Neugraben Visit

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Today was another eventful day for our students here in Hamburg. Some attended German school with their partners for the first time while a few others traveled to Neugraben to meet with a 4^thgrade class there.

Alec, Delaney, Robert and the Cammocks, Shaun, Chris and Jaycy, met me at Harberg Station in the pouring rain at 8:30 sharp. From there we traveled to meet the students who have been corresponding with Mrs. Reijm’s class at Edison via snail mail.

We arrived a bit early and were given a full tour of the school campus which houses students from Kindergarten through 10^th grade. 10^th grade is akin to senior year in high school in the states. It was interesting to see such a mix of ages on the playground for sure. We learned that a wealthy benefactor in Hamburg has just made a generous 30,000 euro donation to the school music department, funding all sorts of new musical instruments!

In class, the German students practiced their English language skills, which are really quite extraordinary! Then we got to introduce ourselves and answer questions from the class. A big pat on the back goes to 2^nd year German students Robert and Alec for introducing themselves, their ages and hobbies as well as answering questions entirely in German! It is always funny to see and hear the shock of the German students when they find out how long our school day is and how few breaks we get compared to them. They generally dismiss school at 1pm here in Germany.

From here it was out to the playground where the Americans taught the German students a classic American dance that is sure to become the next big thing in here Germany, the Hokey Pokey.

Back inside the classroom we ventured so that we could help them draw the American flag and explain some of its meaning. A huge thanks to Shaun Cammock for handling the drawing duties on the chalk (yes chalk) board while I spoke.

All in all it was a fun visit with the class. The German students were incredibly excited to see us and literally followed us to the door as we departed. I am very grateful for the four brave students who accompanied us! They did a phenomenal job of representing our program!

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