Day 5 -- Understanding Differences

Group 1

This morning, we went to the Fanshawe Pioneer Village, which shows the history of rural communities in the former townships from 1820 to 1920, and the development of the City of London. The visit was very interesting as we could see the traditional houses and schools of the early London. 

After lunch, we had an 'Icebreaker' session and attended a lesson about diversity, which taught us the differences between people. Then, a special guest came and gave us a great speech which benefited us a lot. Also, we played a card game called 'BARNGA' which is a cross-cultural simulation game. Each group was given different instructions of how to play the game and they needed to figure out those instructions with other groups without communication. At first, we found it hard and strange to play but then we thought it was interesting. After dinner, we had a cultural night planning and we discussed what dessert we should make on the cultural night. At last, we had a games night and we had great fun. 

To conclude, we enjoyed the day a lot and we are looking forward to the activities in the coming weekend!

Group 2 Faith lau 3A (14)

Today in the Pioneer Village, we have learnt so much more about the irish protestant and the refugees that lived there during the 19th and 20th century. They lived in a poorly built, small and conjested village and didnt know much about the world outside, this allows me to reflect that I am so privilege that I can receive an education and being able to proceed what we want to do in life with the people in the old days cannot do because of scarce resources and a small social circle. Then during the lesson of Diversity, we have played a little game of cards and every table had different instructions, under the condition of not being able to speak and communicate in any media, it was difficult for us to reach a consensus, this teaches me that diversity is important and an important role in being a leader to distribute work to different members effectively and effeciently.

Group 3 Chloe Leung 3U (19)

Out of all the activities we did yesterday, we like ‘Barnga’ the most. It is a game where different groups get different sets of instructions of the game and the winning group gets to switch table to play with other groups. Through this game, we learn that there is diversity between everyone. We cannot assume others are the same as us because everyone is unique, and there is not the same individual in the world, so we should respect others and respect ourselves. We can live as the best vision of ourselves by being confident in our unique abilities. 

Group 4 Joanna Chung 3A (8)

In the morning, we visited the Fanshawe Pioneer Village. Throughout this visit, we learnt more about the history of Canada from a hundred years ago till now. We also found that it is entertaining and rewarding for us to get to know more about the livelihood of the villagers back then. For example, we got to know about them in the aspects of the food, shelter and entertainment they had. 

After lunch, we listened to a talk by Michelle about diversity. We learnt that it means differences between each other, which are all unique and correct in their own way. This further led us to appreciate the strengths and weaknesses of others and ourselves. It also led us to become great successors in life. As there are different people with different ideas in the world, we learn to accommodate and cooperate with them. 

Then, the special guest 'Barnga' led us to further experience diversity by providing a card game for us with different rules in each group. This led us to cooperate with each other despite our differences in mind about the game. At last, we discussed the culture night's activities, and the discussion went smoothly with different groupmates providing various ideas about the activities, which are going to make the culture night fantastic and fun. 

Overall, we had lots of fun and learnt about cooperation, which is crucial in achieving our goals.

Group 5 Chantelle Wong 3L (27)

We had a fruitful day on the sixth day of our trip.  To start with, the Fanshawe Pioneer Village visit has taught us the history of Canada from the 18th to 19th century.  We have learnt about how the lifestyles changed through time. The lesson in the afternoon has taught us about diversity. People may have different identities, religions, interests or more, but these differences actually make our world more colourful and interesting. If everyone is the same, then we will miss a lot of fun in our lives.  

The activity that followed, BARNGA, has shown us some problems that we may encounter when we have different sets of rules. This has made us reflect on the importance of communication. We ended our day with group work, planning the activities for culture night.  It was a chance for us to communicate and learn how to co-operate with one and other. We enjoy today a lot since we can learn and apply our knowledge in our daily lives.

Group 6 Kelly Sum 3T (27)

Today was our fifth day at Brescia. We started the day off with a trip to Fanshawe Pioneer Village. There was a traditional sawmill which we have never seen before. We then visited The Free Press, where we found out how printing worked in the past. It was very different from what we use nowadays. We also visited two chapels and there is a huge contrast in the decorations between the two. However, they shared the same status to people as they were considered to be a sacred place for worshipping. We ended the trip by visiting a house that was built only in a week’s time. It was a great pleasure to know more about the lives of people in the past.

 Afterwards, we had a lesson on the theme of diversity. We also met a special guest and played a game named BARNGA. We found out that the rules of each group were different after the game. Although the rules were quite complicated, we managed to accomplish the game with great success. Through the game and the lesson, we learnt how to respect and co-operate with others of diverse backgrounds. It has been a fruitful day and we have taken a great step towards being a successful leader.

Group 7 Emerald Ip 3P (14)

Today we went to Fanshawe Pioneer Village and in the afternoon we learned about diversity and cooperation. In the village,  we learned more about the history of Canada and the changes in Canadians’ homes since the 19th century, when barns and gardens were ubiquitous. They also grew crops for themselves and shared them with their neighbours. In the afternoon, we learned more about how to accept differences between people and work together, which help polish our leadership skills. 

I think that the lesson in the afternoon is relatable to the changes in relationships between the past and present. Modern people have distant relationship with their neighbours and they do not trust each other easily. We should all try and apply all we learnt in daily life so that we can appreciate and be more inclusive to others.

Group 8 Charmy Pak 3U (26)

This morning we visited an outdoor heritage museum called the Fanshawe Pioneer Village. We were looking forward to this. The weather was not too hot and it was perfect for outing. The village is simple and filled with greenery which was rarely seen in Hong Kong. There were many houses, usually single-storey with simple decorations. The buildings blend in with its natural environment. We had a better understanding of the Canadian history and the cultural difference through observing the actual items in the village. This echoes the topic of today -  understanding differences to build leadership. It was essential for a good leader to know their members like their cultural background and how they are brought up. Despite the differences, it's still possible to pull together our strengths and work to achieve a common goal.

Group 9 Renee Chan 3U (6)

Today I learnt a lot more about the early Canadian immigrants' culture and daily lives from visiting the Fanshawe Pioneer Village. It was a valuable experience for us as we could see how schools, houses, churches were like in around 1820 to 1920. We played BARNGA in the afternoon. It's a card game prepared by the guest speaker, Ms Christina Lord, to bring out the themes of competitiveness and cooperation. The game taught us to respect diversity, be open-minded to all people, and to skillfully deal with situations when both parties have different opinions. The speaker also showed us a video which stressed on the importance of looking at things from different perspectives. It taught us to be more accepting and be empathetic.

Group 10 Tiffany Chow 3L (4) 

Today is the fifth day of our Brescia Canada Tour and the theme is ‘Understanding Differences’. We visited the Fanshawe Pioneer Village and learnt so much more about Canadian history. One of the most interesting details was how hard it was to run a printing shop. Precision and a neutral attitude were very important. Otherwise, people risked having the printing shop being burnt down.  In the afternoon, we attended a talk and played a simple yet frustrating game called Five Tricks. We had different instructions of the same game, so when we switched places to play with other groups, people might be misunderstood and mad because others plays the game differently. 

Most importantly, everyone is different in their own ways and that's what makes people special. We must be patient and embrace the diversity so that everyone will be respected.