Sinterklaas

As you know, the children that I am taking care of in Brussels have a Jewish American mother and a Dutch father.  This combination of religion and culture has provided the kids with different celebrations than the ones I grew up with.  I expected Hanukkah but never did I expect Sinterklaas.

To clarify, Sinterklaas is NOT Santa Claus.  They are different “people” but with America’s history, Santa was most likely derived from this figure.  The Netherlands, Belgium, and bits of Germany celebrate Sinterklaas on either the 5^th or 6^th of December. 

So, here’s the deal.  Sinterklaas travels from Spain to the Netherlands a couple weeks before the 5^th of December.  Upon his arrival in Holland, he is greeted with singing children and a parade.  This marks the first day that children can start putting out their shoes at night. (Apparently it’s more Dutch to get nightly gifts from Sinterklaas leading up to the 5th.  Most Belgians only put out shoes on night of the 5^th.)   Much like filling stockings, Sinterklaas comes during the night on his white horse to fill the shoes with small gifts.  Before bedtime, the children fill their shoes with carrots for his horse and sing some Sinterklaas songs. 

Sinterklaas couldn’t do all this without helpers!  Sinterklaas comes from Spain with cheerful and mischievous “pieten”.  The original and main piet is Zwarte Piet is literally translated as “black Pete”.  Originally, it is thought that Zwarte Piet was an Ethiopian slave that Sinterklaas released.  The boy was so thankful that he wanted to stay and help Sinterklaas on his own accord.  He usually wears medieval page garb.  The most shocking part about this is that people dress up in black-face for parades and performances.  Children even dress up as pieten for these celebrations.  As Americans, this is a huge no-no and totally not p.c.!  Apparently, things have changed within the last 75 years and the pieten are now black with soot because they go down chimneys to deliver gifts.

Zwarte Pieten have many roles.  They throw candy to children during the celebrations and make the children’s gifts similar to Santa’s elves.  But, as we find out in traditional song lyrics, Zwarte Piet is also there to put the naughty children in the sacks and take them back to Spain.  A bit stronger of a threat than coal in your stocking, I’d say!

Sinterklaas on the roof! 

Last weekend, I got the opportunity to travel with the family to Heemstede, Holland where their grandparents live.  Every year, the city does a big celebration that Sinterklaas has arrived in their city.  They have Sinterklaas appear on the roof on his horse while the pieten dance around.  Afterward, the parents have arranged for “Sinterklaas” to visit the house and speak to the children.  He takes out his book filled with names of good girls and boys.  From this book, he sits each grand-child down and tells him what they have been doing well and not so well.  (It’s obviously a list of things their parents have written down ahead of time.)

I got the chance to sit down with Sinterklaas as well.  He spoke to me in English and asked about where I was from.  He gave me a chocolate letter in the shape of an E.  My kids were super excited that I got to talk to Sinterklaas for the first time. 

Sinterklaas with Anna.

With Alex.

Sinterklaas scaring Theo straight!

To: Emely From: Sinterklaas

It was very fun and so similar to Christmas that I have already skipped to Christmas in my head.  I know that Thanksgiving is this week but unfortunately, for the first time in my life, will not be celebrating with a giant feast and friends/family.  I will try to find something in town on Thursday night but I doubt it will compare to other years.

Being separated on Thanksgiving yet again has made me thankful for the tiny bit of time I spent at home this summer, for Skype, and for all the people who have supported/inspired me to continue living in Europe.

I love and miss you all!  I’ll be home in almost 4 weeks!! :)

Em

October / Octobre / Oktober

All in all, October was a good month!  I managed to get myself back to France twice and realized that I’d missed it, regardless of how much I like Belgium!  It’s just something (surprisingly) so familiar.

I celebrated what I could of Halloween with my kids here, including Halloween cupcake making and helping them with their costumes.  I also got the opportunity to share the joy of pumpkin bars with Gaspard and some other lucky Frenchies.  In the past year, I’ve really discovered that Americans (myself included) love holidays- even those that aren’t even truly ours!  I find myself being more serious about making sure to celebrate Halloween, Cinco de Mayo, St. Patrick’s Day, and Thanksgiving because without these holidays – I’m no longer American.  As long as I’m celebrating these and keeping my own traditions alive, I’m maintaining my past and my roots.  Regardless of how much I’ve fallen in love with Europe, I will always put my roots first.

Some observations out and around Brussels:

• At the International school, I take out small groups of non-native English speakers to come and read/converse with me.  One group really made me laugh because each child seemed to fit into what most people generalize about their culture!  My two Italians would always shout out the answer, talking over others.  My French boy would react right away to other student’s responses, always showing his true emotions.  And my little Chinese girl was silent, not wanting to talk – but her teacher told me later that on paper, this girl is near fluent in English on an academic standard.
• I am not, of course, trying to point out stereotypes but there is a point where culture is culture.  And when one is mixed in with others, their strong tendencies can become more apparent.

• While driving in Brussels, everybody gives a little salute/hand wave, but for many various reasons.  A gesture can all together say:
• “Thanks for yielding/waiting”
• “Excuse me Sir; I have the right of way”
• “Sorry, I know that I’m a terrible driver!”
• “It’s okay, I know you’re a terrible driver”

I’ve had more interaction with other drivers here than I have ever had in the States.  It’s one of those times where I find them to be more courteous in this situation than most American drivers.

Here are some pictures from the past month:

Theo & I at Alex's field hockey practice.

A hobbit house a block away from where I live.

Apricot, one of the kittens.

Modeling one of Anna's hair creations.

Alex & Anna during a happy sibling moment.

Bois de la Cambre.

Anna & I with Apricot.

 

Alex & Anna.

My little guy playing some tunes.

Oktoberfest in Brussels!

     

Uccle on a good day.

Local graffiti featuring the Smurfs.

Typical Brussels architecture. 

Halloween cupcakes! 

Taking a little dragon to school
 for his Halloween party!

Ah, Blois.

Happy Halloween from Blois!

Languages, old friends, and rain.

Well, autumn is officially here in Brussels.  We’ve had amazing blue skies with orange falling leaves blowing around but today marks the official day of rain and slimy wet leaves.  The kids informed me this morning in the car, that this is how it’s going to be for the next two months.  In December, the rain lets up and the possibility of snow comes in.

With this shift of season, I can let go of summer daydreaming and can settle more into my life here.  I start volunteering next week at the English Primary school that Theo goes to which should lead to some interesting observations.  There are many nationalities represented at the school because many parents work for the EU and embassies in the area.  Also, I am adding an additional job to my already child-centered life.  I’ll be babysitting a 9-month year old girl a couple of mornings a week.  Any assistance to my travel/student loan fund is fine with me!  The mother is actually the great niece of Vladimir Nabokov, the author of Lolita.  See what I mean about European history!  It’s everywhere, all the time.

In other news, the family is still treating me well.  I managed to get the car towed a couple weeks ago (thanks to a very sneaky looking garage door that I parked in front of) and they handled it really well.  Also, their first au pair came back for a visit and I got to talk with her outside the house about what it was like for her.  It was nice to know that she was treated the same way and observed certain family tendencies as well.  I was starting to think that maybe it was just me!  Thanks to that clarifying conversation, I have felt better about the situation here, though I have been thinking a lot about what will happen next year.  I don’t want to get ahead of my self (or how they say in French, circa Laura Ingalls Wilder: don’t put the plow in front of the cattle!) so I’m trying to live in the moment and let this year lead me where it leads me.  No need to rush. 

In the meantime, I’m successfully discovering great places to go: a cupcake/tea room in Ixelles, a coffee shop with free wifi around the corner, and my own living room with my old friend- the piano.  We have a weekly date on Wednesdays when nobody is home so I can embarrassingly trip through old pieces that take me back to high school and college junior standing.  It’s been a while since I’ve played consistently so this has been a humbling experience.  My pieces have stayed the same but I have gotten older and clumsier.  It’s hard to be with a loyal friend who doesn’t age.

My French class has been going well as I’m getting a much needed review of verbs and their bazillion tenses.  Since the class is mainly composed of foreign mothers, we tend to discuss the importance of language and being bi/tri-lingual.  In one text we read this quote:

« Plus on parle des langues, plus on est homme »

The more we speak languages, the more we are human.

Living in a truly international city makes you more aware of how different cultures and languages make life so much more interesting.  So far, I have met many people who have mentioned that they speak at least three languages.  I am obligated to reply, with a regretful tone, that I only speak one foreign language.

There are two sad aspects to my response.

1. In the States, being bilingual is less common (for people who didn’t grow up speaking a different language at home). 

2.  In Europe, two languages not enough.  I recently met the father of my employer, who is Dutch and 80 years old.  His English was amazing. Apparently, his French, German, and Spanish are as well… Not including his couple years of Japanese that he claims is purely at a conversational level.

Maybe this is one reason I love Europe.  Its focus on language, cultural discovery (or even cultural second guessing), and history fascinates me.  I think Americans are slowly adding more language emphasis in younger generations but we will never be Europe.  And maybe that’s a good thing.

Thinking of home and everyone there.

Bisous!

In the land of chocolate, beer, and waffles!

Brussels is not an obvious city.  Though it shares languages with other well known cities, it doesn't have the automatic charm of Paris or Amsterdam.  It's a mix of so many cultures and languages together making this a layered town founded on an unusual history.  Although I have only been here a week and a half, I get the feeling that this city takes time to discover.  I have to say this is not what I expected, but I'm pleasantly surprised each day, depending on who I meet and what I see.

As for the kids I'm working with, they are wonderful!  Very bright and interested in everything around them.  5 days after I got here, they got 2 kittens - which apparently has been in the works for a while.  Trying to teach a 3 yr old how to hold and treat kittens has been interesting.  Theo likes to touch their faces and today tried to pick one up by his tail! Ah!  But besides usual sibling rivalry stuff, they are all very affectionate and seem very happy that I'm around.

So, two kids are going to a Flemish school and the youngest is starting all-day preschool at an international school in Brussels (in English).  They speak English with their American mom and Dutch with their dad.  It has been cool to see the kids switch between the two and have them try to teach me words in Dutch.  They learn a little bit of French at school but it's not too much.  Seeing them not be able to speak to French kids at the park got me thinking about what it would be like to grow up in a place where you don't speak the language of the other kids.  It adds an interesting variable to socialization, especially in situations when no child shares a common language in an international city like Brussels.

In other news, I have started driving which has been all together stressful and liberating.  Getting to know streets, new road rules, and achieving all of this with three kids in the backseat has been surprisingly okay.  I'll mostly be just driving to pick up/drop off kids from school and to go to my French class.  I have a weekly class that will hopefully get my French back up to speed in the scholarly sense.  

Well, I will try to update this from time to time with some more insights about Belgium, languages, and kiddos.

And if anyone gets bored, write me!

Avenue de Sumatra, 9

1180 Brussels, Belgium

Love you all!

More French Food For Thought

In the classrooms I’ve observed and overheard, I feel like French teachers sometimes near on the side of “training a dog” instead of interacting with children. 

• Voice/Encouragement: They rely a lot on the tone of their voice to get attention which makes sense but if anyone heard the “bad dog” tone of voice all day, it would get old.  Encouraging words are not given often and especially not when a student isn’t immensely succeeding.  I have never heard one of my co-teachers say things like “You can do it!” or “Almost there, check this problem again”.  There are so many ways to phrase things that don’t make people feel like crap and I can tell, even in French, that teachers aren’t conscious of this.

• Discipline/Making mistakes: If a student does something bad, the teacher will make sure that he comes face to face with his wrongdoing, especially if others are watching.  This is very much how some owners potty train their dogs.  If they have an accident in the house, the dog’s nose is forced in it so the dog can recognize his mistake, even if he doesn’t fully understand why that’s bad.  Teachers don’t give much explanation to why behaviors aren’t allowed which I feel doesn’t exactly give children an individual moral compass, but more of a memorized list.
• Going deeper into this, the fact that other students are watching is a HUGE tool for teachers here.  American teachers believe that there should be examples set for other children as far as giving time outs, saying names of people taking, etc but those are behavioral/social corrections.  When it comes to academic corrections, it becomes anonymous within the classroom community.  American teachers will announce that many students are making similar mistakes and will give an overall correction so in the end everyone is more informed and feels like they’re on the same level – even if they’re not.  French teachers put corrections up on the board and state who made each correction.  Not only does this isolate the child but it creates an insensitive environment where children laugh at someone only because they got laughed at earlier.  A never ending cycle.
• Another note:  This only gets more and more impersonal as the kids get older.  In high school, grades are posted with full names, grades, and ranking in classes.  The American idea of only posting grades by student ID # doesn’t exist.

• Interactive games:  Much like a dog who has never played fetch in its life, the dog will go crazy when it finally gets the chance to play!  French children, in this case, are dogs.  And an interactive/communicating/teamwork games is fetch.  Imagine.
• These children sit in desks in rows starting at age 6 so when the chance comes around to play a circle game and sing a silly song in a language they don’t really understand, it is definitely considered cutting loose.  Now, cutting loose a bit is not the problem (hey, they’re kids!) – it’s the way they respond to it.  If they don’t have their short leash on, they don’t know any other way to behave except CRAAaaAAaazzzzyyy.  The kids have finally learned that I will cut the game short if they don’t keep their cool but it took a while.   

• Creativity: I’ve already written a bit about this when I vented a bit about the notebooks and how they want it to be done a certain way but it has becoming increasingly noticeable lately.  This month, in conjunction with “Head, Shoulders, Knees & Toes”, my 3^rd graders did a Monster unit.  In this activity, children were given a worksheet guide that I had created.  Essentially, they had to draw a monster in the blank space on the paper, then count how many heads, eyes, noses, etc. their monster had and fill in the blanks.  There were also lines to say your monster’s name and colors you chose to color it.
• For the most part, students would stare at the sheet for 5 minutes telling me that they just couldn’t think of anything.  But once I showed them my monster and other student dove in, it went ok.  Most weren’t risk takers but they really tried!
• One student sat at his paper for a good ten minutes and eventually drew what looked like a normal human with 1 head, 2 eyes, etc.  I asked him if it was a monster and he replied, “Yes, it’s a human monster”.  Case in point.

Again, this is based on observed behavior at my two primary schools.  I’m trying not to generalize my little experience to all of France but with such distinct differences, it’s hard not compare and wonder where the lines are.

This week is my third to last week teaching in Blois and I’ve grown really attached to (most of) these kids.  Yes, I’ve made a lot of observations and mental notes on where I stand on certain school cultures but I’m hooked.  I want to see more and think more about what’s best for children around the world.

Thinking of all of you!

Bisous,

Em

Everything happens for a reason.

Well, somehow this seven month job in France has flown by and into March.  This has especially turned into more than a job; it has become the starting place for actually figuring out what I want to do.  I’ve always known teaching is what I want to do but I’ve been uncertain about what content to teach.  This experience has finally pieced together why I have chosen certain paths in my life.

Music, language, children, and travel have been my main interests for a long time now and I’ve realized that I can find work that includes all of them.  In addition to my love for analyzing culture and personalities (hence what most of this blog has been about), I’ve culminated all these paths into my future plan.  I want to get my Masters in Comparative Education so that I can teach internationally at either International or Bilingual schools.  The music side ties into the language love and actually in turn, it has been a great crutch when teaching English.  I’ve been surprised how much I sing and use music in my classroom.

As of now, I am applying to International and Bilingual schools in France in order to gain experience before getting my Masters.  A Masters might not even be necessary for a while if I get my foot in the door at a school somewhere.

I’ve been really thankful for this gap year (which is what I originally thought of it as).  I’ve been able to really sort through what I wanted, what I want now, and what I want for my future.  I know that this program isn’t over yet and I still have 6 more weeks of teaching but I feel like I’ve finally found what I came here looking for.  I’ve been away from home for the longest I’ve ever been and have surprised myself that I want to stay even longer.  I wasn’t expecting that at all to be honest.

Either way, if I find a job here for the next school year or not, I’ll be coming home this summer.  I know we’re all in different places, in different times in our life still figuring it out, but I hope that I will get to see you soon!

I’m off to Porto, Portugal tomorrow for the remainder of my vacation!  After that, I’ll put up some more Frenchie observations and stories from my kiddos.  It’s been a while and they have done some pretty interesting things..

Miss you all!  Bisous!

Novembre

Well, November has just slipped by!  I’ve had some really great times with the kids and my assistant friends here. 

First off, a couple weeks ago I went to Lyon with some other assistants: Maura, Harry and Raul.  They stayed there for three nights but I was only there for two of them because I work Fridays but they don’t.  I loved Lyon!  It was such a great city and it was so nice to be in a big town again!  Ah, I even had a white mocha from this little local bagel shop.  We were lucky that the Saturday we were there happened to be one the nicest days in November.  It was barely even jacket weather.  We ended up drinking our coffee by the Saône (one of the two rivers that cuts through Lyon) and it was so relaxing.  Lyon is old and very authentically French.  It was like Paris in that there were tons of people but it was better because it was more spread out and instead of being really international, I only heard French the entire time I was there.  It wasn’t just an international touristy town; it’s where the French go on vacation. 

The view of Lyon from the top of this HUGE hill we had to climb.

 

Me, Raul, Harry, and Maura.

 We went out both nights in Lyon and it was so great to be places with so many young people again!  On the second night, we met up with a French guy that Maura knew from when she studied abroad in Montpellier.  He showed us around with his friends and showed us these night clubs that are on docked ships on the Rhône River.  We were a little too exhausted to go on them by the time we got around to seeing them but it’s a really cool idea.  So, nobody was exactly thrilled to come back to Blois on Sunday where the city sleeps by 9pm every night.

Thanksgiving was a total success in that we made an “American Week” out of it.  Each day this week has been some sort of event leading up to the dinner on Thursday. 

oooh  baby.

I ended up making cookies, a sweet potato dish that my mom always makes, and a pumpkin pie.  It took most of the afternoon on Wednesday to make everything but I got to hang out with Valérie and her kids while I was cooking.  They were very happy about the cookies (which I gave them half the batch) and not so impressed by the idea of either sweet potatoes or pumpkin pie.  They never have them in sweet sugary dishes so I think they were a little grossed out by the idea of that.  Regardless, they were a hit at our dinner for assistants and my sweet potatoes were gone pretttty fast.  Everyone brought different dishes which was cool because then we got to try everyone’s family favorites.  Mac & Cheese now needs to be an official Thanksgiving dish because I had the best ever made by Sharae.  We were anxious about if we could find turkeys here but we found them a little outside the city at a huge supermarket.  We ended up with two turkeys: one spicy Cajun and one with French seasoning.  Definitely had a food coma.

It snowed a little on Thanksgiving and melted before noon but my students were still really stirred up by it.  It was a horrible day teaching because they were impossible to rein in which was great timing because I was already not feeling great about missing home.  Fortunately, the great dinner and time I had later with my Blois family really helped me not feel so homesick.

Teaching Thanksgiving to my students was really enjoyable actually.  It was very humorous in the beginning because they all thought that Thanksgiving was just another Christmas and that we give gifts, eat, and dance!  I had to be the bearer of bad news and say that it’s mainly just a meal and a sentiment of feeling thankful.  They got the gist of it and were very sweet about asking if I’d miss it this year.

I start my winter holiday/Christmas unit on Monday and I’m excited for the next three weeks.  As soon as I was done working on Friday, I went to the French equivalent of a Target and bought a little tree for my desk with ornaments and other things I was swayed to buy.  Of course, I played the Carpenters Christmas album and trimmed the tree.  I am now officially ready to start thinking Christmas.

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I just want to say to everyone reading this how thankful I am for all of you.  Even in spite of the distance where we are very far apart, you make it seem not so far.  I couldn’t and wouldn’t be here without you.  Thank you so much!

‘Ap-ee Sanks-geev-eeng!  (as the French would say)

Bisous,

Em