The scheme seems to be a great way to build understanding and cooperation between young students of different nations into an educational programme from an early stage. I believe it also supports children from under-privileged backgrounds in their studies.
David Jones, Principal of ETC International College, November 2019
Together with our Honourable UK Charity Ambassadors, Cllr. Lawrence William (Not in photo) & Cllr. Jane Kelly (Back row, the 4th from left), Vice Chairlady Madam Betty Yeung (Back row, the 1st from left), and Pen Buddies Project UK Ambassador, Janet Ho (Back row, the 1st from right) & her partner, Paul (Back row, the 2nd from left), David (Back row, the center) have visited our partnering school in Chengdu, China and participated in the cultural exchange workshop of Pen Buddies project during October 2019.
"I was recently honoured to be able to accompany representatives of the Wisdom Foundation on a visit to Chengdu in China where I witnessed at first hand the work they are doing through their Pen Buddies scheme, matching up penpals from various countries and encouraging them to share their culture and experiences with their counterparts.
This was clearly a very motivating and confidence-boosting project and I was very impressed by the presentations that some of the children - from 3 primary schools in Chengdu - gave in front of a large audience of staff, parents, special guests and fellow students." said David.
We have connected these Chinese primary school children from Chengdu, China with British primary school children in Bournemouth and Windsor, also some with the primary school children in Hong Kong. Children are feeling excited to receive letters from their pen-friends across the world. At the same time, they are enjoying the cultural exchange workshop where they can learn different types of cultural practices such as food consumption, festive celebration, daily transportation, seasonal weather and many more.
Pen Buddies workshop in Bournemouth Chinese School, conducted by our Pen Buddies Project Director - Anastasia Petrova on 17 November 2019
Further elaborated by David, "the scheme seems to be a great way to build understanding and cooperation between young students of different nations into an educational programme from an early stage. I believe it also supports children from underprivileged backgrounds in their studies. I wish the Wisdom Foundation continued success in its projects and look forward to learning more about its work as time goes on." We are feeling blessed to have continuous support from all individuals and organisations since we launched the Pen Buddies project in 2018.
We teach the kids how to read the letters they receive from their pen buddy, also guide them to write the reply letter.
We also conduct multicultural learning workshops in the primary school that participate in our Pen Buddies project.
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Article updated on March 2022