The Cambodia Rural School Project
The Kbal Thnal Nippon
Foundation School
Sopha Theary is a fifth grade student at the Kbal Thnal Nippon Foundation School
Out of the thirty-one students in her class, she was ranked fourteenth.
| On herself:
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I am fourteen years old. I have six siblings and two out of them are at school. My mother is a pharmacist, and father a farmer. Our house is just down the road from the school.
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| On the new building:
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When I was studying in the old building, I was worried that the wind and rain might blow away the rotten wooden roof. Furthermore, because the roof was full of chips and cracks, it would leak whenever it rained. Having said that the new school building is just incomparable—it has new windows, walls and doors. The air in the classrooms is much fresher than in the old building where a tin roof kept us sweat.
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| Favorite subject:
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Khmer. The texts are good and fun to read. My favorite story is called “Nget Ta Khleang Mong”. It’s a story of a ghost called Nget Ta Khleang Mong who saves the Khmer people from the terror of the Khmer Rouge with magical power. He uses the power to scare off the Thai invaders. My favorite part is when the Nget Ta Khleang Mong changes into a ghost.
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| On her spare time:
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I help my parents cook rice and feed the pigs. Sometimes I do homework. I like playing hopscotch with my friends near our house.
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| In the future:
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I want to be a teacher and teach the next generation. If the next generation is educated, it will be easier for them to get a job. Or I’d like to be a tailor. I want to make really good clothes, and pass on that knowledge to the next generation. If I could be absolutely anything, I would work with an NGO that gives money or support to the poor.
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| If she could travel anywhere:
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I would go to Australia. I want to see the people there. I saw a photograph, and it looked very beautiful.
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