The WAB Podcast  By  cover art

The WAB Podcast

By: Western Academy of Beijing
  • Summary

  • The WAB Podcast brings you engaging and inspiring stories about innovative learning, school activities, and community initiatives at Western Academy of Beijing (WAB), a leading international school in Beijing. Join us for conversations that will connect you with the educators, students, parents, and staff who make our international school community unique.
    Western Academy of Beijing 2023
    Show more Show less
Episodes
  • Student Takeover: Amplifying Art at WAB
    Mar 14 2024

    In this week's WAB podcast, two students from the High School student club Art Amplifiers, Jeremy and Isabelle, have taken over to interview their peers Daniel, Rosalina, and Salina, who recently participated in the APAC Band and International Schools Choral Music Society (ISCMS). During the interview, the guests shared their experiences, favorite moments, and key takeaways from their musical journey.

    Rosalina, who returned from the ISCMS trip, talked about the valuable lessons she learned through her involvement in the choir group and performing a classical Beethoven piece. She emphasized how collaboration within the school choir had helped her integrate and improve her ability to read scores. Rosalina commented, "Cooperation was the key."

    Salina, who also took part in the ISCMS event, joined as a member of the orchestra. She revealed at the beginning when joined the school orchestra, it was her first time playing the cello and she expressed gratitude for the support she received from her teacher. Now, she even had the opportunity to assist her stand partner, a Grade 9 student, with dynamics and other performance details. Salina highlighted that the aspect she enjoyed the most about ISCMS was the freedom that she could "express more of my body language there and feel more of the music". 

    Daniel, a Grade 11 student, participated in the APAC Band. He found the experience of being surrounded by other musicians who played the same instrument as him to be very inspiring. He also mentioned that the sectional meetings within the band were particularly beneficial as they helped him understand how to play his instrument within the context of a group performance.

    To learn more about our student's experience in their recent musical voyage, don't miss out on this episode presented by the High School student club Art Amplifiers.

    Show more Show less
    12 mins
  • Buddy Program Enhances Social-Emotional Learning Skills across Grades
    Mar 7 2024

    In this week's WAB podcast, we have the pleasure of hosting Grade 4 student Aubrey and Grade 8 student Dakota, along with Elementary School teacher Suzie Sizemore and Middle School counselor Rachel George. They will be sharing their experiences  in Grade 4 to Grade 8 Buddy Program, its goals, how it worked and its impact.

    Aubrey from Fourth Grade shared how much fun she had participating in the Buddy Program. By connecting with her eighth-grade mentor, she gained a deeper understanding of what middle schoolers are like and discovered the many ways they are similar. Aubrey emphasized that the more she understood her buddy, the stronger their connection became.

    Grade 4 teacher Suzie highlighted that for Elementary School students, it's beneficial to have a connection with an international peer learner from our web community who has already experienced different grades. Fourth graders are provided with role models to look up to, who can guide them, provide feedback, and share their unique perspectives as international learners.

    Rachel, the Head of Middle School Counseling, highlighted that the Buddy Program aims to facilitate the social-emotional learning (SEL) curriculum, which includes self-awareness, social awareness, and relationship skills. Observing Grade 8 students in action and applying those skills while mentoring younger students allows them to practice and internalize these valuable abilities.

    Grade 8 student Dokata pointed out that through participating in various activities, she and her mentee discovered common interests and similarities, despite the grade gap. She also acknowledged the positive impact of the Buddy Program on her own development of social-emotional learning skills.

    To learn more about the Grade 4 and 8 Buddy program, be sure to tune in to this episode.

    Show more Show less
    13 mins
  • Club Reps Share experience of APAC Robotics Tournament
    Feb 29 2024

    In this week's Podcast, we have invited representatives of WAB's Vex Robotics Club, who have participated in the APAC Robotics Tournament held in Shanghai. Grade 9 student Zander, and Grade 11 student Simo, along with their coaches Holly Cheng, and Phil Smith joined the discussion. They shared their competition experience, key takeaways, favorite moments, and future plans.

    The APAC Robotics Tournament featured 42 teams this year, and WAB achieved 11th place. According to Holly, the club coach, the students dedicated around four months to building a robot capable of participating in the competition, which involved shooting balls into the opponents' goals.

    Simo emphasized that the APAC Robotics Tournament represented a significant leap forward for the entire team. The event brought together a diverse group of schools and participants, resulting in a wide variety of robot designs and strategies. He mentioned being impressed by the "really unique robot designs" and found the "process of testing and improving" their robot very beneficial in the end.

    Zander shared that during the contest, WAB collaborated with different schools, including International School Beijing (ISB), Nanjing International School, and Shanghai American School Puxi. He described the experience as highly competitive and challenging, noting that he took careful note of other schools' strategies to enhance WAB's competitiveness in the field.

    Phil offered a teacher's perspective, highlighting that participating in such an event "ticked all the boxes for the student approaches learning", as the process required research, critical thinking, self-management, and numerous other transferable skills.

    If you're interested in hearing more exciting insights into student activities at WAB, don't miss out on this episode.

    Show more Show less
    13 mins

What listeners say about The WAB Podcast

Average customer ratings

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.