It's a one-week study schedule for us. We have eight classes in a day. The first class starts at 8 o’clock. And the last class ends at 4:40. If you think it ends here, you are totally wrong. The schedule at school is only for the first half. After school, we usually go to cram school to have more classes. For those who don’t know, cram schools are essentially the places that students go to master certain core subjects, like English, math, physics and chemistry.

Our homework is extremely intense, especially on Fridays. Our teachers always say it is a weekend gift to us. Of course, no one likes this gift!

We have many subjects during the week, including Chinese, English, math, Physics & Chemistry, geography, history, civics, Earth science, art, music, PE, computer science, and home economics.

In Chinese class, we study poetry, modern literature and classical literature. Poetry and classical literature are a little bit difficult for us because they were written several hundred years ago. This is probably a similar experience for students in the West having to read the sonnets of Shakespeare. So, our teacher will translate the words first and then explain the background to us. As for modern literature, it is much easier to study. We make presentations about different authors, and then we will discuss and express our own views on the topic.

For English class, we focus on grammar the most. We have many exercises to practice in class. The vocabulary is important, too. A junior high school student should know at least 2,000 words.

We have six math classes each week. As an old saying goes, “ Practice makes perfect.” So we have a lot of handouts and homework every day. We all know that the more practice you do, the better grades you will get. But sometimes we can’t help complaining about this heavy burden.

In physics and chemistry, we emphasize theory more than practical skills, so our teacher also hands out lots of homework. Sometimes, we will plead with her to reduce the amount of homework.

Social studies includes three parts: history, geography and civics. Besides lecturing in class, we will have some special activities, such as World Human Rights Day. Last semester, the civics teacher told us about the difficulties that Sudan is facing. She encouraged us to write a letter to the leader of Sudan, hoping it can raise awareness of the problems.

Earth Science is a very popular subject. Because it links to our daily life. During class, we learn all kinds of stuff about the Earth, such as the causes of earthquakes, climate change and global warming. Another reason we like this subject is that our Earth Science teacher is a very famous weather forecaster in Taiwan. Apart from the knowledge in the textbook, he also likes to share his work experience with us, which is extremely interesting.

Other than core subjects, we also have many interesting classes, such as art, music, PE , computer science and home economics, which allow us to explore our many talents and creativity.

More information