§ INSIGHTS · 觀點
Insights
Notes on learning, admissions, and raising curious kids — from the lab.
§ 01 升學情報
Admissions & Exams
Gifted programs, science classes, science fairs, learning portfolios — what actually matters.
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Preparing for Chien-Hsing's gifted program: why fourth grade is the start
The science section of Chien-Hsing's gifted-program entrance covers a full three years of junior-high material. For an elementary-schooler, that's a long race you have to start early — and we think the starting line sits around fourth grade.
Originally published May 2024 -
Please stop telling kids the learning portfolio doesn't matter
Every year after results come out, we get a wave of SOS calls — from top-choice, top-scoring students who stalled because their portfolio was nearly blank. This one is blunt, and we mean it.
Originally published March 2023 -
Why science fairs matter, which kids they suit — and why we never publish a winners' list
A science fair isn't a box to tick — it's a full course in rigorous research. Why admissions weighs it so heavily, which children it actually suits, and one thing we've held to since day one: we never publish a winners' list.
Originally published March 2023 -
Ten questions parents ask about science fairs
What age can they start? Can you team up across schools? Is it expensive? The ten questions parents ask us most about science fairs, answered in one place.
Originally published March 2023 -
Five principles for a learning portfolio
The new portfolio system gets a lot of criticism, but its intent isn't bad. Once you settle down and grasp a few essentials, it's nowhere near as hard as it looks.
Originally published July 2022 -
Your practical-work piece: what professors actually want to see
Many university departments consider a 'practical-work piece' at application. But most submissions look alike. Understand what a professor wants from it, and you'll know what to prepare.
Originally published June 2022 -
The learning portfolio, explained
University admissions stopped being 'prepare after the exams' long ago. The learning portfolio pushes the work all the way back to the first year of senior high — sometimes earlier. It's an information game, and the families who understand the system first get the head start.
Originally published June 2022 -
The legendary class: inside Tainan First's science-class entrance
Tainan First Senior High's science class is the summit for the city's most driven science kids. How you get in, what it tests, and what life looks like once you're there — the whole path, laid out.
Originally published June 2022 -
Four common mistakes in a learning portfolio
After editing a great many learning portfolios with students, we keep seeing the same mistakes. Most aren't the child's fault — no one told them what to watch for first.
Originally published February 2021 -
Reviewers read the process, not the milestones
Too many students turn the learning portfolio into a list of prizes. But what actually shapes the impression is how you thought and adjusted — not what place you came.
Originally published January 2021
§ 02 學習方法
How We Teach
Why we run the experiment first, and explain the theory after.
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Great fun — and genuinely strict
We often tell our students that STARK is 'great fun, but also very strict.' The two aren't in tension — children come back precisely because they can feel themselves getting better.
Originally published August 2024 -
When the data starts moving: how the senses spark learning
When a child watches the numbers jump and the curve run in real time, the order of learning gets rewritten. Here's how live data feedback — see it, do it — lights up a child's motivation, one stage at a time.
Originally published March 2024 -
Run the experiment first, explain the theory after
People assume that pairing theory with hands-on work means you'll never finish the syllabus. In our experience the opposite is true — because a child has to see something happen before the explanation can land.
Originally published March 2021
§ 03 實驗室手記
Lab Notes
Behind the scenes of a science lab — how we build courses, kit, and standards.
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Building the lab we always wanted: the year we moved
Finding a room that met our spec took two years. Gutting it and rebuilding took eight weeks. This is a story we rarely tell — but very much wanted to record.
Originally published June 2024 -
"You only do experiments, not theory" — our answer
Now and then a competitor says this about us. Rather than argue back, we'd rather set it out plainly: at our lab, experiment and theory were never an either-or. They're two sides of the same thing.
Originally published March 2024 -
Why every child gets a research-grade microscope
Sharing one set of equipment among several kids does make tuition cheaper. We can't accept it — because it just makes children argue and zone out. Behind one-per-child lies a whole philosophy of teaching.
Originally published February 2023 -
How we shrank a university materials-mechanics lab into a home kit
A collaboration with a university civil-engineering department pushed us to turn six-figure professional equipment into low-cost kits a child can run at home. Here's the full story — the filming, the kit, and the outreach.
Originally published December 2021 -
Why we bring university engineering to teenagers
A lot of kids feel lost because the only world they know is school subjects. Rather than chasing short summer camps, we'd rather have them run a real engineering experiment with their own hands — and properly explore a field.
Originally published August 2021 -
The one stubborn thing we've bet the lab on
Back when we started, plenty of people called us fools — who teaches only science experiments and doesn't even bolt on English or maths? A decade later, we're surer than ever: with science, you only truly understand it once you've done it with your own hands.
Originally published April 2021
§ 04 家長視角
For Parents
Notes for parents on helping a child grow the capacity to learn.
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Why gifted kids have so much free time
After years of teaching, we've noticed something counter-intuitive: the children who go furthest usually have more empty time, not less. The trick isn't filling it — it's leaving it blank.
Originally published March 2024 -
What makes a STEM toy different?
The biggest difference between a STEM toy and an ordinary one is that there's no fixed way to play and no fixed outcome. Which is exactly why a child never tires of it — and quietly picks up an engineer's way of thinking.
Originally published August 2023