Twelve Photos from 2021

Chatteris’ own Holly Bishop takes us on a walk down memory lane through all our inspiring tutors achieved in 2021.

The new year is always a time of reflection. As 2022 begins, it’s a great time to look back on the previous year and review it as a whole. Here at Chatteris, our 2021 was definitely one to be proud of. We taught countless lessons to our students who needed the stability of education more than ever; we ran numerous community outreach programmes for those in need of knowledge and support; and most importantly, we had lots of fun doing it all! Let’s look back at 2021 through photos taken this year.

January

Senior Chatteris Tutor Aliceposes with her students who are proudly displaying their hand-made Lunar New Year cards | Image by Alice Deptford

The year began with social distancing restrictions still in full force. School was being held mostly online, meaning our tutors had to get creative with their lessons and extra-curricular learning opportunities. Lots of online tools were utilised to create fun resources for the students. When students started to be allowed back on campus gradually, Chatteris Tutors made sure to waste no time in running engaging activities for their students.

February

A team of Chatteris eco-warriors volunteered their time to clean a beach on the island of Cheung Chau | Image by Chatteris

Speaking of Lunar New Year, February brought about a 2 week holiday to celebrate the annual Chinese festival. After lots of celebrations at school, the holiday was a continuation of the fun and everyone was in high spirits. However, the hard work didn’t stop, as the tutors continued running social events for one another. These activities, under the ‘Chatteris Love’ programme, aim to foster a sense of community and friendship amongst our staff. In this instance, a helpful bunch headed to Cheung Chau to clean up the beach, in one of our now regularly held and attended official Chatteris beach cleans.

March

The Chatteris FC squad | Image by Chatteris

After a relaxing, yet productive break, the team all returned back to work. With the restrictions starting to ease, our community outreach programmes could run in person, these included workshops at TCK Learning Centre and storytelling activities at Loving Kids Community Centre. The Chatteris football team also finally reassembled and returned to the pitch. A disrupted start meant their season only lasted for two matches, but the fun was only just beginning as Chatteris FC would continue to play numerous matches throughout the rest of the year, scoring many goals in the process.

April

Chatteris Tutor Anneliese bravely performs in front of her students, along with fellow staff from her placement school | Image by Anneliese Murray

The end of the school year was sadly in sight for Chatteris Tutors, but that didn’t stop the fun. Our tutors helped organise and run lots of English Day events, including plenty of games, funfairs, and even some live musical performances! We also finally hosted our extremely late Chatteris ‘Christmas’ party in April! It was definitely worth the wait, with gorgeous food accompanied by a fun quiz, embarrassing younger photos of ourselves and even some TikTok dancing!

May

Eight Chatteris Tutors received beautiful Chinese calligraphy paintings as a leaving gift from their placement school | Image by Chatteris

May brought about the end of Chatteris Tutors’ 9 month school placements, and with it, a lot of gifts and goodbyes. As our tutors said goodbye to their respective schools, lovely and thoughtful gifts from both their students and fellow teachers left many of them with a tear in their eyes.

June

An eager student keenly participates in a lesson during a summer school programme for soon-to-be secondary school students | Image by Chatteris

School’s out for the summer! But the work wasn’t done for those tutors remaining in Hong Kong over the holidays. Flocking to the office to receive their assignments for the summer, the tutors were briefed on projects ranging from designing lessons and resources, to creating and running summer camp programmes. Throughout the holidays, our tutors ran bridging programmes in local schools, wherebystudents took additional lessons in fun and engaging topics toallow for a smoother transition between year groups.

July

Students proudly pose with the rubbish they collected on a beach clean during Chatteris Environment Camp | Image by Chatteris

Whilst the sun blazed, our tutors were still working hard on their respective projects. Many continued to lead bridging programmes in schools, whilst some headed to Lamma Island to lead the Chatteris Environment Summer Camps that would run over the coming weeks.

August

A group of newly arrived Chatteris Tutors attend an online training session | Image by Chatteris

For Chatteris, August means orientation period and thus a brand new batch of Chatteris Tutors. Orientation 2021 was held virtually for attendees who tuned in from their quarantine hotel rooms, although this didn’t stop knowledge being shared and friendships being made.

September

Chatteris Tutors Miles and Caeti introduce students to their English Cafe, the hub of many extra-curricular activities for the months to come | Image by Caeti Godly

By September, school was officially back and the Chatteris Tutors either returned to their placement school from the academic year before, or began a new start in a new school. Either way, many an ‘About Me’ presentation was made so our tutors could introduce themselves to their students for the coming academic year.

October

Students at a Chatteris partner school learn rugby skills from a Hong Kong national player, as part of an event teaching them about different jobs | Image by Chatteris

With more new Chatteris Tutors arriving in Hong Kong and beginning teaching, the school year was now fully in swing. Lots of school events were held across the board, such as sport days, trips to museums, and a ‘Meet the Professionals’ event!

November

Chatteris Tutor Louis has just as much fun as his students as he sings a song and pretends to be a duck | Image by Chatteris

By November, many of our community outreach programmes were up and running, with Chatteris Tutors volunteering their free time to devise lessons and deliver them to various groups of learners within Hong Kong. One of these was our newly expanded kindergarten programme, through which ourour tutors lead phonics-based lessons for early years students at the weekend.

December

The Chatteris team marked the holidays and the end of semester 1 with a celebratory buffet lunch | Image by Chatteris

The final month of the year rolled round in the blink of an eye, and before we knew it, it was time for endless festive celebrations. From games, to songs, to even the odd festive costume donned by a brave tutor, every school was a place of yuletide joy. We finished the year with our annual festive party (this time actually held in December), where we celebrated the successes of the year with a delicious buffet.

Looking back at 2021, we can see how resilient and flexible our tutors have been in such unprecedented times, making the best of a sometimes unpredictable year. The new year is also a time for new beginnings, a time for self improvement and growth. So let’s see if 2022 can top this already amazing year; we’re certain it will.

Would you like to teach Hong Kong students alongside a cohort of other inspiring graduates? Apply now to join our community as a Chatteris Tutor.