Samuel's Success!

Samuel, 14, from Legazpi, Philippines, wrote me another wonderful letter! He's had a triumph at school- let me share the letter with you.
"Dear Sponsor,
Hello! How are you? I'm always praying that you and you're [sic] family are always fine. Our teacher was already gave us our first periodical exam in all subjects. I feel very nervous when I'm taking the exam because others are difficult but I'm happy because I answered all the questions especially on my favorite subject. My favorite subject is English I love studying English that's why I got the highest score in English in our exam. I'm so happy and thankful. The next event in our school is Intramurals. I'm so excited and preparing myself because lots of activities will happen. I will join in my favorite sports like badminton and volleyball. I will also join in singing contest. I love to sing and I have lots of favorite songs. I'm so excited because I love sports.
Thank you and God Bless.
Your sponsored child, Samuel J."

What great news! I'm so proud of "Chao" (as he likes to be called). I'm not sure if he got the highest score possible on the exam, or if he got the highest score out of all the students in his class, but either way, he did extremely well! I can tell that he likes to study English- he always writes in English and his command of the language is impressive. Aside from a few very minor mistakes (ones that native English speakers make all the time, like your/you're) and a couple of awkward or unusual constructions, his English is nearly perfect. I'm very glad that Samuel's English is excellent, because in the Philippines, English is the language of school, business, etc. Filipino is the language spoken at home. (Of course, that's vastly oversimplified, but it's basically true.) So, having strong English speaking and writing skills is very important for success in the professional world! I hope Samuel is on his way to that success! (I feel confident that he is!)