April 2010 Tour

As a result of our initial meeting on Tuesday, October 21, plans are officially underway for Bolton High School to visit China in April 2010!

In checking with our travel agent, we will plan to accommodate up to 50 students and community members on this amazing tour of China, which will include a visit to our sister school in Jinan, the Jigang High School.

As of now, about 30 seats are spoken for. All Bolton students, parents, and community members are urged to contact the high school for further information about securing a spot on the trip!

If you are planning to go here is a Suggested Reading List:

Some reading in advance to our visit to China is recommended in order to begin to understand China’s history, geography, culture and dynamics of the current and future role of China in the world.

Understanding China by John Bryan Starr is a quick read.

Search for Modern China by Jonathan D. Spence is more comprehensive.

Genghis Khan by Jack Weatherford challenges western historical perspective and helps one to reflect on historical evidence when visiting China.

The Great Wall by Julia Lovell reflects on conflicting, converging and confusing western and China perspectives on the role of the "wall" in China's past and present.

Also consider:

The World is Flat by Thomas L. Friedman

China Shakes the World by James Kynge

And...it's time to start picking up some skills in Mandarin!

I suggest Basic Mandarin Chinese by Pimsleur. You can practice with the CD's in the privacy of your car or at home!

Details for our adventure will continue to be posted on the site!

Shandong Province Education Leaders to visit Bolton High School

This November, Connecticut will be visited by a delegation of 22 teachers from the Shandong Province. They will be in the United States for 21 days and will spend about 12 of those days hosted locally by school districts. This delegation will arrive in November but exact dates are not known at this time due to the Chinese visa process and visa interview schedule with the U.S. Embassy in Beijing.

Bolton has been invited to host the leaders of the group. They are here as part of a training program to learn about American schools and classroom teaching methods.

The visitors who will spend time in Bolton are all from the Shandong Provincial Education Department offices:

Wu Jianhua (M), Division Chief, Finance Division
Song Quanzheng (M), Main Office
Wang Fuhai (M), Section Chief, Foreign Affairs

We will need to find host families for them. Their days will be spent at our school. We can put them all together or separately, though Wang Fuhai is the English interpreter for the group.

Any interested Bolton family should contact Mr. Paul K. Smith, Principal paulk.smith@boltonct.org.

This is a very exciting opportunity for our school, our students, and our community as we prepare for our visit to China in April 2010!

(This picture is from Baotu Spring Park in Jinan, Shandong Province.)

Bolton High School CHINA TOUR 2010!

In April 2010 members of the Bolton school community will travel to China! There is an information meeting scheduled for all students, parents, and community members on Tuesday, October 21, 2008 at 6:30 PM in the BHS Library.

This event is open to students and community members. The Bolton High School-China partnership was started last year when Principal, Paul K. Smith traveled to China with the Connecticut State Department of Education to establish a sister school in Jinan, the capital city of the Shandong Province south of Beijing.

In cooperation with BHS and the Bolton Community Education Foundation, a return to China is being planned. Travel arrangements will be made with the same touring program used by the Connecticut State Department of Education. The itinerary includes the Great Wall of China, Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, Mount Taishan, a visit to Bolton’s sister school, the historic Hutong of Beijing, and a visit to China’s largest city in terms of population, Shanghai. Anyone interested in information on this adventure of a lifetime should attend this meeting!