Belgium Begins! Day 1.
Ello’ from Waterloo! We flew in to Brussels this morning around 8:30am. On
our way home from the airport, Kelcie insisted we stop for “pan choco-lat”, a
chocolate pastry she had been craving since she was in the States. We got a
few of the pastries as well as fresh squeezed orange juice that pumped right
in front of you. It was deliciously sweet. We also stopped and picked up
fresh bread and a treat for Mrs. Regina at another pastry shop. Then we
drove to the Hall’s beautiful home. Mrs. Regina showed me my room and
then we made coffee, relaxed, unpacked, showered, etc. After I finished
unpacking and cleaned up, I walked downstairs to see where everyone else
was. I sat on the coach, but didn’t hear a sound. “Everyone must be
napping,” I thought. And then my eyes got really heavy and a nap sounded
great to me, too. I ended up sleeping for almost three hours! When we woke
up, Mrs. Regina and I went to the CarreFour which compares to Target. I
tried my first waffle on the way in at a little booth. It tasted absolutely
delicious. It was really sweet, but not too much, and really filling at the
same time. There were aisles of French fries (which the Belgians call frites)
and waffles and chocolates. This is my kind of country! haha. On the way
home from the store, Mrs. Regina drove me around Waterloo, including the
Lion’s Butte and downtown. It reminded me of downtown Franklin, TN, yet
bigger. Something funny I learned is that when stores in Belgium have
sales, they put naked manikins in the window as a signal to their customers
that a large sale is going on. Haha interesting. After we got back, we relaxed
until dinner at a great pizza place. We had great conversation about all the
places the Halls have traveled, their upcoming trip to Thailand/Hong Kong in
June after Kelcie’s graduation, and a story when Kelcie found a gun in the
back of her car. Mrs. Regina and I split the Margarita pizza, Kelcie got a
four-cheese pizza, and Mr. Bryan got lasagna. We also had eggplant
parmesan and caprese (tomatoes/mozzarella) for appetizers. That may have
been the best mozzarella I’ve ever had. After dinner, we drove back to the
Halls’, threw on some pj’s, and watched The Count of Monte Cristo. It was a
great movie! And it had Napoleon Bonaparte and Paris in it, so it hit right
home. Now, I’m jet lagged and wide-awake typing this at 1:18am.
Tomorrow may be tough to stay awake, but school starts Monday at
7:30am!
Old Monasteries and My Sweet Host Mom
Day 2.
1/12/2013 12:16:00 AM
Today, we woke up and had homemade egg McMuffins for breakfast. We
went to the International Baptist Church of Brussels. We sang many songs I
know like, “Better is One Day” and “Hungry”. The pastor talked about two
paths of living as demonstrated by Cain and Seth. I really like how he taught
so much Biblical history. At the end of the service, guests stood up and
introduced themselves. I stood up and said I am a student at Samford
University in Birmingham, AL and am in Waterloo doing a classroom
observation at St. John’s International School. Turns out, the girl next to us
heard me say Alabama and said she is a junior at Auburn taking a semester
off. What a small world. After church, we met up with the Hall’s good
friends, the Bake’s. I ordered chicken fajitas for lunch that were FANTASTIC.
After we got back to the house from lunch, Mrs. Regina and I toured an old
monastery. The ruins were beautiful. Lots of arches, broken brick, growing
vines, and I even explored an underground prison. It was dark and spooky,
but really cool. The cathedral was probably one of my favorite parts of the
monastery. It was so majestic and big. You could just imagine the monks
chanting and their songs resounding throughout the campus. On the way
home from the monastery, we stopped at McDonalds for a Spekulos
McFlurry. It tasted like graham crackers and chocolate, kind of like a smore’s
blast! Tonight we’re just relaxing, getting ready for a big first day tomorrow,
and going to bed EARLY.
FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL! Day 3.
1/12/2013 12:16:00 AM
Today was my first day at St. John’s International School! When I first got
there, Mrs. Regina walked me to the teacher’s lounge to meet Principal
Bambridge who immediately gave me a hug and made me feel welcome. I
know from the bat that I would like her. She also told me I have an accent
from the South? Apparently, I have a slight twang. I also met my teacher, a
fourth grade teacher named Carol Montgomery. She has taught for about
twelve years and this is her first year at St. John’s. When her class arrived
around 8:30, I was so excited to meet them. They are from all over Europe,
including the Netherlands and Italy. Some are even from the United States
so that made me feel right at home. The students showed me dioramas they
created about books they read. The classroom was very simple, but Ms.
Montgomery uses a good bit of technology, including an ELMO, a computer,
and a laptop. She does not have a Smart Board. The students wear uniforms
and they all looked so cute! Many of the students can speak two or more
languages. One girl I talked to who went to EAL (English as an Additional
Language) speaks incredible English, but her first language is French and
she also speaks Dutch. Other students speak German, Nederlands, Flemish,
etc. The three main languages of Belgium are French, Dutch, and German.
Overall, classwork is extremely hands on. I observed a music class where
the kids had to create their own compositions. One young Korean boy played
Fur Elise and other amazing classical music on the piano. I was blown away
by the talent of these kids and how bright they are. During math, they
measured the classroom and created architectural drawings. The students
also work extremely hard and have great work ethic. Ms. Montgomery told
me a story about a young Korean girl in her class who she claimed was “her
favorite”. Ms. Montgomery gave the class a creative writing assignment
where students were to “argue why you should not have homework on the
weekend.” Easy, right? Many of the students giggled in excitement about
writing about such a fun topic. However, the one little girl came up to Ms.
Montgomery and said, “I have to argue that Ms. Montgomery. I need to
study as much as possible if I want to grow up to be a clever woman.” Ms.
Montgomery calmly replied, “Well, than you argue why students should have
homework.” The girl nodded and wrote a great piece. When she presented to
the class, however, apparently the other students looked at her like she was
crazy. Ms. Montgomery seems very flexible, changes her plans as needed to
meet the needs of her students, and her students really respect her. She is
very kind to me, too. She let me read A Bad Case of Stripes by David
Shannon aloud to the class and even brought me two pan de chocolats, a
delicious treat here in Belgium. The classroom curriculum is centered around
a program called PYP, Primary Years Program. I’m still trying to understand
how teachers here differentiate instruction or if they use tiered instruction. I
met the librarian who is from Alabama! She was very helpful and the library
is very organized. I also met the young EAL teacher, Ms. Shirley, who is
from New Zealand! She was really cool and I hope to get to know her better.
One thing she said that stood out to me was that, “You do not truly know a
person until you speak their language.” As an example, she explained that
she once knew a couple where the husband was German and his wife
American. She highly encouraged the wife to learn German, because her
husband spoke differently in German than he did in English. In German, he
was funny and sarcastic. In English, it did not come across the same way. I
thought that was interesting. Mrs. Bambridge met with Ms. Montgomery and
I after school and we walked through my observation requirements. She also
made me aware of many opportunities to get involved at the school,
including Pre-K art philosophy meetings, PTP meetings, a math inventory
faculty meeting, and even a Newcomer’s Cocktail Party! Overall, it was an
incredible first day and I could keep writing so much more.
How Could It Be Better?! Day 4.
1/12/2013 12:16:00 AM
Three new students came to our class today! One is from Norway, another
speaks incredible Spanish, and another just got back from vacation in Brazil.
One student brought me two books by Jerry Spinelli to read for my chapter
book study. It was so sweet of him to even remember! Today, I learned
more about the Primary Years Program that St. John’s follows. It goes
according to methods of inquiry depending on the grade level. A chart that I
found depicted the topics as the following:
Pre-K: The food we eat is influenced by the place we come from and where
we live.
K: People take care of themselves and each other (team-building).
1: Getting to know ourselves and others helps us form relationships.
2: How our senses influence the way we live our lives.
3: All families express/celebrate their beliefs in their own ways.
4: The United Nations states that all children should have rights.
*I have seen many posters in Ms. Montgomery’s classroom depicting their
study on children’s rights.
5. Together everyone achieves more.
Overall, they study what it means to be human. I found this very interesting
in comparison with common core, state standards, and state curriculum.
There are also the following PYP transdisciplinary themes: who we are, how
we express ourselves, how we organize ourselves, where we are in place
and time, how the world works, and sharing the planet. Fourth grade lines of
inquiry include children’s rights, rights vs. privileges/needs vs. wants, and
who is responsible for creating/ensuring/protecting Children’s Rights.
A few observations from the day include:
First, Ms. Montgomery took orders of hot lunch vs. cold lunch. Hot lunch
students eat in the cafeteria (which is incredible and looks
delicious/nutritious) and cold lunch students bring their lunches. I explored
novels for me to read to the class and to my excitement, Ms. Montgomery
and I chose The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. I will read
everyday for about twenty minutes. At lunch, I talked to the high school
counselor, Mr. Bob, who told me to look into two international teaching
programs: the ISS and ECIS. I think that stands for International School
Services and European Council of International Schools. Mrs. Bambridge also
introduced me to the entire lunchroom and let me help pour water for the
students’ lunches. Many of them looked at me like I was an alien. During
computer time, the students learned about Oregon Citation Maker which I
found would be very helpful for my college classes. I also explored around
the kindergarten and pre-school area today. They invited me to observe Fun
Friday this Friday and play a little piano for the kids! We’ll see how that
goes. I played with my students at recess, too! We played Gotcha and I got
out! It was such a fun day and I really enjoy this school. The staff is so nice
and caring to one another. My teacher, Ms. Montgomery, is extremely
flexible and so helpful to me. I love how hard the students work, how
flexible the curriculum is, how hands-on experiences are used frequently,
and how kind the atmosphere is. Is it bad to consider teaching in a private,
Christian school? For so long, I’ve imagined teaching in schools where I
would have a random batch of students from various religious and
socioeconomic backgrounds. However, here at St. Johns’ children come from
pretty wealthy families and probably Christian or Catholic backgrounds. I
pray for guidance when finding a teaching job. I have really loved these last
two days at St. Johns’ and look forward to the next few weeks.
After school, Mrs. Regina took me to the Butte of the Lion, a famous statue
that marks the Battle of Waterloo of 1815. There are 215 stairs to reach the
statue! I really enjoyed learning about the history.
FOR NARNIA! Day 5.
1/12/2013 12:16:00 AM
I love this place! For me to get home from school and immediately start
working on lesson planning and activity planning says something to me.
Perhaps God has truly programmed me to be a teacher after all. Today, our
class started off with a writing activity and then we had morning meeting on
the carpet. I really like how Ms. Montgomery does “Roses and Thorns”. She
goes around and has each student say a good thing and a bad thing that is
happening to them today or has happened or maybe will happen. It really
helps me get to know the kids on a personal level. During morning meeting,
we also did a “Good Morning Greeting” where one person teaches the class
how to say hello in a different language. I taught the girls and boys how to
say hello in Thai. They were so cute! We went around in a circle and the girls
bowed their heads and said “Sawatika” and the boys bowed their heads and
said “Sawaticup”. I helped grade papers and then observed a 2nd grade
French class. I was amazed at how relatable French is to Spanish. I could
follow along pretty easily. The class was very hands-on and oral. After
observing French, our class had indoor recess because it was raining outside.
One thing I miss about the States is the weather. The sky in Belgium is
almost always gray or misty and the mornings are extremely dark out.
During indoor recess, I ate lunch and two girls taught me how to play
battleship. After lunch, I read the beginning of The Lion, the Witch, and the
Wardobe to the students and Mrs. Bambridge even listened in! She made me
a little nervous, but I prayed and did the best I could. Next, Mr. Adams class
(another fourth grade teacher) grouped with our class and introduced a unit
on aerodynamics. I was so impressed that fourth graders were studying how
flight works! This program is so flexible. After that, our class played outside
for recess. One of my boys ran towards the playground shouting, “FOR
NARNIA!!!” That made me laugh. I played with two girls in my class at
recess. They taught me about their imaginary shops where they sell flowers,
candles, candies…etc. They seemed to enjoy my company. After recess, we
went to typing and then the kids went home. It was a great day and I am
really loving my time here!
Tonight I also had the great joy of attending a Parent Teacher Program
meeting, which can be compared with PTA in America. The first thing I
noticed is how negative it is looked upon from teachers. Mr. Adams said I
would not miss too much if I did not go, but I thought I should at least try it
out while I’m here. When I got there, Ms. Dawn, the elementary librarian,
gave me a welcoming look but then one that said “You poor thing, how did
you get caught up in this?” I looked at her and said, “Mrs. Johanna invited
me to a PTP meeting.” She then continued that same pity look and said, “No
comment.” When she came back to the table and sat down we made eye
contact and again she said, “No comment.” Since she was a fellow
Alabamian I obviously replied, “Roll Tide.” She laughed. The PTP meeting
really wasn’t as bad…wait, a second…it was pretty bad. I would not go if I
didn’t have to or did not need to. To me, it has great intentions that can be
easily abused. For the school, it is a great opportunity to communicate. For
parents, it seemed like a great opportunity to complain. The topic was the
school cafeteria. The supply company, Sodexo, made an excellent
presentation and then parents asked questions and argued issues such as a
cafeteria survey, price of meals, and nutrition. One of my favorite moments
was when a lady in the back with a strong accent complained, “There is
sawdust all over the concession stands!” I thought, “Man, this school must
have a wood shaving problem or something.” When someone spoke up and
said something like, “Madame, there are no sugary drinks in the
cafeteria….”, I nodded my head, “Ohhhhh….SODAS.” Hahaha classic mix up.
Swimming Class? Yes, why yes indeed.
Day 6.
1/12/2013 12:16:00 AM
Today was a busy one! We started off the day working on paper airplanes
and continuing our class study on aerodynamics. The students had a practice
session and B’s got stuck in the ceiling decoration! It was really funny. After
we finished, the class went to French but I went to an EAL (English as an
Additional Language) class. There were only five students in the class. Two
spoke Spanish, one Swedish, one Bangla, and one Korean. They even
showed me how to write my name in all the languages! I helped one of the
Spanish-speaking girls from my class edit a “New Year’s Resolution” type-up
she created. She talked about how her resolution was to read more and play
less on her iPad. She wants to read more to become smarter so she can be a
great clothes designer. When we made it to the playground for snack recess
lo and behold, THE SUN was out! I didn’t mean to make such a big deal
about it, but when I noticed I gasped and put my hands toward the sky. Ms.
Montgomery braced her hands around her head thinking a ball was flying
towards us from somewhere on the playground. I laughed and said, “Sorry!
It’s the first time I’ve seen sunshine since I’ve been here.” After snack
recess, we did a science experiment with salt and water to determine which
would freeze faster. We ran out of time for the experiment because the kids
had to get ready for swimming. They grabbed their swim bags and I followed
them to the bus for a ten minute ride to the local Sports Center. Boys and
girls ride in separate buses (nice buses, like Coach buses in the States) and
after changing in their respectable locker rooms, they went to their
appropriate lanes in the pool. St. John’s kids take up three lanes and are
separated according to skill level. I loved cheering them all on! At one point,
I pretended to pull a girl with an imaginary rope to the end of the lane. I
think it made her swim faster ;) Maybe one day I’ll coach an elementary
sport. After swimming, we headed back to St. John’s and the kids ate lunch.
During this time, I sat in the classroom and talked with Ms. Montgomery. I
have loved shadowing her. She is so helpful and seems to have time for me,
unlike many teachers I have shadowed in the past. She listens and is very
caring. You can see this when she works with her students, too. We talked
about everything from family, to Belgian chocolate (she gave me some!), to
kids in her class, to B’s farting problem (haha)…she’s very easy to talk to. I
walked the kids up to library and during that time, Ms. Montgomery showed
me how to use the copier/scanner/printer/etc. I created a Narnia interactive
writing for tomorrow’s reading and showed Ms. Montgomery my list of Try it
Outs that I need to do for spring semester. I picked the kids up from the
library and was so thrilled to see two of my students checked out the first
Chronicle of Narnia!! I hope some of them will read the whole series. When
we got back, I read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe for about thirty
minutes. I taught the kids how to Think/Pair/Share and we did that at
various times throughout the lesson. Then we packed up for the day and
everyone headed home! After school, Mrs. Regina took me to a beautiful
park since the sun was out. There were lakes and a large house partly
covered in ivy. I loved it and Boo, the Hall’s dog, came, too!
Gym Class Relay Race: Bring.It.On. Day 7.
I made it to Friday! I really have loved every second of being at St. John’s,
but I am definitely ready for a few days of rest. Well, actually we’re
traveling, but I think a small break will be really nice. Today, we started off
by reading two more chapters of Narnia. I read and then we started a
creative writing activity where the students “create their own Narnia”. After
the short lesson, I went to Timber Tops to work with the kindergarten’s Fun
Friday. I observed kindergarten recess…what a nightmare. Kids are running
frantically everywhere. Someone is telling on someone every few minutes.
Someone cries every two minutes. That’s not really my cup of tea. One of
the girls was hit in the eye so I offered to take her to the nurse. When we
got to the nurse, it was very busy! About three other students came in after
us with the same recess injury: ball to the head or collision with another
person. I really enjoyed talking to my new sweet kindergarten friend. She
seemed to be just fine and her bump to the eye did not seem to bother her
that much. She talked about how Ariel is her favorite princess and how she
wishes she could be a fairy. I tried to comfort the other kids in the nurses
office by getting them water, ice bags, etc. Once G and I made it back to
Timber Tops the kids were deep into Fun Friday activities. I helped make one
child’s castle while he disappeared to go play. When the activities were over,
I played the piano for about forty kindergartners before they ate lunch. I
played “Tale as Old as Time” from Beauty and the Beast, “The Scientist” by
Coldplay, and “The Way You Look Tonight”. For some reason, I was nervous!
(Like the kids would have noticed if I just made everything up instead!) After
piano, I went back to my sweet fourth graders. S was sharing about her
vacation to Brazil before everyone headed to recess and lunch. After lunch, I
went with the students to P.E. They were doing relay races. Towards the
end, I asked if I could hop on the tail end of a relay that may need extra
help. The P.E. coach let me race and our team won! My students came up to
me and said, “Ms. Gregory, you’re really fast!!” and the coach said, “You
must have done a little track before” haha or something like that. After P.E.
the first grade buddies came and worked on poems with our fourth graders.
After buddies, we read the Bartholomew and Oobleck book by Dr. Seuss to
prepare for an experiment on Monday. Before everyone left, we all sat on
the carpet to do Roses and Thorns. This was one of the most special parts so
far of this trip that I don’t think I’ll ever forget. Everyone went around the
circle (except one boy) and said their rose was that I was there. Some even
said, “…and my thorn is that she has to leave in two weeks.” That just made
me love this class even more.
After school, I went to Kelcie’s basketball game which she won! Then we ate
Yoka Wok (a Thai favorite) and watched 24. Tomorrow we’re traveling to
Germany!!!
Sweet Home Alabama? In Germany? Day 8.1/12/2013
12:16:00 AM
Today we went to the chocolate outlet in Belgium. Oh my heavens! There
are boxes upon boxes of open chocolate for you to taste. I spent $70 on
chocolate. SEVENTY! I think it was worth it though. Mrs. Regina and I
traveled to Monschau, Germany, which is about a 2.5 hour drive from
Belgium. We arrived in the ice cold town and shopped around in a mall
where Mrs. Regina loves to look at beautiful handcrafted nativities. I also
found some cream colored rose earrings that I really liked. After shopping,
we walked around the quaint little town and stopped to have lunch at a place
on the river. Before we walked in, I heard none other than “Sweet Home
Alabama” playing from the outside of a store! How cool! For lunch, I had
tomato soup with a child’s serving of sausage, French fries, and salad. Mrs.
Regina had bratwurst and sauerkraut. Our waiter was very kind and showed
us the new app on his phone where you can verbally translate from German
to English. We practiced and I said, “Thank you for our lunch. It was
delicious.” I think that made him smile. After lunch, we drove to Aachen,
Germany, where we walked to a beautiful cathedral (where Charlemagne is
buried) and grabbed Starbucks in the square. We also bought some
gingerbread at a little shop on our way back to the car. We then drove back
home and had pizza with the family. It’s snowing tonight, but hopefully we
will take a train to Paris tomorrow!
The City of Lights! Day 9.
1/12/2013 12:16:00 AM
Today we were in Paris! We took a short train to Brussels and then took a
longer train to Paris. It took about an hour and a half. I finished reading The
Horse and His Boy by C.S. Lewis. When we first got to Paris, we got metro
tickets and went to the Cite stop. First, we went to the Saint-Chapelle
Cathedral. Apparently, Mrs. Hall said it was Kelsey Drennan’s favorite place
when she visited Paris. The church was beautiful. Stain-glass windows that
reached hundreds of feet high. Each window told a story. One about
Genesis, another about Exodus, another about the crucifixion, etc. The
Cathedral is in midst of being remodeled and people are working very hard
to clean out the old, dusty window glass. After the Cathedral, we walked to
Notre Dame. The famous gargoyles welcomed us in. What an incredible
church. There were so many paintings, candles, statues, and glass windows
that it was hard to take everything in. There was also a huge nativity set up
and candles everywhere. It truly was beautiful and a service was going on so
holy music filled the air. After Notre Dame, Mrs. Regina and I were
ravenous! We went across the street to Café Panis and grabbed lunch. Mrs.
Regina had some French ham and cheese sandwich and I got an Italian
salad. We could see Notre Dame out our window! After lunch, we walked
down to a bridge where thousands of locks have been placed by couples who
“lock in their love”. That was really neat. We got a back view of the Notre
Dame Cathedral and then headed toward the Louvre. We walked across the
Pont Neuf, the New Bridge, which is actually the oldest bridge across the
Seine River in Paris. I think that’s where the story Madeleine takes place. We
walked quickly to the Louvre which welcomes you with a big glass triangular
entrance. We pretty much ran through the museum (found Mona Lisa,
Winged Victory, and Venus de Milo) and then headed out. I would love to
spend more time in there someday. After the Louvre, we walked through the
Tuileries Gardens. We stopped at a booth and Mrs. Regina got vin chaud
(hot wine) and I got a nutella/banana crepe. It was SO good. We sat on a
park bench in Paris enjoying our afternoon snack. After our snack, we
continued walking through Avenue des Champs-Elysees. We saw so many
designer shops and even the Louis Vuitton world headquarters. After we
grabbed a few souvenirs, we hopped on the metro to see the Eiffel Tower at
night. It may be one of the most beautiful pieces of architecture I’ve ever
seen. It stood there so majestic, dominating the city, and glowing like a
million candles. It even sparkled when the hour struck! There was a
demonstration against new French legislation happening in the streets.
People were protesting the government taking away titles such as “father,
mother, brother, sister” and giving adopting rights to anyone who wishes. I
think that’s how Mrs. Regina explained it. After the Eiffel, we took the metro
back to the train station where we took a train back to Brussels and then
back to a station closer to Waterloo. Many people asked Mrs. Regina for
money and she even asked me, “Do I have a flashing sign on my head that
says, ‘Ask me for money!’”?! Mr. Bryan picked us up and took us home. It
was an incredible day, but man…when I got home I CRASHED! Such a
memory filled day!
Funny Quotes from the Kids
1/12/2013 12:16:00 AM
After helping G with her morning work, she asked, “Why do you have to
learn to be a teacher if you already know this?” I replied, “There’s a lot more
to it than you think!” 1/7
G also looked over at me writing notes in my journal and asked, “What are
you writing in your secret journal?” 1/7
“You are beautiful” a sweet little boy I don’t even know! 1/8
“Ms. Gregory, Cole wanted to warn you…there are lots of farters in this
class” 1/8
“When I grow up, I want to work in a restaurant in airports…” In my head I
was thinking, “Hmmm…are you sure sweet pea?” but then I realized she was
talking about being a flight attendant 1/8
“I think you will be a great teacher” S It was so genuine and made my day!
1/8
“FOR NARNIA” C shouts as he sprints across the playground after our first
day of reading The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe 1/9
“The sawdust are all over the concession stand.” [I’m sorry. What?!]
“Ma’am, I can assure you there are no sugary drinks in the cafeteria.” [Oh,
SODAS!] –PTP Meeting 1/9