Teaching ESL in Zhengzhou for One Year

"Coming to China was like a dream come true for me. I've always wanted to travel the world, so when Career China gave me this opportunity I knew my life was about to change."

Meet Sarah

Sarah is a First Leap Teacher living in the city of Zhengzhou in the Henan Province of China. She shares about her experience living and teaching in Zhengzhou and some of her favorite memories from teaching the past year.

Why did you decide to come to China?

I'm Sarah from South Africa and I'm working as an ESL teacher for First Leap in Zhengzhou city. I've been in China for a year now, and it has been an awesome experience. For me, coming to China was like a dream come true. I've always wanted to travel the world, so when Career China gave me this opportunity I knew my life was about to change.

I was working as a Music Intern Teacher at St. Stithians College before coming to China. I left my job, but not because I didn't like the school. I had awesome colleagues and everything was perfect, but I needed to do something more exciting than what I was doing.

That's when I got in contact with Elven Ni from Career China. He's one of the best recruiters and I liked that he was very supportive through the whole process.

Arriving and Teaching in China

I got to China and at first I was still nervous. The first few days of being in China weren't easy, because most people don't understand English. After a month I got to enjoy my life. My colleagues were supportive - we are now good friends and the kids are awesome. We are really having a great time.

I really love my current job. It's so easy to wake up and go to work everyday because of those innocent souls who'll put a smile on your face the minute you start walking into the classroom. We share so many hugs and laugh a lot. It feels so great to be around them.

We have been working online lately because of the virus, and online classes can be challenging, so I really can't wait to go back to work. Read more about the Do's and Don'ts for Teaching English Online for the First Time.

Living in Zhengzhou

I'll be staying in China for one more year because I love it here, and I also love the environment. Zhengzhou is a very nice city. There's not a lot to do, but we do have some interesting places to go to like the Yellow River, Shaolin Temple, the Erqi Square, the night street markets, and many more.There are also lots of beautiful parks you can visit and have fun at.

For people planning to come to China: please do come, you will love it here.

Follow Sarah on Instagram to see more of her adventures in China: @sarahsuping.

Ready to start your own adventure in China? Apply today!