Principal Hou Mingfei has built an amazing school, which allows children to have fun in sports and unlock the infinite possibilities of life.
SHENYANG, China, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) -- Cycling, climbing and rowing. At an urban public primary school in China's northeastern province of Liaoning, it is common for students here to play and simply have fun for at least three hours a day.
Sounds crazy? Many people had cast doubt over the decision of Hou Mingfei, principal of No. 9 Primary School of Hunnan District, Shenyang. But now, the principal has received credit from Chinese Basketball Association president Yao Ming, recognizing his contribution in promoting physical education at school.
"Principal Hou has built an amazing school, which allows children to have fun in sports and unlock the infinite possibilities of life," Yao said.
Walking on campus, reporters are greeted by three 16-meter-long slides where children can enjoy a smooth descent. Over 1,400 big car tires are piled up like hills for children to play on and have fun. On the playground, students run freely here and there.
"Play is the most direct way for children to be happy. I think one hour of physical exercise a day is far from enough," said Hou, noting that three hours of sports a day is a must-do for his students, and they can continue playing until 7pm before returning home.
Hou, who had engaged in special education and brain science research before the school was built, incorporated the function of sports into the design of the school. The teaching building has a design load of 500kg per square meter. The 2,000 square meter area on the second floor of the building has become a sports field, and the fifth floor has been transformed into an inline hockey training center.
More than 15 sporting activities have been introduced to the school, including unicycles, rock climbing and rowing.
"Every activity is carefully selected. For example, rock climbing is good for the treatment of scoliosis. Riding unicycles can help students coordinate their body, cognition and emotion. More than 90 percent of the over 2,500 students in our school can ride unicycles now," Hou said.
Adequate exercise builds a robust body for children at the school. 71.55 percent of the students have excellent vital capacity. Only three percent of the students are obese, while 13.8 percent suffer from myopia, far below the national average of 52.7 percent.
"I value the lifelong influence of sports on children," Hou said. "Most children even performed better in exams after playing more sports."
After years of efforts, Hou's educational concept have been welcomed by most of the parents and generated a great deal of attention.
Hou's initiative saw him selected onto the Outstanding Sports Principal Program initiated by the Joe Tsai Foundation.
"Although he and his school were once questioned by others, today the school is very eye-catching and popular," Yao Ming said during the award ceremony.
"I know that in many people's eyes, I am a 'crazy principal,' but I am willing to do something to give back the childhood to children," Hou said, noting that with the support of the foundation, he is currently preparing to build a professional hockey rink for students. "The children have been looking forward to it for a long time." ■
