Throughout a child’s learning journey, perhaps every parent has wondered: How has my child grown over the past year? Instead of answering through report cards or test scores, Dewey Hai Phong offered its ownresponse through the “End-of-Year Learning Showcase” — an annual academic project held at the close of each school year. This year, rather than organizing separate subject presentations, interdisciplinaryknowledge was thoughtfully designed into one unified experiential journey with diverse forms of expression.
From crafting paper water lilies, radial weaving, and colorful paper rugs to clay sculpting activities, every creation reflected the intersection of aesthetic thinking, observation, creativity, and hands-on skills. Meanwhile, knowledge from Mathematics, History, Geography, Natural Sciences, and Life Skills was transformed into an exciting intellectual challenge through the “Golden Bell Challenge,” where students appliedcritical thinking, quick reflexes, and interdisciplinary connections to compete for the championship title.
On the stage of the Multi-purpose Hall, Literature and Vietnamese lessons were brought to life through the “language” of Performing Arts. Grade 1 students took parents back to the peaceful Vietnamesecountryside with the image of an innocent buffalo boy, while recreating familiar characters such as Tam and Cam and the heroic spirit of the Trung Sisters’ uprising to tell stories of kindness, empathy, and patriotism. Meanwhile, Grades 2 and 3 presented the coming-of-age journey of Cricket and Choat Cricket, alongside the colorful natural world of “The Cicada and the Ant,” where lessons about compassion, responsibility, andhow to treat others were retold through the children’s own perspectives and emotions.
Beyond recreating literary classics, these young “performers” also visualized the beauty of Vietnamese cultural values through each performance. From the image of brave soldiers sacrificing themselves for the nation to the humorous folk play “The Rat’s Wedding,” every act opened meaningful reflections on patriotism, folk satire, and the value of unity. Especially, the showcase of traditional costumes from ethnic groupssuch as the Kinh and Tay transformed the stage into a space where students could tell stories about Vietnamese cultural identity with a deep sense of pride.
As poet To Huu once wrote, “Literature is life; life is both the starting point and the destination of literature.” At Dewey, Literature and Vietnamese have become vivid and authentic lived experiences, where everystudent journeys through the role of an artist to better understand human emotions, the beauty of life, and the depth of the human soul.
The proud eyes, the tears quietly falling, and the resounding applause throughout the auditorium perhaps became the very answer parents had been searching for. A child’s growth is no longer measured solely byhow much knowledge they can memorize, but by how they observe, empathize, collaborate, confidently express their perspectives, and appreciate the world around them. Through each milestone, year after year, students gradually build independent thinking, creativity, and strong inner resilience — empowering them to step confidently into the future with their own unique identity.
