Pao Highlights

The middle school Sports Day on March 27 began with a Zumba warm-up and a cheerleading performance to fire up the crowd. Throughout the day students took part in a variety of events, beginning with 12 creative challenges which included Giant Jenga; Shoe Toss; Tchoukball; indoor curling; and a memory game. Excitement was raised further by a cross-country race before lunch, followed by an afternoon tug-of-war and an inter-house frisbee competition. Winter House won the championship with a total score of 6,257 points, while Autumn House was runner-up with 6,225 points.

This year, the primary school Sports Day was held at the Hongqiao campus. Students in Years 1 to 3 competed as house teams across 12 activity stations, which included Dice Run, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, floorball dribbling, and a water relay. Every student was also able to enter a thrilling 50 metre sprint race. Year 4 and 5 students followed a more traditional athletics format, with individual events contributing points toward the overall house score. Students competed in nine stations, including throwing events (javelin, shot put, and discus), jumping events (long jump, triple jump, and vertical jump), a 50 metre sprint, and team challenges such as water relay and rowing.

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Year 7 and Year 8 students took part in Service Learning Action Days on March 12 and 17, during which a range of social issues were addressed. Tutor groups ran projects that included serving as ambassadors for endangered animals at Shanghai Zoo, acting as little docents at the Children's Museum, and engaging in activities with special needs students. They also launched a used computer drive for rural schools, refurbishing and packaging devices for delivery, while another group created displays encouraging reuse and environmental awareness for a charity thrift shop. Yet other groups ran a Five Senses Experience where faculty and students could immerse themselves in aspects of daily life for people with visual impairments, and in further support for the visually impaired surveyed the condition of tactile paving in the community.

From March 16 to 20 the primary school held its 2026 Book Week under the theme 'Reading to Connect, One World, Many Stories.' The event featured a Read-a-Thon with ten challenges to spark students' interest and enjoyment in reading, while raising funds for the Treasure Home charity project. Visiting children's author Trevor Lai spoke with students in Years 3 to 5 and led illustration workshops for Years 4 and 5. Parents joined in with storytelling and playful reading activities to guide younger children into books. Throughout the week students saw firsthand how stories bridge ages, cultures, and perspectives and bring people together.

On the morning of March 20, the third session of this academic year's Counselor Parent Coffee Morning featured adolescent relationship education expert Mavis Chen, who spoke about how to talk with teens about love. She noted that early romantic interest is developmentally normal and gives young people a chance to learn about feelings and relationships. Chen advised parents to welcome disclosures without judgment, to ask what their child likes about the other person, and to use everyday moments to teach about boundaries and respect. She encouraged seeing strong feelings as fuel for positive growth and recommended that when emotions begin to affect wellbeing, caregivers offer routines, healthy outlets, and steady support.

In early April, the Year 12 Visual Arts students presented their IB exhibition. The works combined strong technical skill with thoughtful concepts, putting on show a wide range of personal ideas, materials, and approaches. The exhibition demonstrated the students' progress in painting and their independent creative spirit as young artists. Each student clearly explained their creative process, sources of inspiration, and artistic intentions, while sharing personal reflections on their journey. The event marked an important milestone for the Class of 2026 as they grow into confident, reflective artists with clear goals.

On the afternoon of April 10, three students from the Curatorial CCA took part in an event called 'Green Nanggong, Built With Young Hearts.' This was an environmental creativity show where students presented eco-friendly projects before judges and an audience, explaining the concepts involved, the choice of materials, and the process of production. The Pao School project received the event's 'Best Creativity Award.'

From April 11 to 12 four Student Council representatives, Alisa; Alana; Yoyo; and Nemo, traveled with Mr. Jeff Zhang and Ms. Dream Xia to Inner Mongolia to plant trees for the YK Pao School Forest. Their visit was a testament to the success of last year's fundraising effort, which surpassed the threshold required to establish a forest through the Roots & Shoots Million Trees Project. While on the expedition, students also explored local strategies for combating desertification.

During the week of April 13 a series of student initiated environmental charity activities took place on campus. Student run charity stalls raised funds for 'Heart to Heart,' supporting life-saving surgeries for children with congenital heart disease, while the EcoFair brought the community together through an auction of second-hand items donated by students and teachers. The Field Studies group hosted a Spring Fair on the Football Pitch, generating further support for Roots & Shoots by offering games, live music, dance performances, a welcome moment of relaxation after their mock exams. On the 16th, the school swimming team organised a mini 'Swim for Love' event in which students swam to raise money for the XingTa Swim Team, which supports fellow swimmers with autism.

The Year 11 ESS class began a distinctive exploration of nature, when Ms. Song Yuexin of the Shanshui Conservation Centre visited their classroom on April 15. She guided students in uncovering the signs of spring and in closely observing subtle natural changes in the local environment. She then led interested students on a field trip to two campus sites to brainstorm the designs for practical microenvironment renovation projects. A lecture by the name of 'Biodiversity and Me' taught the students how to identify local birds, insects and other organisms, helping them to become observers and contributes to monitoring biodiversity.

On the evenings of April 15 and 16, the high school Chinese Drama Society presented its 'Redefining Home' themed performances in the black box theatre, drawing nearly one hundred teachers and students. President Xu Yongchu, Executive Headmaster Iain Kilpatrick, High School Principal James Lyng, and High School Deputy Principal Zang Na attended in person. They praised the students' expressiveness, creativity, and teamwork, thanking instructors Monica Chen, Rena Yue and Anita Zhang for their hard work.

The program consisted of three pieces, each with a distinct style. 'The Dream' was written by Year 10 student Audrey Fu. It was adapted from Dream of the Red Chamber and follows Jia Baoyu as he first enters the Land of Illusion. 'Chickens and Rabbits in a Cage' is a Wuzhen Theatre Festival prizewinner that unfolds a father-daughter story through a primary school math problem, peeling back layers of familial love, misunderstanding, and farewell. 'The Village' was written by the renowned playwright Stan Lai and focuses on the changing lives of three generations in the villages of Taiwan reflecting an era of displacement, and the search for belonging with moments of both laughter and tears.

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The U20+ Youth Climate Action Summit was held at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Shanghai Centre from April 18 to 19. This year's theme was 'Agenda 2035: Systemic Proposals from Generation Z.' William Zhou, a Year 11 student at Pao School, won the Annual Leadership Award for his project 'Distributed Water–Electricity Cogeneration System Based on Photovoltaic–MOF Adsorption.' This project couples photovoltaic power generation with atmospheric water harvesting, using metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) arranged in a biomimetic 'breathing' structure.

Yu Lizhong (left), inaugural Chancellor of NYU Shanghai and Director of the UNESCO Associated Schools Network International Centre, and Yin Houqing (right), President of the Shanghai Society of Educational Sciences, presented the Annual Leadership Award to William Zhou (centre).