new ideas and new do's

This week we have been getting a lot of expose in our area of work. Today I went to the University of Gavle. It was two blocks from my host family's house. Actually my host mother works there in the Math department, but on this day she was going out of town. I met with the Dean of students who told me a lot about the school, specifically the teaching department. University is free in Sweden, except that you do need to pay for books and accomodation. This University had about 13,000 students with half of them actually attending the campus and the other half doing distance learning. She told me that the school has been changing its teaching program as per the government. Normally education students take 1 1/2 years of general courses, followed by specialty courses based on what area of education they are interested in. This was similiar to the USA. But now they are starting to reorganize the program so that you start off specializing right away. Where before a highschool and a preschool teacher would take similiar classes to begin, now they will be separate. They will separate into 0-5 years, 7-9, 10-13, 13-16, and 16-19. To me this seemed a very small window and I wondered how limiting that would be for getting a job. She said that there is shortage of teachers in this area, but I dont think I personally would like to be that limited in what ages I could teach.



She said that schools do a PISA evaluation which compares them to the rest of the world in education. This gives them direction on what courses to offer students interseted in education. Another difference I found out about in education is that schools here don't do as much testing. So in Sweden there is no WKCE, but she said that it was coming.



After meeting with the Dean, I had a brief tour of the campus, and then met the lady in charge in international relations. She was in charge of helping the international students at the university. She also had two children similiar in ages to that of my students so our conversation really steered towards that. I learned that it is custom in Sweden to have the same teacher for three years (1-3, 4-6, 7-9). She couldn't believe that was not normal and asked me how students adjust to so many teachers. She also told me about how each student at her son's school gets weekly goals which tell which pages they will have to do each night for homework. They have to do some planning on Monday and have to tell what they learned on Friday. I thought that was a very good idea. I asked about homework and it sounds like we have a similiar amount. Her son received 3 pages of Reading homework a few nights a week and the same with Math. He also had his English language homework.

In the afternoon I decided to do like the Swedes do and get my hair dyed blonde. Many people here are blonde haired with blue eyes, so I fit in great. I knew I was blending in when I stopped in H&M afterwards and had a transaction with no English spoken! We finished the night with a symphony performance at the concert hall a short distance from my host family.

A day at Vikingaskolan

Today I was at Vikingaskolan or "the viking school." I spend most of my time in a 6th grade classroom. First I met with the headmaster or principal. I found out that schools in Sweden don't do suspensions or expulsions. However, his school did do detentions, which the community was not always happy about. I found it interesting that again this school didn't allow the children to wear shoes in the school. In talking to the 6th grade teacher I found that this is the norm in Sweden.

I observed a Social Studies class where the students were working with atlases and different maps around the world. During the students morning break I was able to talk more to the teachers. One role that they had in this school that I thought would also be effective in my own school, is the position of student coach. It was a teacher who didn't have a classroom, but instead went around the school assisting teachers with difficult children. It was someone that all students looked to as authority. I saw him walk by the room several times in the hour I was observing and found out that his job is just to help with students when they leave the classroom or when they need encouragement/discipline to do the right thing and ultimately to get them back to working again. This particular guy also helped coach/teach some sports but his main job was just to free up the teachers from having to take class time to work with students who were having difficulty. It was more a work with character than with academic challenges.

After break I observed a textiles class consisting of woodworking, sewing, and weaving. The students had a lot of choice in this class. THey had to make a plan of what they wanted to make in a sketch book...then the teacher would assist them in learning the skills they needed. Students were making everything from wooden shelves and boxes, to placemat on a weaving maching, to bags on a sewing machine, and even one girl was knitting a scarf. I loved the selection and opportunity offered to these students.

I spent the rest of the morning talking to a Grade 5 student. They wanted me to chat with him because he was one of the best English speaking students and really loved learning about the USA. I was so impressed with his English skills. HE didn't have to pause for words..it was like talking to an English speaking native. He was almost more well spoken than most Americans. I really see how much of a priority learning a second lanaguage is in Sweden.

The students had a half day because of a teacher inservice, so I left at lunch time to attend a rotary meeting and presentation. In the evening we had what is known as an "after work." It's a time when working people stay in town and meet out for a drink at a local pub. It was nice to get to talk to all the team members and regroup after our long week. With three days of vocational visits, it almost felt like a work week :).

Gavle

Our time in Gavle has been going well. On Sunday we arrived in Gavle (pronounced like Jav-la). We met our new host families. I am staying with the Attorps family (that is where I was 4th grade when I spoke to you this week). Tomas work in law and his wife works for the University, just a five minute walk away. They have two sons in highschool.

On Monday I was able to visit a school for the day. It was a Montessouri school called Bomhus rektorsomrade. I enjoyed watching the students throughout the day. I was so impressed with the English class I attended. The children were in 4th-6th grade and many could speak conversation in English with me (remember 4th graders that Swedish is their first language). It made me wish that CWA would offer a language to its students. Then afterwards, I got to participate in an Music class with 4th graders. The teacher that was there traveled to many different schools. They were listening to different types of music and guessing what musical instrument was being played. Then they played a memory/matching game. Two people would go into the hall and then the teacher would assign us all one of the instruments we heard. Then the two in the hall would come back and would have to find the pairs of instruments that we were. The students enjoyed it very much.

Before lunch time the students were given a chance to ask me questions. They had questions about me such as what is your favorite color, do you have a boyfriend, what is your favorite animal? These were more questions so that they could practice their English because not all the younger students could speak English. Then the teacher translated other questions like: what do teacher in the USA do when students are naughty, how long is a school day, and how many students are in the class and what are they learning about? So of course I showed them a picture of the CWA 4th graders. The students also didn't like the idea that we didn't have as many breaks as them. They get a 20 minute break in the morning that we don't get at our own school. I told them it was different for me that they didn't wear shoes in their school building. They had to take them off at their lockers and walked around the school in socks. I think this was to keep the school clean. Even parents who wanted to come into the classes had to put on booties to keep their dirty shoes out of the room.

In the afternoon I was given time to speak with the teachers. I really enjoyed their ideas about lots of hands-on working. Even in Math when they used a workbook, they always had a hands-on application portion so that the students could use the material in real situations. Each child had their own weekly goals as well. So the teachers were never instructing all the students at once. They were working independently with some choice as to what they could work on at one time...and then the teacher would pull students or groups of students who needed extra help. It gave me some ideas of what I could do to make lessons more personal with my students. There were also only about 12 or 13 kids in each class. I saw a lot of teachers working together so that 3rd and 4th graders worked together a lot...splitting up into two groups with their classroom doors open between so that students could move about from the two rooms.

Overall, it was very fun for me at the school. The students were very excited Today (Tuesday) was a day of learning about business in Gavle. We started with breakfast and a presentation at a rotary club (we had lunch meetings/presentation both Monday and today as well... we will do 6 of them all together this week). Then we set off for Gevalia, a Swedish coffee company. We learned about how they make the coffee, including a tour of the plant. It was interesting to watch all the machines, but unfortunately I was unable to take any pictures. We did have to wear coats and hair nets because of health issues in the plant... I didn't like that look so much. It was most interesting to me to learn that as they make the machines that make the coffee bags, insert the coffee, and seal and put the bags all in bigger boxes, that they use less humans than they used to. Before they had 300 people working on the machines. Now because technology has advanced, many jobs have been replaced by computers and that means only 100 people now have to work there.

The coffee company was started in 1853 by Theodore Engwall on the coast of Gavle. Over time it has been passed along and is one of the most famous coffees. They export coffee to the USA as well. It was interesting to note that they make flavored coffee for the USA, but you can't buy it in Sweden. There is not as much of a market for it. Check out this site for more on Gevalia:

http://www.gevalia.com/

After our lunch meeting, we also went to another manufacturer called "Leaf." They make licorace mints called "Lakerol" and my favorite, gummy candy! We also got a tour of this plant and got to see how they make the gummy candies. We saw how they mix the ingredients in giant containers, add the flavor in little doses to the batch, and how it goes into a machine that squirts it into shapes (much like you put batter in a muffin tin). Then it takes 24 hours to harden. When it is done they have another machine that unloads the gummies onto a conveyor belt where they are packaged. I really enjoyed the samples from that place :).

At night my team friends, Heather and Jessica, came over. We went on a nice walk in the park across the street. Then we had a lovely dinner and ended the night with some table tennis (ping pong) that they had in the basement. Overall, an enjoyable stay so far!

Farewells and Welcomes

This has been a weekend of traveling. Yesterday we were given some time to relax. My teammate, Heather, and I went on a power walk for two hours with our host family. We were able to see the villiage where they live and get some great fresh air.

When we got home, we bundled up and headed out back for the camp fire. Per-Eric made us a dish known as "coal-bun." It was a dish that the loggers used to make...lots of calories and good for those in the logging field. I don't think I needed all the calories, but it did taste good. He fried pork (bacon) in a frying pan and when it was cookied added pancake batter. It was like a bacon pancake and we had lingenberry jam on the side. IT was tastey and filling..I only need 1/4 of the bun.

Then the girls had a sauna (steam room). They have one in their bathroom. I think that saunas are more popular in Sweden. The girls enjoyed the relaxation before getting ready for our farewell party. Everyone we had met over the last week was there including rotary members and host families and friends. It was a great time full of laughter and heartfealt goodbyes. We were treated so well this last week!

Today we had a 3.5 hour train ride to Gavle, our newest destination. Tomorrow I will spend a full day in a Montessouri school. I look forward to getting new ideas! So 4th graders, we will both be in class tomorrow!

They made paper out of what?!

Today was another fun-filled day. We started by going to the Moose farm. We were able to pet and interact with the moose. The man who owns the moose farm was very funny and had us in constant laughter. He is quite the business man and even has made paper from moose droppings. I have my very own $50 bill made of moose poo. Those are little guys made out of moose hair. We had a lot of fun and even learned the international symbol for "moose" (picture on the far right). This visit helped me feel right at home because now my coat if filled with moose hair instead the dog hair that was beginning to disappear.

You can check out the moose farm website: http://www.moosegarden.com

They have a moose cam where you can see them feed the moose. It is a live camera so check it out as often as you want to watch the moose.

We had another rotary lunch and presentation today. During the lunch presentations, we exchange the banners from the rotary club that sponsored us. Then we give a presentation showing the rotary about our lives, our jobs, and different facts about Wisconsin. I'm getting better at speaking without getting nervous!

Then in the afternoon we went to Jamtli History land to learn about how people in this region lived back in history. This was an open air museum (like Old World Wisconsin) with old buildings. Then there was an indoor portion that had a number of different exhibits. Swedish history reminds us how young of a country the USA really is. Their history goes back much farther.

They had a group of people, Sami people, (and there are still some today) that raised reindeer. They remind me of the Native Americans because they use all the parts of the reindeer. They made bags out of the reindeer stomach, buttons from the antlers, etc.

The indoor museum had a very fun slide that took you from the top floor to the bottom floor. It was supposed to be like sliding down into the belly of sea monster. It was fun to bring out the kid in me.

In the evening, Heather and I went back to our host families house for dinner and relaxing. We did a little yoga...well more Heather. I gave up early, but this picture shows their living room and also a photo of the family (Eric, Ellinor (14 yrs), and Elvina (16yrs). Tomorrow is a day of relaxing before we head for the train station on Sunday to move to our next region.

The First Day in School!

Today was our first day in our career place. But first we started the morning at the University again. We went to the sports research center. We learned about how they do research to improve sports and also how they make parts to help with rehabilitating athletes. For example, they looked at how much pressure a ski put on the ground and how they could use that to improve skis and boots. After we were there, we had lunch with another rotary club and then it was off to the first school experience.
We were able to see the end of the school day. I first noticed that there are many similarities with children all over. The two I noticed most was that 1.) Everywhere students have to have their teachers tell them... "why, because I'm the boss." 2.) When you give a child something, they will always ask, "can I have two?".
The music class was a lot of fun. We got to participate in some songs because they sang in Swedish and English. Then they had a music appreciation section. Each student had homework to bring in two pieces of music that their parents listened to. This was so that they could learn about all different kinds of music. What a treat for me that the choice for that day was Micheal Jackson-Smooth Criminal.
Afterward, we watched the kids in after school activities. The students were very eager to talk to us and practice their English. They start learning English in 2nd grade and begin to learn at least 1 hour a week in English in 3rd grade. I was talking to 2nd grade students this afternoon though, so they had limited speaking. I got three questions: 1. Do you have a parrot? 2? Do you have a boyfriend? 3. Do you speak any Swedish? But they do know the universal affection and I received many hugs. I showed them all pictures of my classroom back home and gave them erasers in the shape of cheese so that they could remember Wisconsin.
The end of the day was spent shopping and then we switched to our new host families. My teammate, Heather, and I are now 30 minutes outside of Ostersund. More adventures tomorrow!

A day in Are

Today was another fun filled day. I didn't believe that I would actually get tired like we were told ahead of time, but now I believe it. Each day is packed to the brim with activities...and I love it!

So I got up early, 6:30am. We are 7 hours ahead of Wisconsin time so I was lucky that Jamie was up late and we got to chat (it was midnight your time) on Skype. Ask Mrs. Moore to log in and I will try to call school some time this week.

Then I had a breakfast of toast with ham and cheese on top. That was paired with a cup of very strong Swedish coffee. Then it was off to Are (pronounced Or-a). This is a ski and tourist town. Our first stop was to the top of the ski grounds. We were able to eat lunch here as well and it is the resteraunt at the highest altitude in Sweden. It was also a great place for many wonderful pictures. The scenery is breathtaking..almost looks like a painting, doesn't it?!

Here is also a picture of the team that I am traveling with.

After lunch we went to a glass blowing business. We were able to watch them make a glass bowl. The bowl takes about 50 minutes to make and takes two people working together to make it. It is easy to see why it costs as much as $90 for one of these handmade pieces. They have a kiln with liquid glass. It is clear and then they add colored glass chips to it. It melts into the clear glass. Then they form it into different shapes. I've included a pictue of glass Easter eggs they made. They have to constantly keep the glass moving because it is so hot and will just drip right off the metal stick if they don't. IT seems like something that would take a long time to learn how to do ...and without getting burnt. When they get the piece how they want it, they put it in a kiln overnight. It has to be slowly cooled or else the piece will crack. For thin pieces they only have seconds to get it in there without cracking. With the bowl I watched them make, they have a little longer.

After watching glass blowing, we had fika (coffee break) and then on to a Chocolate factory where I was able to sample many different types of handmade chocolates. They had irish cream chocolate, white chocolate, chocolate with blueberry, chocolate with lingenberries, and many others.

Tomorrow I am moving host families and also going to get my first glimpse of a Swedish school...stay tuned for details.

Note: For more details, you can also check out the team blog at www.gsesweden2010.blogspot.com

I think you will find the blog about the monster living in the lake interesting!

Love,

Ms. C.

4/20/2010- First Full Day in Ostersund

Today was a long day since we still had jet lag. We started our day at 9am with a tour of Froson Island. It was a beautiful view as you can see. This area of Sweden was also formed from glaciers ..just like what we learned about Wisconsin.

We visited some churches that were made in the 1600's ...hundreds of years before Wisconsin was even a state.

At 9:30am we had our first "fika" (fee-ka). It is a coffee break that everyone in Sweden has. People at work and everywhere stop to have a half an hour coffee break. Their coffee is much stronger here and along with it was a wonderful selection of goodies. You will be very proud of me 4th graders because I turned it down and look how good it was!

In the afternoon we visited a University and a travel agency that specialized in golf trips to places like Turykey and Portugal(in Europe). The universities here are different because you don't have to pay for them. The payment comes out of the taxes people pay to the government.

We had another Fika break at 2:30...a person could get used to all these coffee breaks. After we finished I went home to my host family where we had dinner of smoked fish with cloud berries, smoked moose, salad, and one yummy chocolate. All the food was fresh from this area. We don't have cloud berries but they were made into a sauce similiar to a sweet tarter sauce for the fish. They are also used by themselves on top of waffles and ice cream. Fish is also very popular. I had fish for lunch as well and herring is popular as an appetizer. Reindeer meat is also popular and I had a stew with reindeer meat last night. Poor Rudolph tasted so good!!

Tomorrow we are off to hike one of the nearby mountains so I must called it goodnight!

I made it!

Monday 4/19

It was an interesting time, but our group made the trek! We were one of four flights to make it to Europe. When we landed we couldn't get our connecting flight because they were all canceled. So we took a long train ride and arrived at our destination, Ostersund, at 4:30pm. That is almost a full day of traveling withouth sleeping in a bed or a shower (we left Chicago at 4:30 the day before.

When we got in we met the group from the Swedish and met our host families, or people we are staying with.

I had dinner of reindeer stew...yummy, with potatoes and salad. Then it is resting time and getting ready for tomorrow... a visit to Froso Island and presentations!