"I wanted to go somewhere
with a small, close-knit community like SCLS."
国际部高中2022届毕业生
G12 Graduate of SCLS International Division
Emma Gonzalez Cueto
早申录取学校
玛卡莱斯特学院
Macalester College
美国U.S. News世界大学排名第27名（文理学院类）
获得每年6万美元奖学金
01 我与宋校，难以忘怀的六年
My Memories of SCLS
我在宋校的那些
闪光瞬间
我和封校长的珍贵合影
能参与学校盛大的“国庆快闪”活动是我的骄傲，没有什么更能表达我对中国和宋校的喜爱和感谢
即将迎来12岁生日时，我有幸加入了宋庆龄学校的大家庭。当时，刚来中国才几周，对一切都充满了陌生与新奇，但同学们都非常热情友好、大方善良，让我迅速融入到学校环境中。他们以温暖的怀抱接纳从一个陌生国度初来乍到的我，主动给我庆祝生日，送给我让我永生难忘的惊喜礼物。在宋校最让我珍视的收获，就是师生间亲密无间的情谊，他们教会我如何享受生活，校园里到处洋溢着尊重、和谐与关爱。即使将暂别这片土地，但这些珍贵无比的回忆都已经深深扎根在我的心里。
I joined SCLS a couple weeks before my 12th birthday. I had only been in China for about three weeks, so I hadn’t yet made any friends. However, since my mom was a new teacher here, I had spent a lot of time with other staff members. I celebrated by inviting the teachers and cooking pancakes for them. The next year, after I had settled in more, I invited my friends to watch Black Panther and have lunch. When I think about what I love most about my time here, I think of the closeness that allowed me to have these strong relationships and how they taught me to enjoy life. It is those connections, formed through the Drama program and photography, that I will miss the most when I am gone.
不久前，我和同学们自编自导自演了属于我们自己风格的《西游记》
人生中戏剧种子也是在宋校时播种萌发。7年级时，我参加了戏剧老师Mrs. Harper教授的戏剧选修课，并参与排演的我的首部戏剧作品《音乐镇》。一下子，戏剧似乎在老师的引导和同学们的投入中施展出了它的魔法，我被无法自拔地迷住了。之后，不断沉浸于戏剧课中的我报名参加了课后表演，主动发起了关于即兴戏剧的课后活动，其他同学也饶有兴趣地加入。在接下来的几年里，通过定期排练并举办年度演出，我们的戏剧社蓬勃壮大，我也结识了最亲密的一批朋友，与他们并肩前行，创造出梦幻般的人物和作品。正是通过戏剧这扇窗口，我在这方天地里忘情探索之余，也收获了更多的自信和时间管理能力，从而广泛地加入校飞盘队和学生会等不同的学生组织，在宋校生机盎然地吸收养分并自由成长，伸展着朝向更广阔世界的触角。
My drama career began in 7th grade, when I signed up for the drama elective taught by Mrs. Harper, the first drama teacher at SCLS. At the end of the year, we put on SCLS’s very first drama production: Musicville. I continued drama class every year since then and signed up for the after-school performances, as well. Every year, the program grew a little bit and we performed bigger, better shows like A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Seussical Jr., Honk! Jr., and Somewhere Nowhere. When Mrs. Harper left, the drama students were worried about not being able to continue drama the way she had taught us. So, I created an Improv ECA for myself and other students who were a part of the drama program to continue what Ms. Harper had started. At the end of the year, we put on a show. My classmate and I will be running this ECA again this year with the same goal. This is how I met my closest friends for the next few years, working side by side with them every year to create fantastical characters and places. As the program expanded, I was also able to meet and work with great students from other grades. Through these connections, I was able to work with many of them in other areas, such as the SCLS Wings Frisbee team and Student Council, and even create long-lasting connections with people from outside of Shanghai through the Educational Theater Association Festival.
TEDx SoongChingLingSchool演讲，也有我的身影
宋校小班化的教学方式，以及精诚优秀的教师，为我们的心智成长和探索精神的养成提供了安全的呵护，让我受益匪浅。此外，个性化的分层教学模式真正体现了“因材施教”，学校甚至为我独立开设了以匹配我能力的中文课程，老师们耐心细致的教学助力我全心全意地学习。通过这门课，我与姜蒙老师和张宇老师变得亲密起来，让学习过程更有趣。去年，我跟着张宇老师上了中文AP课程，她常和我进行真诚又深入的讨论，帮助我拓展了自己的文化视野。作为一名阿根廷裔的美国人，我对上海这座城市自然有着和中国朋友们的不同感受和理解，她积极地在这方面与我探讨交流。正是得益于张老师所设计的有针对性又不乏深度的课程内容，我的中文知识和表达技巧等方面在自然而然又循序渐进的口语练习中得到了极大提升，最终在考试中获得了满分5分的优异成绩。此外，她对于西方文化和英语语言的学习意愿和热情，也激发出我的兴趣和动力。张老师从未因为外国学生原先的基础不够而对我有所轻视或怠慢，反而根据我的学习进度相应调整了作业的难度和布置安排，让学习变得无比轻松！我最钟情的回忆还包括在AP考试结束后，她特意抽出了时间，陪着我练习自己TEDx的演讲。没有她，我不可能取得出色的学术成就，也不可能成功地在众人面前以流利而到位的表达发表演讲！
I benefitted greatly from having small classes (and great teachers) at SCLS. They offer a safe environment for intellectual growth and experimentation. My Chinese classes specifically, allowed me to focus on learning because I was the only student. This also helped me build close relationships with my teachers Joanna Jiang and Grace Zhang, making class more fun. Last year, I took AP Chinese with Grace Zhang. She helped me expand my cultural perspective by engaging in genuine and authentic conversations with me. She asked me many questions about my perspectives as a foreigner from Argentina and the U.S living in Shanghai. These deep discussions allowed for me to practice my Chinese language skills and also to score a 5 on the AP Chinese Language and Culture exam. Additionally, seeing her willingness and eagerness to learn about western culture and the English language motivated me even more. This, as well as that Ms. Zhang never underestimated me and adjusted assignments accordingly, made learning feel easy! One of my favorite memories in this class was rehearsing my TEDx Talk with her after the AP exam was over. I could not have achieved a 5 on the exam or given a successful speech without her!
戏剧表演《Seussical》
photo by Mr.Jim Litherland
02 拍下上海，记录我的爱
My Shots of Shanghai
生活中总有
我值得记录的美好
SHANGHAI
我的摄影之旅始于上海。当时祖父送给我第一台相机作为我12岁生日的礼物，因为它很小，可以放在外套口袋里，于是我便带着它东逛西走。之后的两年，我经常用快门记录下目睹的一切。但渐渐地，我觉得有些不知所措和感到沮丧，因为自己并不懂得正确的拍照方法。暂停拍摄了一阵后，我想到了自己在戏剧这条路上也有相似经历，有阵子曾认为自己无法贡献出杰出的表演。当时，是老师和同学们看出了我的质疑和困惑，在旁鼓励我“最大的成功就是做自己”。是的，我的眼光，我的风格，我的情感，都是别人的摄影作品无法体现的，不论是戏剧抑或摄影，都是在维护自我表达的价值。并且，“不积跬步，无以至千里。”如果不把自身不足作为学习的动力并积极行动，那必定只能原地踏步。这么思考着的我，自信心和创作的兴趣一点点回归，于是我一边研究拍摄理论和技巧，一边继续走向了街头，用镜头去创作和记录。
My photography journey began in Shanghai when my grandfather gifted me my first camera, a tiny Canon Powershot SFX170 for my 12th birthday. I took it with me everywhere, and it was small enough to fit in my coat pocket. I took pictures pretty frequently for about two years. Then gradually, I began to take less and less photos. I stopped for about a year, maybe a year and a half even. Even though I didn’t have a clear reason for this at the time, I later realized that the reason for this was because I felt somewhat clueless and incompetent. I became frustrated as I thought I didn’t know how to “do photography correctly,” and I thought I wasn’t smart enough to learn or succeed. But as I saw other people posting their pictures on social media, my thinking began to change. Whenever I looked at them, I felt so calm. The more I saw, the more I realized I wanted to be able to produce something like that. So, I went out and resumed my photography.
通过画面的实验，就能在摄影中逐渐进步。我开始通过取景器注意到很多细节：路边喷香的锅贴、香客拜佛时的虔诚表情、在喝饮料和吃冷饮的可爱孩童、夜色中来往行人的步履匆匆……从这些擦身而过的点滴，从以前被我忽略的新角度，从难以预计又扑面而来的相遇中，我寻找到了新视角。
Just by trying and experimenting, I was already improving and learning! I began noticing things through my Canon EOS 200DII’s viewfinder, finding views from new angles which I previously would have ignored. In this way, I gained a new perspective.
摄影让我与上海建立了情感联系，就像戏剧让我和宋校深深结缘一样。当我拍摄某物时，太多东西能被我捕捉，无论是人、动物、花朵、瞬间，甚至只是一种感觉。只要及时将其冻结，我就能永远保存画面，以及我和它之间生出的亲密关系。我最喜欢的一些照片都是在上海拍摄的，因为它们包含了我与这个城市、与中国的联系。不仅如此，在各项学校活动里，我也用相机保存下校园和同学们的宝贵瞬间。“定格”的意义，不仅是为了让全世界都能看见那些无价的回忆，也是为了它们能永远与我同在。
Photography has given me a connection to Shanghai such that no other activity could offer me. When I photograph something, I capture something, be it a person, an animal, a moment, a flower, or even just a feeling, and freeze it in time to be able to hold forever, creating intimacy between me and that thing. Therefore, some of my favorite photographs are ones I have taken in Shanghai because they contain the connection I feel with this city. In capturing these moments, I capture pieces of Shanghai not only for the world to see, but also to keep with me forever.
03 心怀记忆，迎向未来
My Future Made by SCLS & Shanghai
过去与未来
有些事或许不会变
ME AS A CHILD
在申请大学的过程中，我知道自己想去一个像宋校这样的规模较小、人际联系紧密的校园，渴望被同样温馨、广袤又无私的“爱”环绕，也向往像上海这样赋予我无限机会的大城市。幸运的是，我即将就读的玛卡莱斯特学院坐落于圣保罗市，拥有的学生数量也恰当（2049名），正好满足了我的要求。尽管对于离别不乏遗憾，但我明白，学校的戏剧社将继续在老师以及学弟学妹们的守护下发展，宋校也会一如既往地为学生提供自由、包容、多彩的成长氛围，而我也将能够尝试许多崭新的活动，与许多陌生人建立联系，就像我在这里经历的一样。在宋校和上海的这六年里，我收获了无数感动、精彩、难忘而别致的点滴，原本如小树苗般的我，从而被创造出了繁茂又开阔的人生，这股馈赠和力量将伴我一路前行。
This is how I knew in my journey of applying to college that I wanted to go somewhere with a small, close-knit community like SCLS but that would also give me the opportunities of a big city like Shanghai. Luckily, located in St. Paul, one of the Twin Cities of Minnesota, and with a student body of 2,049 students, Macalester does just that. And so, even though I am sad to leave, I know the Drama program at SCLS will continue growing, and I know that I will be able to participate in many new activities and connect with many new people, the same way I connected here. Just like roads I haven’t yet traveled lead me places I have been before, people I haven’t yet met will connect with the ‘old’ parts of me, the parts that Shanghai and SCLS have made.
HELLO, FUTURE !
photo by Mr.Jim Litherland
撰文：Emma Gonzalez Cueto
