Hiba’s first academic year has nearly finished, which makes these final few weeks the ideal time to look back on our first year together with pride, satisfaction and celebration.
On Sunday 16th June we saw a very special celebratory event come to life – Hiba’s very first summer carnival. Blessed with good weather on the day, the entire Hiba community enjoyed a fantastic day filled with summertime activities, fabulous food, music, games, and a great atmosphere of family fun.
Planning and organisational efforts for the summer carnival were led by our always supportive Hiba parents, with the Friends of Hiba parental organisation taking charge. The Chief spokeswoman of the FoH, Sunny Yin explained the reasoning behind their choice of the ‘English Summer’ theme for this inaugural event:“Many of our teachers here at Hiba are from the UK, so it seemed to us to be a natural choice to theme the summer carnival in a way that would show our appreciation and affection for them. We want Hiba to be one big, welcoming family and all of us parents really appreciate the efforts that the non-Chinese staff make to understand our language, our culture and our children. This is just one small way we can say ‘thank you’. We also thought that this theme might help them forget any homesickness they might have for at least a while!”
Sunny also praised the efforts of the rest of the FoH and volunteer parents, who were responsible for different elements in bringing the festival together smoothly and safely.
From designing the layout of the carnival, to organising activities, working with vendors, creating t-shirts, securing multiple First-Aid tents and free water points to keep everyone hydrated, the parents did an excellent job of ensuring that everyone would have a great time while staying safe and comfortable.
Upon arrival, Hiba pupils, parents, staff and guests were welcomed by the unique sound of bagpipes, played expertly by the Shanghai Scottish Guards.
Carnival-goers also couldn’t miss the sight of the huge double-decker bus parked in the equad area, which brought a little bit of London tourism charm to our corner of Shanghai.
Heading round to the back of the school, guests could see scaled down versions of English landmarks such as London Bridge and the world-famous Stone Henge.
Spread across the sports field and running track were the main attractions of the summer carnival. Children and parents alike could try their luck with plenty of English-inspired fair games like Hook-a-Duck and Dunk the Teacher.
The more modern games were also very popular, as pupils fired Angry Birds from catapults and even tried out hyper-realistic VR (Virtual Reality) games. The children could also beat the heat and cool off by slipping and sliding down the three huge inflatable water slides.
Of course, there were also lots of cool drinks and tasty treats on offer – the perfect complement to a hot summer’s day.
Alongside the many activities, games and vendor stalls, carnival-goers were also treated to several musical interludes from many of our own talented Hiba pupils that they had prepared specially for the day.
While enjoying everything that the carnival had to offer, Hiba Principal Stella Zhou said:“This is a very special day for the school and the Hiba community. We’re all here, together, having great time and that is very much the focus for the day. Pupils, parents and staff, have all worked so hard as a team throughout Hiba’s first year to make it a success and we all deserve a truly fun and memorable day to celebrate everything we have achieved.”
We hope that you very much enjoyed the first Hiba summer carnival, an event which has set the standard for future years to emulate.
