I arrived in Quzhou at the beginning of September，after spending a few days seeing the sights in Beijing with the 45 other“gappers”（GAP students）from the UK，Australia and Canada。My name is Emma Tasker and I’m an 18 year old student from England。I finished sec-ondary school last summer and am now taking a year out from study，also called a“Gap Year”，to travel and gain experience before I start university in England next Autumn。I was given a teaching placement in Quzhou through an organisation developed for students，like myself，who are taking a“gap year”and are between the ages of 17 and 21.The organisation provides the opportunity to travel and live abroad for up to one year，carrying out volunteer work such as teaching，work-ing in the community，with children，or on a conservation project。
I knew very little about China before I came here，which is one of the reasons I chose to work in this diverse country as I wanted to find out more about the chinese culture and way of life。I think I have definitely acheived this aim and have had so many great experiences in the process。I chose to teach English in a school because I enjoy working with children and I believe it is important to support them as they are the future。I realise that for most of them，it is important that they learn to speak English as it will be a valuable skill for their future careers。Therefore I hoped to be able to help improve their English，and also get to know them。I think it’s always useful to have a native speaker around to share experiences about western culture，the life and the language，and to give students a focus as to why they are learning English。
I am currently placed at No。2 Middle School，Quzhou，where I have now lived for just over 4 months。I share an apartment with my GAP partner，Crystal，an Australian student。Compared to other schools I have visited in the Zhejiang Province，I am very lucky to have been given the opportunity to work in such an excellent school，where the students are hard working，polite，enthusiastic and a joy to teach。The same can be said for the teachers who have made my life here so much more enjoyable through their efforts to make me feel welcome and their generosity。
For the first few months at the school，Crystal and I taught the Senior 1 students。As the main focus in English lessons in China tends to be on reading and writing，the areas where we believed we could contribute the most is in improving their oral skills and knowledge about British and Australian culture。By showing the students maps and pictures of our coutries，photographs of our families and by an-swering the questions that the students had，we hope that we have given the students a clear idea of what life is like in western countries，and also the opportunity for them to practise their spoken English and listening skills。I think the students have found these kind of lessons interesting and at times a little surprising。For example，there were many shocked faces when the students discovered that children in England start school every day at 8：30am and are finished by 3：30pm！
As the students spend most of their time in the classroom sitting at their desks，we have tried to make learning more fun by introducing activities such as word games，role plays and songs to help them learn。Although this type of teaching is perhaps not feasible for every lesson，it is definitely a good way to maitain the students’enthusiasm for the subject and has proved successful from my own experience in sec-ondary schools in England。The teaching course I attended before coming to China also empahasised the importance of active learning，an approach which can be used for teaching any subject。
Whilst I have been in China，I have been lucky enough to have my mother and grandmother visit me from England。At the beginning of December I met my family at the airport in Shanghai where we spent the weekend。We walked along the bund，went to the top of the jinmao tower and the oriental pearl tower，and visited the“Old City”and markets。My family then spent the week with me in Quzhou。Having had such a great time here，I was really excited about showing them the town，the school，and the people I have got to know。They watched some of my lessons in the Junior school where I am now teaching，and even took part by teaching the children some English songs！A highlight of the week was when we went with one of the teachers from the school，to visit his family in their village outside Quzhou。This was a new experience for me as well as my family，the chance to see a completely different way of life from the city and even more so from England。My mother and grandmother could only stay for one week，but it was really good to see them。They had a fantastic time in China，they loved the food，the scenery and the people who they thought were so welcoming and hospitable。A rare chance to see the“real”China，far better than a sight seeing tourist’s holiday。It was sad to say goodbye to them at the end of the week，but I’m glad that I get to stay in China for longer。
As this year comes to an end，I will remember the unforgetable experiences I have had in the past year and look forward to more，exciting times ahead in 2006.I hope to learn even more about China and its people and am glad that I can still be here to experinece the Chinese New Year celebrations。With regards to my work here as a teacher，I hope that I can continue to provide some fun and interesting lessons for the students at No。2 Middle School to help to improve their English language and knowledge of western culture，through ac-tive learning。I also hope to contribute more and be part of the friendly atmosphere of the school and the people here。Although I am not a qualified teacher，hopefully I have taught the students something valuable，and can continue to do so in the little time I have left in Quzhou。It has been a learning experience for the students and teach-ers at No。2 Middle School and probably even more so for me，for which I am very grateful。
I would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year。
