Article by Miriam Hagg,
SPO Junior Reporter

This week, many of the students at Harrison Elementary School will be getting an experience like no other.

Principal Mr. Lee Snider has scheduled for fifth and sixth grade students from China to travel to Warsaw, Ind., “to meet and interact with students from the other side of the globe.” Mr. Snider says, “We want our students to know there is more to the world than Warsaw, Indiana, or even the United States. More importantly, our students need to know that even though the people of the world speak different languages and have different cultures, underneath all that are the same wants and needs: food and shelter, love of family, and knowledge of the world around us.”

This is the underlying purpose for the visit. The opportunity presented itself when Deb McClintock, a second grade teacher at Harrison Elementary School visited China and formed a relationship with Shengli Experimental School in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province. One year later, the school’s principal, Mr. Zhang, visited Harrison Elementary School. This year, the fifth and sixth grade students at Harrison Elementary School will be visited the most, but Mr. Snider hopes to see the students visit every classroom.

The event will be held on Wednesday through Saturday of this week. According to Mr. Snider, the students will arrive in Warsaw on Wednesday afternoon. They will take a tour of Warsaw hosted by Grace College, and guided by Randy Polston.

On Thursday, students will be greeted at Harrison with an assembly in the gym, and then they will participate in fifth and sixth grade classrooms for the day. Thursday evening Harrison will have a cookout for the students and their host families, and then the students from China will spend the night with their host families.

On Friday, they will start the day with a tour of Biomet, and then they will go to Warsaw High School for a tour and to participate in the Chinese IV class. Students will return to Harrison to visit other classrooms, and then they will have one last night with their host families. The event will showcase many things about Warsaw, and will be a great way for the visitors to learn about our culture.

Mr. Snider would like to thank Biomet, Grace College and Maple Leaf Farms for their support of this educational activity. In conclusion, Snider says, “This experience will enrich the lives of our students as they interact and learn with students from around the world.”