Wednesday, June 12, 2013

End Of School

Tomorrow is the last day of school for the kids.  On Friday the kids and I fly to Michigan for a 3 week stay, so as you might expect the kids are really excited.  However, as excited as they are to go back to America, Ben and Megan are also a little sad that school is over for the year.  They both really enjoy going to school, and they're both a little bummed that they won't be going back until August.  They really enjoy their classes and love hanging out with their friends.  I think being over here in a foreign country draws them closer to school and the friends they make (most of whom are outsiders themselves.)  Ben and Megan have been through a lot over here, and the international school has really helped them settle in and feel comfortable over here.  I continue to be amazed at how wonderful the school has been for them.  The teachers are excellent and totally committed, and Ben and Megan have excelled in their classes.  Best of all, Ben and Megan have made friends with kids from all over the world.  That still blows me away.

Anyway, Ben's teacher recently sent all the parents a Google drive full of pictures from throughout the year.  So I've included a lot of pictures of Ben with his friends.  Still working on trying to get more from Megan's class (they usually send out videos as opposed to pictures.)   Anyway, here's what I got so far.

MEGAN'S KINDERGARTEN CLASS


Megan's teachers are Ms. Sheen (on the left), and Ms. Jennie (on the right.)  Both are from the UK, and both are amazing teachers.  Megan had a great year.  She really doesn't want to leave this class.  She learned to read this year, she got to go on some field trips, she went on hikes in the forest every Friday, and she even spent a day sledding up in the mountains.  She also made lots of new friends - many of whom were from other countries (India, Czechoslovakia, France, etc.)  She absolutely loved everything about school, and that was cool to see.

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BEN'S 3RD GRADE CLASS

Ben's 3rd grade teacher was Ms. Wust (pronounced "Voost.")  Ben had a great year.  He and his class went on a 3 day ski trip, they went on a 5 day adventure trip, and they spent a day at a monastery.  Academically he did really well with his grades, and he seemed really engaged and focused throughout the year.  Best of all he made a lot of friends.  Kids from the UK, Denmark, Israel, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Netherlands, India, America, etc.  In fact, I don't think he has really grasped just how special it is to have so many friends from all over the world.  (Actually, I think that's the coolest part.)





















Tree Huggers

This past weekend Ben got invited to a birthday party for one of his friends from school.  To celebrate the kids all got to do some "zip lining" at a local mountain park.  Ben has done this a few times, and he really enjoys it.