Pirate Adventure!

One day as the sun rose over the ocean and the Captain shouted to the crew to raise the sails, I nervously peered out of the port hole.  My father had told me as we boarded the ship that our journey was very dangerous as these waters were notorious for PIRATE attacks!  As I looked out over the swaying ocean I couldn't help but wonder if indeed pirates were out there just waiting for us.  

Suddenly...the alarms went off.  My father screamed my name and said there was a fire onboard and that we needed to evacuate.  Everyone panicked and ran to the rescue boats.  They let the children go first.  After I went into the boat, it was launched into the water.  We paddled as fast as we could, and suddenly, there was another big boat. I looked up and realised that it was a pirate ship.  Oh no!

Edited for Clarity.

Our Trip to London

This was our first time flying to London, and we were all very excited.  In the city where we live, we had already started our autumn holiday; so, it was a big surprise when our father told us about our trip to London.  When he told us about it, I couldn't believe it at first.  I had always wanted to visit London.  We often read about it in our English textbooks.  The thought of visiting these things in real life made me really excited.

Our flight was planned for Saturday, the day after my brother's birthday.  However, preparing for the trip was not as easy as I expected.  We were a bit stressed because of the luggage.  Everyone had to pack carefully since we were allowed to take only a small suitcase.  I needed much more space for my outfits and other things; so, I decided to buy extra luggage.  After all the running around, I finally finished everything on time.

When we were ready to go, we left our car at my uncle's house.  He was very kind and drove us to the airport.  During the drive, everyone was talking about what he/she wanted to see in London.

At the airport, everything seemed so big and busy.  It was our first time flying in a very long time; so, we didn't really know what to expect.  We went through security and then waited for our flight.  Our flight was supposed to leave at a certain time, but actually, it was delayed by one hour.  That was really annoying and boring, especially because we were already tired from packing.  We sat in the waiting area, watching the planes take off and land.  We just wanted our time to come.

Finally, the boarding started, but then it began to rain really hard.  The weather was terrible; so, we had to wait a few more minutes before taking off.  When we finally got into the air, I felt really excited and happy at the same time.  It was amazing to look out the window and see the clouds and land below us.  The flight was generally calm with just a little bit of turbulence.  

After a while, we started to descend and could see the light of the city through the clouds.  We arrived in London at around 7pm local time.  I was so happy when we finally landed.  As soon as we stepped out of the plane, I felt the cool London air.  It was really exciting.

We are still in London at this moment and having a very good time.  This city is so big and full of life; there is always something happening.  I love walking through the streets and hearing all the different accents.  It still feels a bit unreal to be here, but I am really happy we came.

Edited for Clarity.

My Cat Maksik

It is with great pleasure that we unlock each student's potential.  Some come to us with a pocket full of advanced vocabulary, ready to use it to express themselves even on complex matters. Others come with a great command of grammar but a shyness when expressing themselves orally. Some students haven’t had as much practice, and it is particularly rewarding to see such students make the English language their own. 

The author of the following blog post is one such student. She came in with a lovely demeanor, excited to learn and make friends with the other children.  However, using English was intimidating to her. She would freeze at the thought of holding a pen and crowned Google Translate as her refuge, where she could hide behind the Russian alphabet and still communicate with the teaching team. As  the week progressed, the magic of our language immersion started taking form, gifting her more confidence. By Friday, she had made significant progress and wrote this wonderful description of a cat. The word ‘proud’ doesn’t come close to describing how we feel about her evolution. I hope you enjoy this piece (and the picture of her original work)!

  

My cat’s name is Maksik. He is 8 years old and lives in Russia. Maksik is yellow with orange stripes and a white tummy. He always wears a green collar with a gold bell. He’s fluffy, soft and cuddly. He is also very cute and friendly. He loves to purr and play with me. He drinks milk and eats tuna.

Edited for clarity.

Why Hi-London?

Maria Beatriz

With Hi-London, I had the opportunity to make friends from all over the world just by speaking English.  During these two weeks, I learned a lot of things by visiting different museums and parts of London.  Of course, I can't forget to say how much I've improved my English abilities, especially my speaking.

Enrique

The thing I have enjoyed the most about Hi-London is the Science Museum.  What impressed me the most about this museum was the bomb called V2 that was dropped in England in 1942 by the Nazis.  Another thing I really enjoyed from this Museum was the reflecting telescope by Isaac Newton due to the impact it had an astronomy.

Giulia

I really like studying English and travelling.  Last year, I came to Hi-London and loved it; so, I came back the following year.  Something that I enjoy about this school is that we always go out and visit museums because I think it is very important for us to have cultural experiences.  

London is also a gorgeous city; so, exploring it with our group is always a adventure.  The teachers are nice and friendly, and the students are too.  

Another good thing is that they care about your abilities.  For example, I was moved to another group since they thought I could express myself more in this team.

I recommend this school.

Edited for brevity and clarity.

Where Are You Now?

 

Edited for clarity.

My name is Emma F., an 18-year-old student from Italy. I am now in my last year of high school in Piacenza and preparing my applications for university in Milan. I have always been fascinated by the English language and am very passionate about travelling as a way to discovering new places, cultures and traditions. 

My first experience with Hi-London dates back to when I was almost ten years old. I joined the KIDS group and started my adventure. I immediately fell in love with the program because Hi-London was not an ordinary summer school. Indeed, instead of sitting in a classroom, I found myself wandering around the city of London, visiting museums, art exhibitions and natural sites, while improving my English and connecting with other international students. I quickly realized that the more I learned the easier it was to build relationships with the other children coming from the other side of the world! 

I continued my journey and, after a couple of years, I was ready for the TEEN group that allowed me to improve my reading comprehension and writing skills. I made amazing friends whom I am still in touch with, and I found kind and professional teachers who played a major role in my learning experience. 

I was so fond of the Hi-London “family” that, when I was 17, I created the opportunity to become a teaching assistant for two weeks. This job experience helped me to develop my communication and team-building skills along with organizational and time management capabilities. Senior teachers made me feel part of the team and guided me in my role in the best way possible. I found out how hard and demanding it was to work with young students but also how enriching it was to deal with them every day. 

This long-lasting connection with Hi-London made a difference in my school performance in Italy and definitely shaped the person that I am today, even influencing my choices for the future. It is not a coincidence that my university selection is now oriented towards an “International Relations” degree where I hope I will carry on with my international path. 

A Feast Fit for a King

Hi. I'm Vincent, and today, I worked a lot in the kitchen.  It's Feast Day.  So, I worked hard to feed a lot of people.  I made stew.  It had meat, vegetables and potatoes in it.  It's too hard working for the King because he is so demanding.  I think they liked the stew because they ate very fast.  The cauldron was hot.  So, I burned my arm, and now, I'm tired.  I also made fish with rosemary and corn.  That was my day.  I'm going to bed now.  Bye!

Hi.  My name is Antonia, and I'm the chef for the King.  Today, I needed to cook a big dinner for 200 people.  We cooked beef, potatoes, vegetables and bread.  To drink, we had wine.

Hi.  I am Jonas, and I cook for everyone in the palace.  It is always really busy because I have to cook for 600 people and then I sleep.  The King doesn't pay a lot.

Hi.  My name is Lucas.  I am the royal chef.  Today, I cooked a stew for the King.  My stew had potatoes, pork, carrots, rosemary and onions.  My stew is the best stew in the whole kingdom!

First, helpers have to plan what they need to cook.  Before they cook, they have to think which food the King loves.  For example, when we went to see the kitchen, we saw that the King has a food and drink list.  The list is about the food and drinks the King loves.  I think it's going to be a very nice feast.

A Day in the Life of a Street Performer

This autumn, our students explored some of London’s best places for watching street performers. We were entertained by singing puppets, musicians, dancers, and magicians to name a few. The students then thought about what it would be like to be a street performer, and what they would like to try. Below are some written pieces from the students on ‘A Day in the Life of a Street Performer’. 

‘The Day of a Busker’ 

Yesterday was a nice day. I started at 9am in Hyde Park. It was a sunny day. There weren’t any people around at 9am, but after 10am, more and more people came to the park. People listened to my music and gave me a lot of money. At 2pm, I had a break. During the break, I ate a burger and drank a glass of water. Then at 3pm, I began to make more music. At 5pm when I finished work, I saw that I had made a lot of money. It was a great day because I made people happy with my music. I like my job. 

‘The Life of a Dancer’ 

Hello, I am a dancer. I usually start dancing at 10am. I perform in London around Southbank. From the beginning, people have always loved me. I started dancing on the street when I was a child. Other dancers impressed me a lot when I was young.  The day I started dancing, I knew it was for me. I think I’m lucky because I’m one of the most famous dancers on the street. Some of the other dancers have had to leave because they don’t make as much money as me. 

‘Street Dancing’ 

I am a street dancer. It’s my full-time job, and I start every day at 9.30am. The first thing I do is to find a good spot to perform. That can be difficult to find as I need a lot of space as a dancer. Once I have found my spot, I choose which style of dance to perform. Today, I chose breakdancing. Today, another dancer wanted my spot; so, we did a dance battle. The winner won the spot. Today was a good day because I won, and I made £120. I am happy to be a street dancer. 

‘Life as a Mime Artist’ 

I am a mime artist, and today is my 4th year doing this job. I like doing this job because I can amuse the people around me. It’s difficult to do this; so, I think this is why people like me. I am the only one around the Southbank area doing this. Many people watch me and give me money. This makes me happy and gives me the energy that I need to wake up and do this job every day. Today, I wrote on a piece of wood that it is my 4th year doing this job. People saw this and gave me more money. I invited a little girl to perform with me for 5 minutes because it was her birthday. This made her very happy.