Community Entry Point

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As part of the IMYC, Entry Points for each new Big Idea are met with excitement by our students. With the Big Idea of Community, Chùa Bộc students this morning made a trip to Cơ sở Hy Vọng ("Hope School") in Long Biên to exchange and connect over community-building activities such as making quilled paper greeting cards for teachers, mothers and grandmothers ahead of Vietnamese Women's Day on 20 October.

Hope School currently has 65 students, two-thirds of which are deaf or hard of hearing. Making connections with students at Hope School, our Grade 8 students learned some sign basic language for meeting and greeting, asking names, giving cards, and expressing thanks. Initially getting to know each other was difficult because our students did not understand Vietnamese sign language, but with assistance our students were able to help guide Hope School students in making beautiful greeting cards. Interaction, smiles, eye contact, and gestures of support helped to bridge the language barrier.

Grade 8 student Hiền Anh shared: “Community activities like this are very interesting, helping us to appreciate what we have because we are more fortunate than some of our peers. Seeing Hope School students sing the song 'Mother's Hand' in sign language, I see they are all very good. It would take me at least two weeks to match the music and remember how to convey the song by hand like that!”

TH students Quang Anh and Minh Châu said they thought that they would have the opportunity to meet Hope School students because when they made the invitation, they realized that although their hearing ability was limited, Hope School students always laugh and have fun. Quang Anh said, "Our friends at Hope School made cards and drew very well, just like artists."

The IMYC Entry Point for Community and meeting at Hope School also helps to highlight TH School's focus on service learning and giving back to the local community.