The fourth week

Hi everybody!

We began this week with a schoolvisit on Monday. It was a boarding school called Hoptroup Efter Schole. We got up at 8 am and before going to visit the boarding school we had another lesson with Jette at 10 am about Intercultural Competence. Here she learned us that when you meet a person from another country with another culture you should exchange ideas and you should learn from one another. Each culture compromises many different aspects of life like the history of a country, it's religion, it's politics, ... We studied a diagram of a famous Dutch man called Geert Hofstede. The name of his diagram is "The Onion". In the diagram he wrote: symbols, heroes, rituals and values. Everybody had to fill the diagram in according to his home country. The symbols show what a country is (e.g. a flag), the heroes are e.g. sportsmen, writers, and singers, the rituals are the different feasts in your country (e.g. Easter, Christmas,...) and the values are what your country stands for. It was a very interesting course.

In the afternoon we all went by bus to the boarding school and we were welcomed really warmly. Two of the students there showed us around the school. We saw the gymhall, the dancehall, the classes, the studio to record music, the bedrooms, the cantine, the smoke corner, ... In this school there are only 9th and 10th grades (14-15-16 years old). They learn here to develop their artistic side by acting, singing, writing, dancing, painting, performing,... We could feel that the children there love to go to school. They all feel like at home. They also have very good relationships with all their teachers. But when we were observing an English lesson I thought that it wasn't well structured. The teacher jumped from one activity into another without introducing each activity...

After the visit we returned to Haderslev and we arrived home at 5.45 pm. Gerard and I ate a delicious pizza together and afterwards we left to the busstation again because Gérard returned back to Belgium the same evening. He took his bus at 7 pm. A difficult moment for me... When I got back at the appartment I watched a movie and I went to bed at 10 pm.

On Tuesday I got up at 6.30 am and I met Manu and Tim at school to work on our presentation for the music class on Wednesday. Afterwards I had my first music lesson from 10.30 until 12.00. This course was in Danish so I didn't understand a lot... However, I enjoyed this lesson very much. The teacher and the pupils talked about the practise they had after Christmas, about a thesis they have to write and they also have to compose a song. I have never done this before... My dad is a composer so I could ask him for a little help :-).

In the afternoon we had another Danish lesson With Leifs and Shiela. This lesson was fun. We played games like memory to learn the new words in a more easier way.

I returned back home at 3 pm and I worked on my weblog. Manu came over at 5 pm and we worked on our thesis until 7. In the evening we all met here for another "movie night". This time we watched "Blood Diamond" with Leonardo Dicaprio. This was a violent and hard movie... I often hid my face not to see the horrible things in the movie. But I still liked the movie a lot.

I went to bed at 11 pm, I was really tired.

On Wednesday Manu and I met (again) to work on our thesis. We worked until 10 am and then went to school. There we met a very interesting teacher called Flemming Rasmussen. He gave us a lecture about Aesthetics and Learning. He told us that it is important to introduce art in every lesson. A child needs to express himslef through art. The old way of thinking that a child is like a flower and that he is only capable of playing is wrong. A young child can play and learn at the same time. Let me quote some of the things he said: "Children are able to acquire qualifications in terms of aesthetical acknowledgement through practice and expression in artistic forms. They are able to express themselves aesthetically in artistic forms for other children. These forms express both the individuality of the human being and the community. This stimulates the children's creative skills." Children need to learn things in a fascinating way. This gives them a 'lust' to go on learning new things. An example of working aesthetically with children in theatre. They like to perform, to play on a scene. This was a very interesting lecture and I liked it a lot.

In the afternoon we had a music lesson with Else Marie. For today we had to listen to a modern classical song and create a dialogue and pictures to represent the music. Manu, Tim and I created a story about a king and a princess. The princess was in love with a beautiful prince of another village not far away. She asked her father if she could marry him but he refused. He already promised her hand to another prince. At the end of the story she cries. On the pictures you can see the three drawings I made to represent the king and the princess...

In the evening I watched a movie "The Holiday" with Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet. I loved this movie..
I went to bed at 10 pm.

The end of the third week

Hello!

On Thursday we only went to school at 12.30 pm so I stayed a bit longer in my bed. Our lesson of that day was a lecture about bilingual language acquisition given by Thorsten Piske from Germany. He explained to us that the children is such schools are taught all their regular courses like maths, geometry, biology, science,... in English. They don't have an English course, they learn the language by speaking it and by listening to in during their other courses. The idea is that it is important for the children to learn a second language at a young age. The younger they are, the easier it goes. Young children aren't afraid to make mistakes. It is also important that the teacher uses different methodes to learn a subject in English to his pupils like pictures, his body language, gestures, intonation of his voice,... But is it still very important that these children's mother tongue is spoken at home and not English like at school.

In the afternoon I worked for school and in the evening the other erasmus students came over and we had some drinks together to celebrate Daniel's birthday. At 11 pm we all went to the Crazy Dasy, a disco bar around the corner. We had a great evening there, I danced all the time with Iva, Sylvie and Borries. At 2 pm I went to bed.. On the pictures you can see us dancing.
















On Friday it was my birthday! Now I am 22 years old already.. We had to be at school at 9 am.. We were all exhausted from our little party the day before.. Our lesson was about the history of Denmark. The topic of the lesson: the local history, the southern part of Denmark, was really interesting but I couldn't concentrate a lot.. This part of Denmark belonged to Germany before. There were many fights about that part, whether it should belong to Germany or become a part of Denmark. But today both counries live in peace.

In the afternoon I worked for school and in the evening I watched a movie with Iva: "Catch me if you can" with Leonardo Dicaprio and Tom Hanks (one of my favourite actors). I liked this movie a lot. My birthday party, and also Daniel's and Tim's was planned on Saterday..

I went to bed at 11 pm.

On Saturday I got up very early, at 6.30 am, to go and pick up my biggest birthday present at the trainstation in Kolding: my boyfriend, Gérard. He was waiting there for me and when I arrived at 8 am we went to the swimmingpool together, also in Kolding. We stayed there until 11 am and then we came back to Haderslev.

In the afternoon we stayed at the appartment and at 5 pm the boys (Daniel and Tim) came over to cook for our bithday party that evening. It was delicious.. You can see Tim, Daniel and me on the pictures cooking. We made a tomato soup with cream, cold pasta with pickels, onions and mayonnaise, meat balls with curry sauce and rice, baked slices of aubergine with black olives, chocolat mousse, cookies and a typical Danish chocolat cake. hmmmm :-)

At 7 pm all the others came over (we were 11!). We had a very nice evning, we had a lot of fun. I also received a nice little present from the girls (Iva, Kate and Sylvie): a frame to put a picture in.. Gérard offered me a beautiful bag for my computer. We went to bed at 2.30 am.

On Sunday we got up at 10.30 am, we got ready and left for a walk around Haderslev. I showed my small town to Gérard. We were lucky because the weather was nice. We also went at Manu's place and we stayed there for two hours. We had a nice day.

In the evening we made dinner together (pizzas :-) ) and we watched a funny movie: "Dumb and Dumber" with Jim Carey. We went to bed at 11 pm.

The third week

My third week in Haderslev has already started..

On Monday our first lesson was about the Danish school system: school and education in Denmark. Our teacher, Mr Torbjorn, asked us about our first impressions of the Danish school system after our visit during the first week. We all agreed that the children have a lot more freedom here. They feel like at home. They take of their shoes when they enter the classroom, they get up whenever they feel like it,... There aren't a lot of rules either. In Belgium each school has almost 30 rules which the students have to respect. Here in Denmark there are only three rules: behave yourself, talk about your behavior with your teacher and with your parents. We also noticed that the lessons aren't well structured. There is a lot of chaos... But the schools are all well equiped with computers, books,... What surprised me most is that the teachers don't have to prepare their lessons on paper. They don't write the activities down, the skills the student should use and develop,... In Belgium we have to write everything down in detail.

After this interresting course we had Danish history. Our teacher, Mr Jorn Busch, told us in detail everything that happened in Denmark for the last 200 years. He told us about the feeling of nationalism, the differences between the social classes, the wars between England and Denmark: the Napoleon wars, the influence of Germany on Denmark... I liked this course a lot.

In the afternoon I worked together with Manu on our thesis.

On Tuesday I got up at 6.30 am and we met the other erasmus students at 8 am in front of the church.

Our first lesson of the day was the Danish school system: school and education in Denmark. During the first part of the lesson Torbjorn explained the 6 didactic categories in planning and preparing education. The first category is called: "Pupils ability". Here the teacher should ask himself: Who are my pupils? How can they start learning? The second category is called: "The framework". This category is about the culture and the organisation of the school where you are working. It is also about the relation between the parents and the teachers. The third category is called: "Aims and goals". This is the way the teachers organises his curriculum. The fourth category is called: "Content". Here the teacher has to ask himself questions about what to teach? The fifth category is called: "Method". These are the methods the teacher will use to teach different subjects. And finally the last category: "Evaluation".

Torbjorn also mentioned Kant, Kafki and Dale. Kant wrote: "As a teacher you have to free yourself by using your own understanding and unconsciousness. You have to use your reason and take decissions on your own." Kafki also says that you have to use your reason to have a democratic attitude. For Dale there are three levels of competences for a teacher: Implement your teaching, Develop your curriculum and Theory. The last level is very important. Here the teacher should analyse himself, should create new things and should develop. When a teacher uses these three levels he will become a professional.

I think that this course was the most interesting course I have had since the beginning of my stay here. It is very important for a teacher to be aware of the things that he is doing. Every teacher should write his curriculum down and show it to his collegues so that they can criticise him or give their opinions.

Afterwards we had another course called "The Danish school system and cultural dimensions". Our teacher Jette asked us about our trip to Copenhagen and we had to write down three things that seemed typical Danish for us. Here is what we wrote down: an all-you-can-eat buffet, the traffic lights are on the opposite side of the crossing, design, bikes on main roads, water cabs, guards,... The last 45 minutes of the course every erasmus student had to present his home country to the other students. I presented together with Tim and Manu our beautiful country: Belgium. We spoke about the history of Belgium, the typical food, the celebrities like Jean Claude Van Damme, football, the royal family and politics.

In the afternoon we had another Danish course and this time we learned how to ask somebody: "How are you?" And now in Danish: "Hvordan gar det med dig?" I can also say: "I am perfect" = "Det gar fint", "I feel very fine" = "Det gar meget godt", "I am ok" = "Det gar godt", and "I am not good" = "Det gar ikke sa godt".

From 4 pm until 6.30 pm Manu and I worked on our thesis and now I am working on my weblog again :-) ...

On Wednesday we had two great courses! In the morning we had an art class. During three hours (I could have stayed there all day...) our teacher Dora taught us how to make a portrait of somebody's face. In the beginning of the lesson we had two minutes to draw with a black pencil somebody else in the class. I drew Sylvie and Daniel. Two minutes is really short but I think I did it very well because the teacher showed my drawings to the other students of the class :-)

Afterwards we had to look in a mirror and draw our own faces with a black pencil. Again we had a couple of minutes to do this. I never recognised myself on my drawings.. During the last hour we had to paint on the mirrors and then press it on a big white paper. We could then draw with other pencils on the painting to give it more colour and form. At the end of the course my painting looked like this:

In the afternoon we had a cooking class. We were devised in several small groups. I worked together with Sylvie and two other Danish students. We made potato pancakes and a fruit salad. The aim of this class was that every group should make something typical Danish and something else typical from another country. The potato pancakes are typical Czech and the fruit salad is typical Danish.

In the afternoon I worked on my weblog at home and in the evening I went to bed early. I enjoyed this day a lot.

The second week: Copenhagen and Alkmaar

Hello! Last week I went to Copenhagen for three days and I went to see my boyfriend at Alkmaar in the Netherlands during the weekend.. Let me tell you some more about these wonderful trips.

On Monday we went to school at 8.15 am for a three hour Danish lesson. Leifs didn't come so Sheila learnd us some new words and afterwards we al went in Haderslev to drink a hot tea. Sheila wanted us to order in Danish.. This wasn't easy at all. But with my sheet in my hands I managed to get a delicieus tea. To order something in Danish you should say: "Jeg vil gerne be' om ....." which means: "I would like to have ..." And to know the price you should say: " Hvad koster det?" which means: "How much does it costs?". Tea in Danish is the, coffee is caffe, cake is kage and water is vand. On the pictures you can see all of us at the café. The woman with the long blond hair is our teacher Sheila.

In the afternoon I packed my bags and I went to bed early.

On Tuesday we left at 9 am to Copenhagen. We took the bus in Haderslev and we drove to Voije. There we took a train. We arrived at Copenhagen at 12.39 pm and we all went to the tourist office to get some brochures and maps about the city. Afterwards we went to our hostel, the Danhostel Copenhagen city, which was situated near the city centre. We put our bags in our rooms, I shared a room with Iva, Kate, Silvie and Monica. Monica and Carston were two other students who joined us to Copenhagen. Monica knows Copenhagen very well so she was our 'guide'. In the afternoon we visited the royal library, called 'the black diamond". This was an amazing building. I didn't like the outside much but once I was inside I loved it. The building is very modern. On the pictures you can see the tourist office and the outside and the inside of the black diamond...

After our visit to the royal library we passed the Christianborg Palace, the Danish Parliament, and we head to the National Museum. The entrance to this museum was free for everybody. We could admire the Danish history from the middle ages until today, the Danish way of living,... There were also small doll houses filled with furniture. I liked this museum a lot. I would have liked staying there a bit longer but it closed early... On the first two pictures you can see the Christianborg Palace and Iva and me standing in front of it and on the other pictures you can see the National Museum.

After these great visits we returned back to the hostel where we made our dinner all together in the kitchen. Afterwards we went for a drink in the hostel bar and we had a nice evening.

On Wednesday we got up early and we left the hostel at 8.30 am. Our first visit of the day was the Little Mermaid. We decided to walk there (a 30 minutes walk) and we saw wonderful buildings and spots on our way. We passed Nyhavn, a small canal with old sailing ships, small restaurants, cafés and little shops. Many people live there in appartments (I won't mention the prices...) You can see Nyhavn on the pictures just below.

As we continued our way we passed the royal castle: Amelionborg Palace, the new Opera house (finished in 2004), the Albans church and the Gefion Fountain representing the Norse Goddess Gefion with four oxen (the largest monument in Copenhagen).

At around 9.30 am we arrived at the Little Mermaid. This statue is based on a figure from a fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen.

Then we walked back to the State Art Gallery. This is a museum with a big collection of modern Danish and foreign art. We saw sculptures, paintings, drawings, films and many other beautiful things. The building was a connection between old and new. One part of the building was an old building from the 19th century and next to it they constructed a very modern white building from 1998.

After this busy morning we had lunch at "Riz Raz", an all-you-can-eat buffet for only 60 DK (+/- 9.30 euro). I think I have never eaten that much in two hours :-) It was delicious!

In the afternoon, from 3 pm until 5.30 pm, I returned back to the hostel to rest and in the evening we visited the Danish Design Centre. We admired an exhibition of Danish Lightning.

Afterwards we returned to the hostel were we all had a drink in yhe bar before going to bed. We were very tired...

On Thursday morning we got up again at 7.00 am and we left the hostel at 8.45. We walked around in the city centre and we visited several churches like The Church of Our Lady (the Cathedral of Copenhagen), The Holy Ghost Church, which was closed, and the Marble Church. After this long walk we had a hot choco with some chocolat cake..

At noon we went at the Ameliensborg Palace (the house of the royal family) where we looked at the change of guards. This was great, there was a band playing music, there were policemen on horses and of course many other tourists.

In the afternoon I took a bus from Copenhagen to Amsterdam (a 14 hour trip...) to go and see my boyfriend Gérard. He is staying in Alkmaar for five months.

On Friday morning I arrived in Amsterdam at 5 am... There weren't any trains to Alkmaar until 6.45 am so I had to wait at the station. But at 7.55 I finaly arrived at Alkmaar where Gerard was waiting for me at the station.

During the day he showed me the beautiful city of Alkmaar. We went there by bike. There are many shops, cafés, restaurants,... There are also pretty houses and buildings all around the city. I had a lovely day.

On Saturday we went to "Bergen aan zee", a very small village at the sea side. We also went there by bike. The weather was really nice, it was much warmer there than in Haderslev... We spend another beautiful day and in the evening I returned back to Kolding by bus. I arrived in Haderslev at 1 pm on Sunday.

In the afternoon I stayed at home and worked a bit for school and in the evening I went to bed very early.