As the title suggests, today I went to school! One of the neighbors is a teacher of students with hearing impairments and works at a school that serves a primarily hearing-impaired population, so I was given the opportunity to go with her for a day at work!
I woke up earlier than I have yet while on this trip; the alarm went off at 6am. After a quick shower, I got into the only clothes I felt were suitable for a day of being a “visiting professional” and had some breakfast. Peter kindly made me some toast and tea. Alina asked if I was excited to which I replied, “Ja! Ein bisschen nervös, aber aufgeregt!” Shortly before 8, I walked halfway down the street to the neighbor’s house and then we hopped in the car and off we went! The drive took about half an hour. During that time we spoke, mostly in English but some in German, about the differences and similarities between her school and the ones I’ve been at. We also talked about the unique difficulties that come from working with our special populations, hers the hearing-impaired and mine the blind. She also told me that there were a few new teachers at her school in the last few years, including one who uses a CI (cochlear implant), like many of the children, and four or five who are completely deaf. I thought that was so cool because, as she also said, it provides the children an opportunity to see someone like them succeeding in a way they may not have imagined. The school is called Schule am Leitenhaus Bochum Langendreer. It is a beautiful set of buildings! When we arrived, the neighbor, Kordula, showed me the office, where I said hello to the school director and got a name tag (that I got to bring home!). I also saw the faculty room and the Audiometrieraum where they conduct their hearing tests on new students. I also met a number of other teachers! Then, it was time to head to the classroom. There were 7 students in class today out of a total of 9. About half of them used CIs, some hearing aids, and all used some form of GDS (German sign language). There was a teacher in the room at the time who was one of the aforementioned completely deaf teachers. She was very nice and even though Kordula had to translate much of what she said, I followed with some of her signs based on my limited knowledge of ASL. That teacher left then and Kordula began a lesson on time with the kids. I learned some signs along the way from watching as many of the kids were also reviewing the signs for time/the clock. After a little while, they had a break and I got to talk with one of the classroom aides, and upon the kiddos’ return, they did some more clock/time review, cleaned out their folders for the end of the year, and reviewed a story they had recently read. The day passed very quickly, and before I knew it, it was time to go outside for a few minutes before dismissal. Kordula and I left the building around 1:30, so I was back to Alina and Peter’s by 2. Alicia came home about 5 minutes after I did and Alina kindly made us some pasta. We both ate and then sat on our phones for a little bit. Alina finished up her workday and then the 3 of us headed into town for part 2 of my school day, which involved visiting the English language school Alicia attends once a week. It is called Mortimer English Club. It was Alicia’s last lesson before the break, so the group went to a local ice cream shop where all the kids had to practice ordering in English. They all did a really great job! Before and after the ice cream shop, Alicia’s instructor, Shane (who hails originally from the US) asked the kids about their upcoming plans for break and some general check-in questions. Many of the kids answered primarily in German, but when they did speak English, they all did a good job :) Alina met us after Alicia’s class and we had to do some quick shopping before heading home to have dinner. After dinner, Peter got ready to go meet his diving club, and I *am* (as I am currently writing in the moment) extremely tired from my very exciting day! It was the first (and possibly only) day that I didn’t do something in conjunction with Brandon, who had a lovely day in Hattingen going to the library and eating in town, and I didn’t end up feeling as nervous or underprepared with my German as I thought I may be. So, I am calling it a win on a number of levels :) Tomorrow is Peter’s birthday, but the day is jam packed with a lot of things on everyone’s schedules, so his birthday cake may have to get eaten for breakfast (that is still yet to be determined haha)! Until then, I can’t show many pictures from my school adventures today for privacy reasons, but please enjoy these images of the school building, classroom setup, and the dinosaur lunchbox Peter kindly packed me to take along today :) Until tomorrow!
2 Comments
Amy
6/23/2022 06:10:14 am
Lici, I geeked out on this post so hard! It always fascinates me to learn about what school is like in another part of the world. I love reading about and seeing pictures of ALL of the adventures that you and Brandon are having!
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Alicia
6/23/2022 12:24:19 pm
I’m so glad you liked it! I’ve been geeking out pretty hard myself!
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