余晨丽 Sara Yu Assistant Head of Primary School
In 2020, Sara Yu joined SUIS Qingpu Campus’ Primary School as a pioneer teacher. Since the beginning of 2022, she has served as the Assistant to the Head of Primary, mainly responsible for the comprehensive management of moral education, and the hosting of the school’s Student Development Academy.
Awards and Recognitions:
Recipient of the Qingpu District’s 7th Annual “Expert Teacher” award
Member of the Qingpu District’s 7th Annual “Famous Teacher” training project’s “Seed Plan” team
Member of the Qingpu District’s 4th phase of the primary and secondary school homeroom teacher salon, a “Star” Homeroom Teacher Studio
Presided over the district-level project, “Practical Research on the ability of primary school mathematics students to find and put forward true problems.”
Participated in a key project for the Ministry of Education: “Design and Practice Research of Primary School Teachers’ Professional Development Based on Project Learning”.
Participated in a key project for the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission: “Teacher Professional Development Design and Practice Research based on Project Learning”.
1st prize for primary school mathematics in the district primary and secondary school teachers’ teaching selection activity
2nd prize in Shanghai’s “Teachers Guide Students to Study” essay solicitation activity
1st prize in the district’s special essay selection of “Focusing on Learning and Teaching for Learning”
3rd prize for a “Modern Teaching” excellent teaching paper
3rd prize for research results for young teachers in the district
Please allow us to tell you about our kind, amiable and professional colleague, Sara Yu. Ms. Sara has been teaching for 13 years, always espousing a love for children and education. She is always full of positive energy, bringing warmth and strength to those around her. Colleagues even call her “Super Teacher”! While Sara always has a smile on her face, with just one look students instantly know what is expected of them and their entire demeanour changes. She is also adept at tapping the potential of every child, seeing their individual brilliance – everyone is a shining star in her classes. She has every family in her heart, and whenever parents ask about their children, she can always patiently tell them the truth of the situation. Her sincerity has won the legitimate support of parents. She is such a wise and versatile teacher – every day is a new beginning, full of hope and willingness to meet new challenges.
In 2014, Sara travelled to the UK as a representative from Shanghai with the first cohort of Chinese math teachers tasked with teaching math in UK classrooms. She and others in the cohort taught math for one month, carrying out many teaching demonstrations and conducting in-depth teaching guidance and exchanges with several British schools. During that period, she was also interviewed by the BBC, The Times and other British media. Her personal interview was published in The Times and also reprinted by the domestic “Reference News”.
The on-site seminar for primary education research in the Qingpu District was based on the theme of “Real problems + Real learning” and involved a demonstration lesson entitled, “Solving Problems”.
Ethics – Our Good Friends
Mr. Scott Hockley, Deputy-Head of Primary School
There is one word I would use to describe Sara Yu: fastidious. Sara has always impressed me with her work ethic – she has always been willing to prepare for and support learning amongst our students, whether it be inside or outside of the classroom. From my first year working with her, I had the unshakable feeling that she was a conscientious teacher who put learning at the forefront of her teaching practice, no matter the subject matter at hand. It has been my privilege to call Sara my colleague, and indeed, my friend.
Assistant Head of Primary, Summer Gao
When working with Ms. Sara, I am always energized by her enthusiasm and innovative style. Her lessons inspire teachers and classmates to remain long after the lessons finish, and every dialogue between teachers and students is respectful and encouraging. Her approach to developing class culture is to carefully ‘grease the wheels’ of the learning structures, insisting on independent management, paying attention to the students’ hearts, and always guiding children to find solutions to their growing pains. In the process of accompanying teachers to prepare lessons, she always teases out the best aspects of each teacher and encourages them to form their own classroom style to help them grow faster. When communicating with parents, she can always empathize with them, listen to and communicate with them, and in partnership with them face the challenges that emerge during children’s growth. We are privileged to work with Ms. Sara.
G1 Coordinator Ms. Shirley Zhang
When observing Ms. Sara’s class for the first time, I was amazed to discover how neat, compact and engaging a lesson could be. In each of her lessons, every move, every gesture and word catches the attention of her students. Her work style is just like her class, resolute and concise – she has given me a lot of guidance and help in my own practice. She has always answered any of my questions about instruction, supported me in a timely manner, helped me, and guided me wisely and strategically to find and solve problems. It’s been a blessing to work with such a great colleague.
G4 Math Coordinator Ms. Fu
When I first met Ms. Sara, I was fascinated by her mathematics class. Her classroom atmosphere was welcoming and active, and students were interested in learning, actively participating in the set tasks. Her teaching content is rich and effective, with the teaching process respectful of each students’ individual needs. For this reason, I used to make special time to go observe her lessons – Ms Sara has always been pleased to share her wisdom with me.
G4 Math Teacher Mona
There is hope, and there are stars.
Chasing the light
Ms. Sara is gentle and firm. She is a mentor and a big sister to me who treats everything she sees and does with gentleness. This tenderness is contagious for students and colleagues, and her smile in class is like the warm sun in winter. Students are like young saplings, slowly growing into giant trees with her warm guidance.
G4 English teacher Ms. Jessica
As an English teacher, every time I have the opportunity to observe Ms. Sara in a lesson, I become enthralled and take out my observing notes to record my experience. I “quietly” memorize the motivational words she uses with her students, and then follow and benefit from her style. She provides wisdom to our homeroom teachers – whether big things or small things, whenever we come to Ms. Sara, she never shirks from using her own experience to help everyone. With her here to support, there is no problem that cannot be solved.
Young Pioneers Counsellor and Music Teacher, Ms. Mia Xie
Ms. Sara always brings me a very warm feeling. As a homeroom teacher, she can communicate with the children with love, care and patience, and always guides and accompanies the children with love to support their growth. As a math teacher, she is willing to use her off-work time and weekend time to refine her lessons with group members in an effort to better impart knowledge to students. As the Assistant Head of our Primary School, she is fastidious and can give the greatest support and help to the homeroom teachers. In the work related to the Young Pioneers programme, she has always accompanied me in my growth, guided me to develop and improve the work of the Young Pioneers, and constantly encouraged me in my work processes.
4D Gary Li’s Mom
I met Sara in 2020, when Sara had just joined our school community. The first time we met, she conveyed a strong positive energy which made me feel that I was so lucky to have such a teacher by my child’s side! In addition to teaching students every day, Sara also attaches great importance to their inner development. She will teach students to look at problems with an inquiring mind and looks for and finds the beauty in each person. When children encounter problems, she will be the first teacher that students will talk to. She is so positive and willing to share. She is a ‘power bank’…a ‘Super Sara’.
4E Kimi Chen’s Mom
Ms. Sara is a very caring and patient math teacher! She is always so appreciative and works to discover the brilliance of each student using encouraging language to stimulate their mathematical thinking and motivation to inquire. No matter how difficult the topic is in the eyes of children, after her explanation, children will really get to the heart of the problem with ease. We are lucky to meet such a teacher.