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Lesson Learned in Three-day Trip to Sapa Hope Center
This is my diary about the trip to Sapa Hope Center with 10 colleagues from Summit Education – a renowned English language teaching center in Hanoi. Therefore, this trip is aimed at fostering cultural exchange and teaching English and basic skills to students from Grade 1 to Grade 2 in Sapa, Lao Cai.
Day 1
After many days of anticipation for new tasks and challenges – my first time as a cameraman – on the charity trip to Sapa with Summit, today finally arrived. I woke up quite early, having only slept for 3 hours the night before. I should have slept more, but I woke up at 3:40 am. After brushing my teeth, I fumbled on my computer to download videos on photography tutorials from YouTube to watch and learn on the way (I was assigned to take photos even though I’ve never held a camera before -))). I downloaded the videos and finished preparing my gear by 4:40 am, then called my dad to drive me.
Upon arriving at the gathering point, I realized I was early af -)) However, that period was also when I started to play around and learn more about the camera. It was quite fascinating, to be honest, because like everything else, it has its own rules and standards that we can learn in a simple and understandable way. Having said that, after getting on the bus and starting to watch the videos I downloaded earlier, I only got a basic grasp of concepts like lens mm, aperture, shutter speed, ISO, … And I haven’t learned anything about framing angles and positioning yet.
At Sapa Hope Center, the most surprising thing for me was the extremely warm welcome from the kids. Although many of them couldn’t speak Vietnamese (Sapa is a land of convergence for 5 different ethnic groups), they were enthusiastic and innocent. As soon as I arrived, the kids gave each of us a flower and a welcoming card, which they had drawn themselves. The drawings looked simple, but I believe they came from the sincere and innocent hearts of these little ones.
During the self-introduction, I was quite surprised when the owner of the center turned out to be a young man (seemingly stepping out of "Silent Sapa") who had studied abroad in Singapore. After visiting this place, he fell in love with it, despite numerous opportunities in the city. Even his relatives thought he was "charmed" (there is a local belief in enchantment being quite common here). He shared many stories about Sapa – the specially nutritious herbs, the underprivileged children lacking sufficient food, the uphill journey from home to school taking 2-3 hours each day, and more. Peter Thương, along with the kids at the center, made me feel moved every time I heard those genuine and simple stories.
After having lunch and a break, we spent the entire afternoon getting to know each child individually to better understand their personalities. This helped us plan and manage the teaching program more effectively for the upcoming days. Despite having only known each other for a few hours, we engaged in drawing exercises, played games, and sang together, creating a strong bond. The room that day was filled with laughter.
The entire group introducing themselves and playing games
The older members teaching the children how to draw
Sharing and chatting together
Playing the "musical chairs" game together
After finishing the activities, the sky had darkened, and we were quite tired from the day of travel. We decided to return to the hotel to rest.
Taken at Praha Hotel, 86 Violet Street, Sapa
Day 2
On that morning, instead of going to the large activity hall like yesterday, our group had to go to a dining place to set up a projector to assist in teaching the children. The reason for this was that our goal for the day was to teach the kids English through themed movies and songs, requiring a dark room to make it easier for the children to see.
During the morning teaching session, we played songs and shared stories about the movie Frozen, then guided the children to fill in blanks or answer questions about the movie content. However, it seemed that some of the children had already seen the movie before, and for some, it was a challenging task. Despite our efforts to maintain their interest in the first 1-2 hours, we couldn’t make that teaching session as effective as we hoped.
After lunch, Chau Anh (from our group) decided to show the kids a famous Disney movie about three squirrels to regain their interest. However, after 15 minutes of screening, the kids seemed bored with the movie and began to leave the room. Faced with this situation, our group decided to stop showing movies and return to the large activity hall, directly interacting and teaching the kids how to create and play games.
Indeed, the children here were too accustomed to watching movies whenever there was a foreign charity group visiting, so they had become disinterested in watching another movie. Instead, they enjoyed running and playing with everyone – something they rarely get to do when charity groups visit. Therefore, when given the opportunity to play freely that day, the adorable kids at Sapa Hope Center were very happy and cooperated completely with the older members, creating laughter for both sides.
The older members playing games designed by the children
After the play session, we presented books, notebooks, and clothes to the kids
Upon returning to the hotel, we held a meeting with the staff to address the issue of the "lesson plan burnout" that occurred that day. However, what I remember most from that evening was the conversation between me, Ms. Mai, and Chị Minh Hà’s mother. Ms. Mai shared a lot about the difficulties and experiences in understanding the psychology of teaching preschool and elementary school children. (There was one saying from her that I found very insightful: "It takes losing nine toes to finally realize we need to protect the remaining one.") Chị Minh Hà’s mother also shared a lot about life in Russia.
Day 3
On that morning, we continued our teaching sessions for the children at Sapa Hope Center. The goal for our group on this day was to educate the children about personal hygiene skills through lively videos and practical exercises.
However, unlike the previous day, this time, we decided to use the large activity hall (rather than the dining area, which was too dark and dirty by evening) for the lecture and for the convenience of teaching in a more dynamic manner (as discussed and planned at the hotel after reflecting on the previous teaching session). Indeed, moving to a spacious and clean room, as shown in the picture, significantly improved the comfort for both the teachers and the children.
Additionally, we must acknowledge the enthusiasm of the two "teachers," Nhi and Linh, who brought interesting lessons on personal hygiene to the children. The two of them, along with the entire group, collaborated to guide the children in dancing to songs, creating artwork, and participating in related games. Later, the children practiced by taking fun quizzes, such as coloring objects corresponding to their daily hygiene items.
While I wasn’t the main photographer for the morning session, I felt delighted to participate in a different role as a support person, helping the children complete their tasks in a joyful and easy manner.
After completing the teaching session at the center, in the afternoon, our group planned to visit each child’s home to better understand their family situations and daily lives. At each home, we spent some time listening to the children’s stories and the family’s struggles. It was an opportunity to gain insight into the hardships they face and learn about the various professions within each household.
Reflection
It can be said that, although this trip is not too short or too long, it is sufficient to allow me to experience, try new things, and learn. There were many firsts for me on this journey: the first time participating in a charity trip without my parents, the first time having to plan and adapt to everything on my own, the first time being the one behind the camera capturing moments and actions throughout the trip, and more. In addition to the experiential lessons from these firsts, I also met and learned a lot from the children, older members, and staff. Everyone helped me engage and listen to many unique and diverse stories. It can be said that this trip will probably leave a deep memory during my high school years.
