OH attends a meeting in the village hosted by the Schulpflege about the changes to the school system in Kanton Zurich and which will be introduced by the schools in our Gemeinde from next school year. It's all about integrating children with special needs, special needs ranging from serious physical disabilities to German as a second or third language.
I am unable to attend so afterwards ask him how it went. He looks a bit baffled and says “wibble wibble wibble”. Therefore I’m delighted when someone posts up the following explanatory link on the Yahoo schools group the following week:
http://www.stadt-zuerich.ch/content/dam/stzh/ssd/Deutsch/Volksschule/Formulare und Merkblaetter/2.10 Schulentwicklung/081125_ASO_Schulreformen2009_eng.pdf
Thursday, 11 June 2009
How to feel stupid: move overseas
I also receive a phone call from J’s Friday teacher – the one who, in our household, sets “the big whopper” every Friday (in normal terminology lots and lots of homework). She is ringing to discuss J and we have a very good, thorough and positive chat. It seems they are pleased with his progress but he needs more support with his German to achieve his full potential. More support ? My heart sinks. What do they want, a full scaffold ?
I feel like I’m half home-schooling a lot of the time as it is, but in the best traditions of motherhood I grit my teeth and say yes of course, anything to help him achieve his potential. I know this means more arguments with him about how the work should be done, and yet more time spent checking he knows what he’s doing. I thought we would be through with this stage by this time of the year, but at the moment I can only see it getting more and more demanding and I honestly feel like I’m drowning and right back to stage one again.
Gin and tonic ? Or just gin ? Mmmmmmm
And then they have a week off with no notice.....
This is not helped at all by the sudden announcement that they have the whole of the following week off school. What ?! Why ?! How ?! They’ve only been back 3 weeks, what the hell is going on ?! Why doesn’t it say on the Ferienagenda ?
Actually it does, but you have to understand German to realize that’s what it is saying. Probably not unreasonable in a German speaking country, but I feel a right pillock nonetheless. It says Weiterbildung 18-20 May and then Auffahrt 21-22. So that means teacher training 18-20 May and Ascension long weekend 21-22. Ascension translates as “up go”. Such a poetic language. Anyway, that means no school for that whole week. Last time we had Weiterbildung it coincided with Ustermart, and I knew that the latter meant 2 days off school but didn’t realize that it in fact Weiterbildung was the reason for it, rather than Ustermart. So now I know, but it’s a painful and frustrating way to find out.
I recently read somewhere that as an ex-pat, you quickly get used to feeling stupid. Right now, I couldn’t agree more – which is ever so slightly dispiriting after 2 years.
I feel like I’m half home-schooling a lot of the time as it is, but in the best traditions of motherhood I grit my teeth and say yes of course, anything to help him achieve his potential. I know this means more arguments with him about how the work should be done, and yet more time spent checking he knows what he’s doing. I thought we would be through with this stage by this time of the year, but at the moment I can only see it getting more and more demanding and I honestly feel like I’m drowning and right back to stage one again.
Gin and tonic ? Or just gin ? Mmmmmmm
And then they have a week off with no notice.....
This is not helped at all by the sudden announcement that they have the whole of the following week off school. What ?! Why ?! How ?! They’ve only been back 3 weeks, what the hell is going on ?! Why doesn’t it say on the Ferienagenda ?
Actually it does, but you have to understand German to realize that’s what it is saying. Probably not unreasonable in a German speaking country, but I feel a right pillock nonetheless. It says Weiterbildung 18-20 May and then Auffahrt 21-22. So that means teacher training 18-20 May and Ascension long weekend 21-22. Ascension translates as “up go”. Such a poetic language. Anyway, that means no school for that whole week. Last time we had Weiterbildung it coincided with Ustermart, and I knew that the latter meant 2 days off school but didn’t realize that it in fact Weiterbildung was the reason for it, rather than Ustermart. So now I know, but it’s a painful and frustrating way to find out.
I recently read somewhere that as an ex-pat, you quickly get used to feeling stupid. Right now, I couldn’t agree more – which is ever so slightly dispiriting after 2 years.
Summer term: back to school.
The first week back at school sees the arrival of the application form for the music school camp (lager) week in October. It’s completed, back on the table ready to go back to school before I’ve even taken off my coat, unpacked the shopping and opened the rest of the post. Desperate ? Ich ? Nie…
However, the following week we have confirmation that the boys are on the list for the camp so we are delighted with this. I’m not just desperate for time on my own with OH simply regrouping and gathering breath: this is a great opportunity for the boys for their musical and language development. Honest. No sneaky thoughts of 3 days in Venice on our own entered our heads, oh no no no sir.
The end of the second week back sees a day of performance activity at the Music School – various performances by various groups, ensembles and teachers, designed to both demonstrate what they have been doing this year and encourage new starters for next year.
Mother’s Day handarbeit
I’m running out of adjectives to describe the handarbeit the boys bring home for me for Muttertag (Mother’s Day). Lovely is overused in my blog but I’m struggling to find anything else, so lovely it will be. A hanging list of loving motherly qualities, which thankfully don’t include “gin addict”, “control freak” or “shouty mum”. Phew.
However, the following week we have confirmation that the boys are on the list for the camp so we are delighted with this. I’m not just desperate for time on my own with OH simply regrouping and gathering breath: this is a great opportunity for the boys for their musical and language development. Honest. No sneaky thoughts of 3 days in Venice on our own entered our heads, oh no no no sir.
The end of the second week back sees a day of performance activity at the Music School – various performances by various groups, ensembles and teachers, designed to both demonstrate what they have been doing this year and encourage new starters for next year.
Mother’s Day handarbeit
I’m running out of adjectives to describe the handarbeit the boys bring home for me for Muttertag (Mother’s Day). Lovely is overused in my blog but I’m struggling to find anything else, so lovely it will be. A hanging list of loving motherly qualities, which thankfully don’t include “gin addict”, “control freak” or “shouty mum”. Phew.
Spring holiday: drowning in homework
The spring holidays see us drowning in J’s homework.
It’s not that he has loads and loads of exercises to work through, but he seems to have a great deal of reading and Kopfrechnen and generally staying on top of things to do. Or is that me turning into neurotic Alice ? We go back to the UK for 9 days and I’m continuously aware of needing to do “stuff” each day, but in retrospect I realize that most of this is down to his English reading (he has picked himself a book way too hard for his level but is flatly refusing to admit this. It’s an Alex Rider book and he likes the DVDs, so we are struggling through Point Blanc 2 pages at a time :-O) and his homework from church – he is preparing for his First Communion in a few weeks’ time. In the meantime I am attempting to make him keep doing his Kopfrechnen to keep his mental arithmetic sharp.
So, yes, in retrospect I am turning into neurotic Alice – since it’s mostly non-school homework this time.
It’s not that he has loads and loads of exercises to work through, but he seems to have a great deal of reading and Kopfrechnen and generally staying on top of things to do. Or is that me turning into neurotic Alice ? We go back to the UK for 9 days and I’m continuously aware of needing to do “stuff” each day, but in retrospect I realize that most of this is down to his English reading (he has picked himself a book way too hard for his level but is flatly refusing to admit this. It’s an Alex Rider book and he likes the DVDs, so we are struggling through Point Blanc 2 pages at a time :-O) and his homework from church – he is preparing for his First Communion in a few weeks’ time. In the meantime I am attempting to make him keep doing his Kopfrechnen to keep his mental arithmetic sharp.
So, yes, in retrospect I am turning into neurotic Alice – since it’s mostly non-school homework this time.
Thursday, 9 April 2009
Week 28. On our uppers.
We’ve got that end-of-term-on-our-uppers feeling again. The boys are shattered and ratty with each other. And I want to run away with the fairies.
The last week before the spring holidays includes:
For J’s class, a trip to the music studio in Zurich to record the rap that has been the cause of so much recent excitement and playground tension……… ;
C bringing home this term’s delightful piece of handarbeit - a wooden kitchen blackboard in the shape of a hen – made entirely by him;
and
C’s piano “Vorspiel” – which is a concert arranged by his piano teacher allowing all his pupils to play a piece in front of an audience of other pupils and parents. It takes place in the Singsaal of the secondary school, which is a room a bit bigger than a usual classroom but not overwhelmingly big (such as a sports hall would be). Bit like a school concert but with less fuss. It lasts 35 minutes, with 20 pupils each playing a (very) short piece. C is one of the younger pupils, many of them appear to be in the middle and secondary school years. The evening ends with the teacher giving each child who has participated a large chocolate bunny, which is charming and generous and leaves me with a deeper understanding of why the Swiss are the biggest consumers of chocolate in the world. As I write, post Easter, we are drowning in the stuff. Which wouldn’t be such a problem if I had any self control whatsoever…..
Week 27
I forgot to mention the new regular early start.
One of J’s extra German lessons has been moved to early on Wednesday, so he now has to be in school by 07.25 one day a week.
Yuk.
Well, at least I finally managed to find him a little alarm clock that works, so he can help to take responsibility for getting himself up in time.
But leaving for school at 07.15 – that’s the middle of the night, isn’t it ? Praise be that the clocks have gone forward.
Sozialarbeit
Secondly, there have been some problems at school ever since they started this rap project – with differing groups wanting the limelight and arguing about which group of boys was going to deliver particular lines of the rap they had written together as a class. These problems were spilling over into the playground with fights breaking out at regular intervals. Thankfully J has the good sense to stay well clear of all this – as most of his classmates are about twice his size, and despite being small and feisty, I fear he would stand no chance in a punch up.
So, the Sozialarbeit people (social workers - I assume) have been into J’s class to talk about behaviour and how to get along with each other – and this appears to be working. I suspect that growing boys and testosterone has a great deal to do with it. Much as I suspect that testosterone and alpha male behaviour is the root of many of the world’s problems, but that’s a whole different blog.
We also seem to be getting about one letter a week abut this “incident” that happened recently at the secondary school, but still haven’t got the details, other than what our neighbours told us after a great deal of red wine enjoyed together in the garden on the Friday night - which was that the “auslanders” had been continuously wound up by some very provocative Swiss children, and that it was no surprise that there had been a problem. And that the neighbours’ children had always steered well clear of any of that, and hadn’t had any problems with anyone. At least, I think that’s what they said :-)
Grade 2 maths
C’s maths work (grade 2) has suddenly gone up a notch in terms of difficulty, but that’s OK, he seems to be coping with it now. It’s a very step-by-step approach, which is giving him a lot of confidence, and you can almost see him making the connections mentally now. So we are onto the 8x table, and his homework this week includes addition and subtraction before the actual multiplication and then the answer being a key to a word – and then some colouring. He works through it methodically but understands the concept. Phew. I still feel relief every time he understands something new and a little more complicated without my intervention.
One of J’s extra German lessons has been moved to early on Wednesday, so he now has to be in school by 07.25 one day a week.
Yuk.
Well, at least I finally managed to find him a little alarm clock that works, so he can help to take responsibility for getting himself up in time.
But leaving for school at 07.15 – that’s the middle of the night, isn’t it ? Praise be that the clocks have gone forward.
Sozialarbeit
Secondly, there have been some problems at school ever since they started this rap project – with differing groups wanting the limelight and arguing about which group of boys was going to deliver particular lines of the rap they had written together as a class. These problems were spilling over into the playground with fights breaking out at regular intervals. Thankfully J has the good sense to stay well clear of all this – as most of his classmates are about twice his size, and despite being small and feisty, I fear he would stand no chance in a punch up.
So, the Sozialarbeit people (social workers - I assume) have been into J’s class to talk about behaviour and how to get along with each other – and this appears to be working. I suspect that growing boys and testosterone has a great deal to do with it. Much as I suspect that testosterone and alpha male behaviour is the root of many of the world’s problems, but that’s a whole different blog.
We also seem to be getting about one letter a week abut this “incident” that happened recently at the secondary school, but still haven’t got the details, other than what our neighbours told us after a great deal of red wine enjoyed together in the garden on the Friday night - which was that the “auslanders” had been continuously wound up by some very provocative Swiss children, and that it was no surprise that there had been a problem. And that the neighbours’ children had always steered well clear of any of that, and hadn’t had any problems with anyone. At least, I think that’s what they said :-)
Grade 2 maths
C’s maths work (grade 2) has suddenly gone up a notch in terms of difficulty, but that’s OK, he seems to be coping with it now. It’s a very step-by-step approach, which is giving him a lot of confidence, and you can almost see him making the connections mentally now. So we are onto the 8x table, and his homework this week includes addition and subtraction before the actual multiplication and then the answer being a key to a word – and then some colouring. He works through it methodically but understands the concept. Phew. I still feel relief every time he understands something new and a little more complicated without my intervention.
Tuesday, 31 March 2009
Weeks 25 & 26 - All as quiet on the western front as it gets with 2 boys
I realise I’m in danger of posting for the sake of it at this point, but I want to continue the blog to the end of the school year for two reasons:
1 So when I’m old and decrepit (next year) I can look back and laugh at my worries
2 Because who knows what has yet to happen that is new and unusual and will send me running either round the block in frustration or straight to the wine cellar …. ?
Well, very little to report in terms of our household and anything new with school. Our routine continues busy and at times manic, but hey. I think that’s life with kids.
Two things of note elsewhere in the gemeinde, however.
The first is that a 16 year old girl is shot dead in the car park at the local shopping centre, on a Saturday evening. The most gist I can glean from the paper coverage is that it’s something to do with Balkan drug gangs. Apologies for my ignorance – but the paper’s gone out for recycling now so difficult to check. This is pretty shocking for Switzerland, I know, but before here we lived in Manchester; in broad daylight, I used to drive through certain areas not far from where we lived, as fast as possible and with the car completely locked. It's not like that here.
The second thing is that we have now had 2 or 3 letters about some sort of sexual incident involving a 15 year old girl at the local secondary school. Obviously this is of more immediate concern. The letters are rather complicated, though, and we haven’t seen the neighbours to try to get to the bottom of the story. However, OH has managed to work out that the letters refer to the accused’s nationality (ie not Swiss) and are trying to explain that not everyone of certain nationalities (whatever they are....) should be tarred with the same brush. Seems an intelligent and pragmatic reaction.
And the third thing, on a wider note, is the business about Lucie the au pair from Fribourg who was found dead in Baden. You just don’t hear about these things as often as in the UK, so it’s really shocking – and of course devastating for her family and friends. A stark reminder to tell the kids that they mustn’t talk to strangers. Difficult when they’re taught at school to greet everyone they see with “Gruezi” – I guess it’s a question of teaching them boundaries.
Saturday, 14 March 2009
Week 24 - J goes to judo
Little to report this week – everything normal, no major dramas involving falling off play equipment, usual volume of homework, etc etc etc.
But on Wednesday, I take J to the judo club in the village. Luckily this is in his school, otherwise I would be facing the real prospect of becoming a whirling dervish on Wednesdays, what with trying to get C from his English lesson at the WAC and back to the village for 5pm. I’ve just worked out that J is now doing 5 out-of-school activities, and, ever conscious of not wanting to become Alice from May Contain Nuts (or have I already ? am I paranoid or are they after me ?) I am thinking that that is quite enough thank you, given that he’s still learning to cope with being educated in a second language and play with his mates in a third. C is doing 4 activities, and may decide that he also wants to do judo - we’ll see. The problem isn’t the interests they have - or I’ve imposed on them - but the fact that with one exception they’re all at different times, and I don’t want them scooting or cycling round the village on their own in the half light. It’s noticeable that drivers seem to be switched on to be aware of children at crossings at the standard school times (8ish, 12ish, 1.30ish and 3.30ish) but not at others. So yes, I am paranoid about road safety out of school hours, particularly since our neighbour’s son was knocked off his bike last September coming home from football training - he’s OK (the bike was wrecked) but it was a nasty shock.
Anyway, unfortunately OH was away on business on Wednesday, so I took J down to the club – we had made a deal that I would take him but he’d have to do the talking. And I was right - the chap in charge spoke a completely incomprehensible Schweizerdeutsch that left me with the familiar cringing feeling that I wonder if I will ever shake off. My understanding of Hochdeutsch isn’t bad now – but Schwiezerdeutsch is a different kettle of fish altogether.
But no matter: J LOVED it. And I must admit, it looks ideal for him. He has a great deal of physical energy (show me a boy who doesn’t) and it’s a licence to do everything he’s not allowed to do in the house – run round, jump, physically handle people - but all the while teaching him how to control his energy and aggression – and learn some self defence.
So, we will go back next week and hopefully within a couple of weeks time I will be able to leave him there and go and collect him later, rather than sit and watch, twiddling my thumbs and wondering how the hell I’m going to have enough time to get dinner on the table and get myself out to rehearsal at 7pm.
But on Wednesday, I take J to the judo club in the village. Luckily this is in his school, otherwise I would be facing the real prospect of becoming a whirling dervish on Wednesdays, what with trying to get C from his English lesson at the WAC and back to the village for 5pm. I’ve just worked out that J is now doing 5 out-of-school activities, and, ever conscious of not wanting to become Alice from May Contain Nuts (or have I already ? am I paranoid or are they after me ?) I am thinking that that is quite enough thank you, given that he’s still learning to cope with being educated in a second language and play with his mates in a third. C is doing 4 activities, and may decide that he also wants to do judo - we’ll see. The problem isn’t the interests they have - or I’ve imposed on them - but the fact that with one exception they’re all at different times, and I don’t want them scooting or cycling round the village on their own in the half light. It’s noticeable that drivers seem to be switched on to be aware of children at crossings at the standard school times (8ish, 12ish, 1.30ish and 3.30ish) but not at others. So yes, I am paranoid about road safety out of school hours, particularly since our neighbour’s son was knocked off his bike last September coming home from football training - he’s OK (the bike was wrecked) but it was a nasty shock.
Anyway, unfortunately OH was away on business on Wednesday, so I took J down to the club – we had made a deal that I would take him but he’d have to do the talking. And I was right - the chap in charge spoke a completely incomprehensible Schweizerdeutsch that left me with the familiar cringing feeling that I wonder if I will ever shake off. My understanding of Hochdeutsch isn’t bad now – but Schwiezerdeutsch is a different kettle of fish altogether.
But no matter: J LOVED it. And I must admit, it looks ideal for him. He has a great deal of physical energy (show me a boy who doesn’t) and it’s a licence to do everything he’s not allowed to do in the house – run round, jump, physically handle people - but all the while teaching him how to control his energy and aggression – and learn some self defence.
So, we will go back next week and hopefully within a couple of weeks time I will be able to leave him there and go and collect him later, rather than sit and watch, twiddling my thumbs and wondering how the hell I’m going to have enough time to get dinner on the table and get myself out to rehearsal at 7pm.
Monday, 9 March 2009
Week 23 - bullying on the way home
Week 23 sees J bring home another beautiful piece of handarbeit – a sewn notebook and pencil case. At this rate, I’m going to be putting him on the street selling home made craftwork – he’d make more than I would selling anything.
The Thursday sees C have another little friend round to play in the afternoon - good !
On Friday J is bullied on the way home at lunchtime by the two lads who approached C a few weeks ago. They seem to be following classic bully behaviour – there are two of them, they wait until they are not in sight of anyone, and are a good distance from school. They try to block his path, make fun of him for needing to go to extra German lessons, push him off his scooter and refuse to believe that he’s in Grade 4, because of his size.
J is very upset – understandably. So after lunch we look on the CBBC website and search for “bullying” and how to cope with bullies. http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/specials/bullying/default.stm
Bullying behaviour is outlined, along with strategies for dealing with it. So the boys have some ideas now, and understand why I want them to walk to and from school together wherever possible – they are less likely to be approached if they are together. J also wants to join the local judo club, so we’ll be doing that next week. I send him back to school, asking him to tell his teacher and ask her what he should do, so that he gets the Swiss “take” on what his next step should be rather than just mine. Luckily she says the same as me – get their names and what class they’re in (we know they are at the school next door rather than ours).
We need to keep practising what they need to say to bullies if this happens again. OH and I are both of the view that you can’t protect kids from bullies – bullies are everywhere, school, the workplace, you name it. But we want to help them learn to deal with it, not become victimised. Luckily we seem to have supportive teaching staff at school – and at least we know that the kids involved are not at the same school as ours, though that could potentially make the situation more complicated to handle. I hope not.
The Thursday sees C have another little friend round to play in the afternoon - good !
On Friday J is bullied on the way home at lunchtime by the two lads who approached C a few weeks ago. They seem to be following classic bully behaviour – there are two of them, they wait until they are not in sight of anyone, and are a good distance from school. They try to block his path, make fun of him for needing to go to extra German lessons, push him off his scooter and refuse to believe that he’s in Grade 4, because of his size.
J is very upset – understandably. So after lunch we look on the CBBC website and search for “bullying” and how to cope with bullies. http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/specials/bullying/default.stm
Bullying behaviour is outlined, along with strategies for dealing with it. So the boys have some ideas now, and understand why I want them to walk to and from school together wherever possible – they are less likely to be approached if they are together. J also wants to join the local judo club, so we’ll be doing that next week. I send him back to school, asking him to tell his teacher and ask her what he should do, so that he gets the Swiss “take” on what his next step should be rather than just mine. Luckily she says the same as me – get their names and what class they’re in (we know they are at the school next door rather than ours).
We need to keep practising what they need to say to bullies if this happens again. OH and I are both of the view that you can’t protect kids from bullies – bullies are everywhere, school, the workplace, you name it. But we want to help them learn to deal with it, not become victimised. Luckily we seem to have supportive teaching staff at school – and at least we know that the kids involved are not at the same school as ours, though that could potentially make the situation more complicated to handle. I hope not.
Sportferien
Sportferien passes, seeing us in Austria for a week with friends, which is fantastic. Almost too much snow – if that’s possible. The transition between last year, when the boys were terrified of ski school and were dragged there almost kicking and screaming every day (very relaxing, I must say) because “we don’t understand German” and this year, when they leap out of bed and can’t wait to get started every day, is remarkable. Of course it helps that we are on holiday with their best chums, but they are not in the same ski school groups together. They are no longer frightened of an “all German” situation. And in any case, all the ski instructors speak English. In fact at one point J lapses into Schweizerdeutsch, to his Austrian ski instructor’s utter confusion.
The second week of sportferien sees an argument with J about his German homework for the holidays. He’s convinced it’s a huge piece of work. However, we break it down into small steps and all of a sudden, it’s finished, and he is no longer in an argumentative mood about it. Funny, that.
The second week of sportferien sees an argument with J about his German homework for the holidays. He’s convinced it’s a huge piece of work. However, we break it down into small steps and all of a sudden, it’s finished, and he is no longer in an argumentative mood about it. Funny, that.
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