Ask David Yu how many pies he had made before this summer and he’ll tell you “none.” Ask him how many pies he’s baked since moving to Lunenburg, MA to attend Applewild School in Fitchburg and the answer will be “many.” One of those pies was an apple pie he submitted to the Apple Pie Contest last weekend at the school’s annual Harvest Fair. That pie earned him first place and the admiration of his schoolmates, many of whom were taste testers for the contest and dubbed his pie the “best ever.”

What began as a way to help David and his roommate Hongyu Pan, both of China, to practice reading, understanding and applying their English to daily tasks, has turned into an activity his host family encourages him to continue. “One way David’s learning about American culture is through the types of food we eat and why,” says host dad, Phil Schultz. In addition to his apple pies, David has shown an aptitude for baking pumpkin pies.

To learn more about Applewild School’s English Language Learners program (ELL) for both international and domestic students, as well as to read David’s recipe, visit us at http://bit.ly/1n3GhbX.