Developing Gifted Students’ Capabilities in the Creative Use of
The following diagram and table show how a local primary school plans and implements a variety of activities to develop gifted students’ creative use of English:
Regular School English Activities within School Hours P1 Graded Activities
Target students:
Top 10 students in each class from P1 to P6
Mode:
Regular English lessons Activities:
Doing extended tasks based on the regular school English programme to provide opportunities for further language practice
Open-ended Writing Tasks Target students:
Top 10 students in each class from P1 to P6
Mode:
Regular English lessons Activities:
Doing additional challenging reading and writing tasks to enhance the development of critical thinking skills (e.g.
reading a short passage about the dangers of fire, describing what one can do when her younger brother is found playing with a box of matches at home)
Speaking Tasks Target students:
Top 15 / 16 students in each class from P1 to P6
Mode:
One lesson each week
Designed and conducted by the school’s Native-speaking English Teachers (NETs) Activities:
Participating in a variety of interactive speaking tasks in pairs / groups and individually (e.g.
candid box, show and tell,
storytelling)
P2 Choral Verse Speaking
Target students:
Top 40 students in P2 Mode:
A one-hour workshop each week after lunch conducted by an English teacher of the school
Activity:
Taking part in the Hong Kong Schools Speech Festival
P3 P4
P5 Active Learning Activities
Target students:
Top 30 students in each level of P5 and P6 Mode:
One double lesson every Friday during the regular school hours
Designed and conducted by the English teachers Activities:
Doing a variety of reading and writing tasks
Working as a committee to design a board display at the school’s English Corner every week or every other week
Applying various skills in doing projects (e.g. surfing the Internet for information to develop IT and information skills in language learning, interviewing people, writing poems)
P6
Project report
Enhancement English Activities beyond School Hours P1
P2
P3 Creative Writing
Target students:
Top 15 students in each level from P3 to P6
Mode:
A one-hour lesson each week after the regular school hours
Designed and conducted by the school’s NETs
Activities:
Producing works of various text types (e.g. recipes)
Doing a variety of creative writing tasks (e.g. imagining oneself to be one of the
characters in the story, writing a new ending.)
Students’ work compiled and published in the school publication “創意小星星”
Summer Creative Writing Workshops
Target students:
Top 15 students in each level from P3 to P6
Mode:
A one-hour lesson every day for 10 days during the summer holidays
Designed and conducted by the school’s NETs
Activities:
Producing works of various text types (e.g. advertisements)
Doing a variety of creative writing tasks (e.g. writing an action plan if one becomes invisible)
Students’ work compiled and published in the school publication “創意小星星”
Hong Kong Odyssey of the Mind Programme
Target students:
Top 7 students in P3 and P4 Mode:
A 1½-hour workshop each week after the regular school hours
Planned by the whole group of students, along with some support from the school’s English teachers
Activities:
Selecting a topic to work on
Discussing and planning how to solve the problems identified and present the solutions
Participating in the Regional Competition
P4 Drama Activities Target students:
Top 15 students in each level of P4 and P5
Mode:
A one-hour lesson each week after the regular school hours
Designed and conducted by the school’s English teachers Activities:
Writing plays
Participating in theatre games and various drama activities
Taking part in the Hong Kong School Drama Festival
P5 Breaking the Barrier
Target students:
Top 20 students in P5 and P6 Mode:
A 1½-hour workshop each week after the regular school hours
Designed and conducted by an expert in drama hired by the school
Activities:
Writing scripts
Participating in theatre games and various drama activities
Preparing for a public performance together with children from other schools
P6
Drama performance
Self-directed Learning Activities Extended Learning Activities Using Community Resources P1 Self-study Projects
Target students:
Top 3 to 4 students in each level from P1 to P6
Mode:
Planned by individual students
Activities:
Choosing a topic to work on (e.g. interesting places to visit in Hong Kong)
Planning, developing and carrying out the project
Consulting their English teachers for guidance and feedback
Solo Verse Speaking / Prose Reading Target students:
Top 3 to 4 students in each level from P1 to P6
Mode:
Guidance mainly provided by parents, along with support from the English teachers of the school Activities:
Taking part in the Hong Kong Schools Speech Festival
P2 P3
P4 Science Theatre
Target students:
All students in each level from P4 to P6
Mode:
Regular school hours
Organised by the British Council Activities:
Watching a drama concerning science performed by English-speaking professionals
Attending a follow-up workshop conducted in English to enhance students’
understanding of scientific knowledge
Youth Arts Festival Target students:
All students in each level from P4 to P6
Mode:
Outings during the regular school hours
Organised by the Hong Kong Youth Arts Festival Association Ltd.
Activities:
Watching a performance (e.g.
play, dance) by English-speaking professionals
Attending a follow-up workshop conducted in English to help students understand the content of the performance more
Participating in art workshops and storytelling sessions conducted by NETs
Moving Poetry Target students:
Top 10 students from P4 to P6
Mode:
Extra lessons on Saturdays
Organised by the University of Hong Kong
Activities:
Participating in poetry writing workshops conducted by university teaching staff and local poets
Students’ work compiled and published in the HKU publication
“Moving Poetry”
P5 P6
These activities have been designed and conducted in St Stephen’s Girls’ Primary School. We thank the school for sharing their experience.