EXCITED FOUR SCHOOL

Thursday was a change of pace for the six of us. We had the chance to see all three schools that TCU students are placed at for teaching abroad. We took so many busses in one day, but it was really cool getting to see where my roommates spend their time during the day. We stopped by my school first--Nutsschool. It is a small school with a big heart; the children are all very close and have lots of autonomy within the classroom. Next, we hopped on a bus over to the Montessori school that Hannah and Sarah are placed at. This school seemed to have a lot in common with Nutsschool; the school was beautiful with such an interesting and engaging playground design. I saw a lot of chances for students to be independent and saw the use of cubes with sides representing different things. There is a green side, a red side, an orange side, and a question mark. Each relate to if they want help or if their peers can disturb them. This is something I saw in Amsterdam when I was at a Montessori school last May, and have loved the concept ever since. It was cool seeing it again. After the Montessori school, we made our way over to the final school where Paige and Katie are placed. The school looked a little different than the other two, but just like the other schools, students had the chance to be independent. All three schools had work areas in the hallway that students could use to work at their own pace. I’m really glad we got the chance to see all three schools; it gave us a broader view of the schools here in the Netherlands. After the schools, my roommates and I took a nice walk through the city center and walked through Parliament (Binnenhof) and ended up finding a small little book market.

Thursday night we met up with our teachers and with Mr. Rimmelzwan. The restaurant was right by the University in the Hague--only a short bus ride away on the 26. The food was incredible, it really was. I have really been trying to save money and a lot of grocery stores will only take cash unless you have a bank card from the Netherlands (which I do not have). I’m trying to make my cash last the entirety of the trip, so I have been buying powdered soup, 45 pence oatmeal, and never ordering water at restaurants because it costs money. I was so grateful and appreciative that I was finally able to have a filling and delicious meal, complete with hot chocolate and a dessert. I honestly don’t know if I’ve ever felt that spoiled before. It was so nice, it really was. I can’t get over that cinnamon ice cream that came with dinner. One of the best parts of dinner wasn’t the food, but it was getting to talk to the teachers from other schools. I got to hear about schools for children with hearing disabilities which is something that overlaps with the classroom I am placed in back home.

The next morning, Hannah (one of my roommates) and I headed to our fourth school of the week. This school, SBO Merlijn, was explained to us as being a “special” school. Hannah and I are at the same school back in Texas and both work in special education classrooms. It took a little over an hour to get to the school, but I am so glad we got the chance to see it. We were given a wonderful tour and got to ask so many questions about the school and special education in general in the Netherlands. From what I gathered, SBO Merlijn is very similar to Starpoint, a lab school back home where every child has some type of learning disability. SBO Merlijn was described to us as not a special school, but not a general school by the school director. They were working on revising the structure of the classrooms and started to turn traditional classrooms into wide spaces where teachers would co-teach. One of my favorite things was the little kitchens they had in the classrooms that students would use during cooking lessons. It reminded me so much of my classroom back home (good ol’ room 007). Seeing life skills taught is one of my favorite things because there are so many different ways to do it. It seemed like there were a little bit less safety concerns in the Netherlands compared to the U.S. For example, there was an actual stove top and hot plate in the classroom in the Netherlands.

After school on Friday, I was invited over to our friend Casper’s house and had dinner with his family. Dutch houses are so cute and all have the steepest stairs imaginable. It was really nice getting to sit down at a dinner with a family, even if they were speaking a lot of Dutch. There’s a bunch of words I’ve gotten better at recognizing. It was cool to see how Dutch families interact and it was nice to be around a family for a little bit since I am so far from home for so much of the year. I even got to a ride a bike back home at the end of the day which was difficult and fun all at the same time. If I move here permanently, which I’m trying to do, I will definitely be investing in a bike.