This blog entry marks the end of my first month here in Poznan, causing me to begin reflecting on my views of my Erasmus experience and whether these have changed at all since arriving here.
Thinking back to arriving here on Valentine’s Day during a blizzard, Poznan seems almost like a different city now, as spring is definitely spreading its way through the city. As the weather has begun to brighten, I feel that so too have my mood and my thoughts on being here. I have started to feel more at home in the city and less like a tourist, particularly as I am getting used to finding my way away around and becoming more familiar with the trams and buses.
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| My placement school |
This week we met with the Primary Years Programme (PYP) co-ordinator in our placement school, the International School of Poznan. After being shown around the school and assigned to my class (Grade 2) I am very eager and excited to begin placement. We will be in school every Wednesday and Thursday from 8am-2pm, meaning that we will have to leave our halls at 6.30am to ensure we are on time! While the early starts are certainly going to be a shock to me, I cannot wait to begin this week. The school is made up of 70% Polish children and 30% international children, with all lessons taught in English. Having never been in an international school before, I am interested to compare both the teaching strategies used and attitudes of the children with those in Northern Ireland. I am very happy to have been placed in an international school, as before coming on Erasmus I had been worried about missing school-based work and the impact it would have on me in final year. Therefore, I am very glad that I will be in a school where I will be able to teach lessons similar to those I would be teaching at home and gain more classroom experience, rather than only being able to teach English language lessons. On Sunday, a woman from church who teaches in a Polish primary school invited Anna and I come to her school. We definitely intend to take her up on the offer, as I am very interested to see what a traditional Polish school is like and how it differs from schools in the UK.
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| Inside the school |
On Saturday, some of us decided to try our hand at skiing, at Malta Lake. Although I wouldn’t say I’m an expert yet, I really enjoyed the experience and had a lot of fun with the other Erasmus students. Anna and I are both still in agony now, probably from a combination of falling constantly, crashing into other people, but also laughing so much!
Not doing too badly for beginners!
Just when we thought we were getting the hang of it!
This weekend I met my tandem partner, Kasia, for the first time. The tandem programme pairs people up, so they can help teach each other another language. Kasia will be teaching me Polish, while I will be helping her to practise speaking English. She has definitely got the harder job! I think this is a great opportunity, particularly as all the friends I have made so far have been Erasmus students, so I am looking forward to getting to know some Polish people. For our next meeting, she has suggested we visit one of the beautiful parks in Poznan, which will be particularly nice if the weather keeps improving.
Do Widzena,
DarÓma.
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