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Striking a balance breeds success
February 27, 2013, Wednesday
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SOME students bury their noses in textbooks and routinely receive high marks on their report cards. Other students sing and dance their way through extracurricular activities, and up on stage. And still other students dominate on the sports field and around the track. A few students, however - those who are self driven and who exert tremendous personal effort - manage to do all of the above. Patrick Haffmans is one such student, a star performer in his studies, in music and performing arts, and in sports.
Haffmans, a Year 12 student at Yew Chung International School Shanghai's Gubei campus, has a lot of reasons to sing and dance this year. One reason is his leading role in the school's musical production of "Footloose," but songs could also be sung of his strong academic performance, and of his performance on the soccer field.
Sally Davis, head of Performing Arts at YCIS, reminisced that, "since first meeting Patrick as a Year 6 student, he has always displayed a thirst for learning, and a desire to always know 'how' and 'why.' An accomplished guitarist, singer and composer, Patrick has fully involved himself in the Performing Arts program at YCIS.
"The remarkable aspect of this passion for 'all things music' is that Patrick, who gives hours every week to the Performing Arts program, is maintaining enviable grades across all six IB subjects," says Davis. Patrick has developed the time management skills to balance all of his commitments, including a place on the school's soccer team."
Admirably, humility is a quality also very becoming of Haffmans. When asked to share insight into his performances, his first reaction was to praise fellow cast members, saying, "I had the opportunity to work with a great ensemble cast for our school's musical production."
Can taking significant portions of time and focus away from other areas of study really give students the tools they need to succeed? Certainly. Haffmans reminds us that "the performing arts teach you not just how to perform, but how to be a whole person," says Davis.
Haffmans, a Year 12 student at Yew Chung International School Shanghai's Gubei campus, has a lot of reasons to sing and dance this year. One reason is his leading role in the school's musical production of "Footloose," but songs could also be sung of his strong academic performance, and of his performance on the soccer field.
Sally Davis, head of Performing Arts at YCIS, reminisced that, "since first meeting Patrick as a Year 6 student, he has always displayed a thirst for learning, and a desire to always know 'how' and 'why.' An accomplished guitarist, singer and composer, Patrick has fully involved himself in the Performing Arts program at YCIS.
"The remarkable aspect of this passion for 'all things music' is that Patrick, who gives hours every week to the Performing Arts program, is maintaining enviable grades across all six IB subjects," says Davis. Patrick has developed the time management skills to balance all of his commitments, including a place on the school's soccer team."
Admirably, humility is a quality also very becoming of Haffmans. When asked to share insight into his performances, his first reaction was to praise fellow cast members, saying, "I had the opportunity to work with a great ensemble cast for our school's musical production."
Can taking significant portions of time and focus away from other areas of study really give students the tools they need to succeed? Certainly. Haffmans reminds us that "the performing arts teach you not just how to perform, but how to be a whole person," says Davis.
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