A Teacher’s Story About Teaching During The Pandemic

A teacher, Elizabeth Siu at Gum Moon fondly talks about the impact of summer school programs during COVID-19 which are supported by the funds raised each year.

"I was an instructor for Gum Moon during the summer of 2020. Being able to teach here made my summer! I am so grateful for the opportunity to meet all the wonderful students and helping them through this pandemic.

In the beginning, teaching online was challenging. But after we got the hang of it, it was fun and felt as effective as teaching in person. The kids really took to it. 

By the second week of school, there were already improvements from the students. They knew exactly what to do because we had already set a daily routine. For English, I saw huge improvements on their reading skills and public speaking. We would take turns reading each paragraph and then answering the questions together, enhancing their comprehension skills.

The students loved summer school at Gum Moon. Kids would be waiting for class to start an hour early and always had big smiles on their faces asking for the agenda for the day when they joined class.

I remember the time when we were ending the academic part of class and they seemed disappointed. I asked if they wanted to stay for an extra half an hour and they sprung up and shouted “yeah.” Seeing this made me feel so happy and helped me feel like I helped make a difference in these children's education during a difficult time. I am so appreciative of Gum Moon for this opportunity to teach and to learn as well." 

- Elizabeth Siu