Volunteer Locations: Feng Jing Town

We are no longer sending volunteers to Feng Jing. The Feng Jing program has been replaced by a new program in Mian Yang, Sichuan province. More information on our New Sichuan Project.

Feng Jing Town is part of the Jin Shan District, the most outlying district of Shanghai. Located 70 kilometers from Shanghai city, the ancient town is well-known for its numerous rivers, bridges, and temples. It is a typical Jiangnan town, with over twenty rivers and streams and 39 ancient bridges. Jiangnan refers to the area south of the lower reaches of the famous Yangtze River. Many small rivers flow through this region and in ancient times many canals were built in these towns to help facilitate transport.

Feng Jing is a town rich with cultural heritage. Fengjing is the origin of ‘peasant or farm painting’ which is known and loved worldwide. “Farm painting” originated in the early 1950’s when the farmers started to express their sense of beauty and yearning of a better life through painting. The area has many other cultural resources of note including dragon dance, artistic paper cutting, folk music, and other folk arts. The popular Fengjing Art Festival is held in October of every year.

Even though the metropolis of Shanghai is a mere 70 kilometers away, the people of this area are not used to seeing westerners as few foreign tourists and travelers visit the town. There is a great need and desire for English teachers in this lovely area.

Volunteer Projects in Feng Jing

Feng Jing Zhong Xin Primary School. English teaching, summer camps.
This primary school is located in the centre of town. There are around 1200 students at the school and usually around 30 students in each class aged between 7-12 years old. Volunteers teach 11-15 lessons each week and will usually teach on their own after a 1-2 week induction.

Jing Zhong Secondary School English Teaching
Located next to the Jing Zhing primary school, where we also teach, this secondary school teach students aged between 12 and 15 years old. There are 460 students in the school and 40 students per class. Volunteers at this school teach 11-15 lessons each week and will usually teach the lessons on their own after a 1-2 week induction. Volunteers can also teach Music, Art, football or basketball.

Feng Jing Kindergarten. Teaching Assistant
The children in this kindergarten are 4 to 7 years old and there are about 450 kids. Our volunteers in the Feng Jing Kindergarten assist the regular teacher in all kinds of aspects including the Music, Drawing, Dancing, PE and craft classes.

Feng Jing High School, English Teaching
There are 1600 students in Feng Jing High School. Students are aged from 16 to 19 years old. Volunteers at this school teach 11-15 lessons each week and will usually teach the lessons on their own after a 1 -2 week induction. Each lesson lasts 40 minutes and the level of English is much higher than the other schools.

Summer Camps
Chinese schools are closed in July and August for summer holiday and during this time volunteers help out at the English Summer Camp in Jing Feng Town. Every semester we try and improve the structure and quality of these camps. A typical day teaching at a camp involves two/three hours of English lessons followed by an afternoon of games and activities. The aim of these camps is to allow students to practice their English skills in a fun and interesting way.

During the summer period there will be lots of teaching activities however we do require that volunteers be flexible. This applies especially at the start and end of the holiday period when many schools and students are reluctant to have lessons.

More images from Feng Jing

General Feng Jing Town Information

Accommodation
Volunteers live in shared rooms within T2T's flat or in the school accommodation in the town. The flat has air conditioning, washing machine, shower, TV, computer, and water dispenser. If you would like to stay with a local family, we can also arrange a home stay for you.

Food
There are no cooking facilities in the school accommodation but there is a kitchen in our flat and home stay. You will have 3 meals in the schools from Monday to Friday. The streets of Feng Jing Town are filled with places to eat and a meal can cost as little as 1 to 2 dollars.

Weather
Feng Jing Town has a subtropical maritime monsoon climate, with four distinct seasons. The weather can mostly be described as moderate with a warm spring, hot summer, cool autumn, and cold winter with temperatures almost never getting into the extremes. There is quite a bit of rain from June through September. Light rains fall from June through July, this time is also known in China as the “Plum Flower Rain” season while torrential rains occur later in the summer.

Activities
The ancient town of Feng Jing is rich in culture and there are many cultural activities to learn from and take part in. This town is known for it’s “Farm Painting” in addition to many other arts and crafts. The famous Feng Jing Arts and Crafts Festival takes place every October. Volunteers can learn Martial Arts, Chinese Calligraphy, and Chinese Cooking in their spare time or take time to sightsee and explore this town and the neighboring water towns.

How to get to Feng Jing Town
Feng Jing is 70 km from the Shanghai City Center. Shanghai has a good metro and bus system and it takes about 70 minutes to travel from Shanghai to the Feng Jing Town Center using the public transportation.

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