年级教师惊讶地发现不少孩子在课前就掌握了净水、生火相关知识，孩子们热情高涨的接连提问拓宽了学习主题的层次；而经过新环境的长时间相处后，教师对学子性格及特质也有了更多了解，如此一来他们便能更好地因材施教，根据学子的不同需求及能力给予不同程度、方式的帮助与指导。

For teachers, this is also a harvest season! In the nature theme study, the third grade teachers were surprised to find that many students had already mastered the knowledge of cleaning water and building fires, and their enthusiastic questioning took them beyond the topics they had planned to cover, extending their own learning; and after a long time in the new environment, the teachers also have a better understanding of the personality and specialties of students, which enables them to better tailor their teaching to the different needs and abilities of the students and to give them different kinds of help and guidance.

回到校园，回到「此时此地」。希望学子可以将这段经历内化为未来学习、生活的助力，我们下次研学再见！

Back to campus, back to the "here and now". We hope that the students can internalize this experience to help them in their future study and life, and we will see you in the next study trip!