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| Kyiv School # 57 |
We finally got into a school today for a visit. It is a special school for students that want to study English. The students spend time each day learning English; even the 6 year olds!! They gave us a school tour, the younger students put on a folktale puppet show, and we sat in on a class. In the class, the students were 15 years old (they called it Form 11) and they talked to us about Ukraine and entertained us with songs. The funniest was when we went into the room, the teacher said that they were going to begin with a song because music is the universal language. You will never believe what they sang!! It was the American song from the 70's by the Eagles called " Hotel California". I sang right along, as you can image!
We spent the afternoon in a discussion panel taking about the differences between our education system and the Ukrainian system. One thing that surprised me is that there is no help for students with special needs at all. They generally do not attend school and many are dropped off to orphanages. One person was from a group that is working on human right and is trying to get that changed. One more hold over that we have seen that may come from the Soviet background of their history!
Tonight, my partner Sara, a teacher from Boston, and I leave on our over night train ride. I will post tomorrow to let you know our ride was and what our train cabin looked like. Wish us luck!!
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| Form 11 students - Seniors |
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| 1st Form |
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| My new friend Natia |
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| Form 11 Project A contest is being help in Kyiv in the schools for the Eurocup 2012 in June It is a scale model of the stadium made from Lego's!! |
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| Another view of the stadium |
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| Food in the school cafeteria! Many variety of bread, both regular and sweet |
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| School food for lunch Pickled vegetables, potato pies |
The Lego stadium is impressive. Now you need to make your students sing it as well.
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DeleteIt was amazing in detail. From the camerman on the swing crane to the tables in the food court. I hope that they win!!
DeleteWOW! Chase would love the Lego display! We miss you here but can tell you are having a "fabulous" time :) The Easter food looked so yummy! Mmmmmm... Stacy xox
ReplyDeleteHi! Hope that all is going well!! Miss you guys! Tell the students hello!
DeleteMrs. Hamilton, your students are enjoying your blog and pictures. We have been reading your updates everyday.
ReplyDeleteHello everyone! I miss you guys! Glad to know that you are watching. So....a question a day back to you! Why do most Ukrainians take the train from city to city instead of flying?
DeleteI had been having some problems making comments, but just realize my mistake.
ReplyDeleteThe students have had some questions-After reading Sunday's blog. They wanted to know what people of Kyiv wear? And what the temperature was like? You then posted a picture of a Ukranian teen. We could see it must be cold since the teen was wearing a thick, winter coat and the trees had no leaves.
The weather has been rainy and in the fifties, so not too bad. Most people in Kyiv wear western wear. As in clothes like ours, not cowboy!! They are very fasionable. Most of the women dress up with dresses, skirts and boots with high heels!! The teenager was very funny. He loved having his picture taken and spoke very good English!!
DeleteThe students also wanted to know what kinds of food you were eating? They love hearing about all the different meals you have eaten. Now they want to know if you have seen a McDonald's or seen any pizza places and if you enjoyed Spleeka?
ReplyDeleteThey also wanted to know what kinds of transportation they had. We then saw the pictures of buses. Do they have taxis like the US?
They have a metro system, buses, and taxis, which are like ours. We rode in one to go to the train station. Apparently, everyone calls for a cab though because otherwise, the taxis are not government registered and they try to charge a lot more!!
DeleteQuestions from students today.
ReplyDeleteHow big are the schools compared to Berkeley county? Are there many grade levels in one building?
Besides soccer what other sports do the kids play? Do they play basketball?
Have you been able to order your meals in English or have you needed an interpreter?
What kinds of things do parents have to pay for in public schools?
Are things expensive like food and books?
The school that I was at had 750 students in all grade levels. They only go to Form 11, or Grade 11 but graduate at the same age because they don't start school until seven. They like to play football (Soccer) and also play basketball and volleyball! As for the restaurants, our guide has been providing menus in English for us. Some restaurants have it in both. She has helped us with ordering but many people speak some English. If not, body language can do a lot to help with communications. We have also used pictures in menus to help us with ordering.
DeleteSchool is free....but not. The parents pay some fees and pay more if they want their child to go to a certain school. they must pay for books and supplies.
Things are not too expensive. They are about the same as an American city. It has been fun to figure out the conversion from USD to RGH. It is 8 to 1 so things like a sandwitch will cost 800 RGH but is really only $10.00!!
Mrs. Hamilton I Love All Of Your Pictures!
ReplyDeleteI Really Want To Visit There Now (:
I Showed My Brother The Lego Display And He Absolutely Loved It!
- Your Student,
Jasmine <3
Thanks for watching and commenting Jasmine!! Tell everyone hello! Miss you guys!
DeleteI really like their uniforms!
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to talk with you guys about the schools here. They are alike in some ways...but so very different in others. The thing that really got to me was the total disregard for students with special needs. They receive no help, generally no schooling, and are often left at local orphanages. How sad!! Miss you guys! Say hello!
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