G and I returned to Middle School last night. It was our final installment of meet the creature, but of course Middle School means a teacher for every subject, it was now meet the creatures. Two and a half hours people. Two. And. A. Half. Hours.
The first little traveller had written her schedule, complete with class numbers and directions, and within moments of the first bell sounding we returned to the world of "Do you know where the Science Lab is? and "What have you got next?" Parents waved their timetables at each other in the hallways and asked "Are you going to Language Arts?" I found myself asking a friend "Who have you got for PE? What's he like?" I retuned to my old habits, I went off into a day dream during math and missed the bit about where to find that night's homework. In Science the teacher was busily showing us an experiment involving the speed of a rolling bottle, but all I wanted to do was put my hand up and ask if he knew how to tell the sex of a chromosome?
Pull its genes down.
Middle School didn't exist in my world as a child, it was Primary school (Elementary to you North Americans) until Grade seven, and then High School from years eight through twelve. G on the other hand was busy learning how to identify a Volvo from an Audi at a terribly terribly nice boys school in Melbourne, a school full of Tristans and Digbys. They had a Middle School.
When he talks about those days, it's not with a great fondness. He was an expat child, who had returned to Australia from an International school in the Philippines. With parents from Queensland and a stint of Primary School in Sydney in his back pocket, he had to quickly work out how to "fit in" with the Melbourne tribe. When he began to make friends he realized that there was no-one else in the same boat as him.
The first little travellers experience couldn't be more different. After a quick survey of the children, Lizzie's Language/Arts teacher was able to give us these statistics from her class.
The Average student in her class has lived in THREE nations.
They have attended FOUR different schools.
They have visited ELEVEN countries.
They are bilingual.
They might speak English, Arabic, French, Dutch, Japanese, Danish, Spanish, Serbian, Croatian, Afrikaans, Korean, Russian, German and/or Malay.
When I was twelve I went to Kangaroo Island (by Ferry), I spoke a handful of Greek swear words (taught to me by mates at school) and I lived one street away from the Primary and High School that were situated right next to each other.
"Did they have planes when you were a kid Mum?"the little travelers have asked. My children think it's a bit weird that I didn't get my first passport until I was in my twenties.
And I understand why, it turns out that my four children, born in four different countries, who've traipsed across the world and studied in three different school systems, are really very average.
I just want to say I love the title of this post. I reckon I know which school it was just by the names!
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful childhood you are giving them ...
ReplyDeleteGreat post. What an adventure their life is. Truly a case of "home is where the heart is". Wonder what their kids will be like..... Tristan and Digby, local primary or......
ReplyDeleteSerbian :-)
ReplyDeleteI have been reading your blog for awhile and although I have found many things that have made me laugh and smile, I thought this one really deserved a comment.
ReplyDeleteI'm a Kiwi, currently living in Australia who has travelled the globe, been to schools in different countries, cities and communities, moved house more times than I care to count and am only 19.
I mainly read your blog because although I haven't lived anywhere exotic like Qatar, my parents have before I was born and your stories remind me a lot of their stories that they share when they get together with old expat friends. They lived in Hong Kong. They also lived in Sydney (I was almost born there).
I don't think my parents ever intended me to be the odd one out in any of my schools by being able to say that I had been to X number of schools, said number usually caused many veins in teachers foreheads to become extremely noticeable. My first change of school happened after I had been at my first school a grand total of 3 months. Yep, I lasted a whole term. Thinking about it now, I don't even think that was my shortest stint at a school, in fact I think it may be my third shortest (Just trying to remember at 11pm if one of the schools I went to in England when I was 7 had holidays while I was there...)
The funniest thing about all this is that my parents resist change like any normal Kiwi's. It doesn't exist. My parents hate moving, hate change and my mother swore that I was going to grow up like her only going to a handful of different schools, because changing schools was good, just not too often.
I tell you all of this so that you know a little background to what comes next.
I went to one high school. My mother made a point of it, and we were not moving again until I had completed high school. WORST IDEA EVER! I have friends from high school who have only ever moved up in the school system, been to 2 or 3 schools in there entire lives. I have one friend who was homeschooled until Year 12 (remember NZ has Year 13) and completed her last 2 years at school. My friends started talking about memories like "When I was at primary school...". I started talking about memories like "At my second school in England... The third time I went to Tapora school...". (yes, I have said statements like that, and I have been to more than one school more than once)
I understand completely how your husband would have felt trying to fit in in a new city, in a posh stuffy school. That was me 7 years ago. I made amazing friends, don't get me wrong, but I was forever being told "Can't you just say in Primary School, not in England, in Tapora or in Gulf Harbour", Or my personal favourite question, the one that every teacher puts on the 'getting to know you' sheet at the beginning of every year "What Primary school did you go to?" WHICH ONE?
Your children are lucky that they get to go to a school environment that considers them normal, average.
When I think about the averages of that class, I immediately compare it to what the average would be in my extensive group of friends from high school. Out of 10 of us, at least 3 have never been out of the country. 2 had only been to Australia, and only been their once. 2 had been a little further afield to the pacific islands. 1 had been to Europe, 1 had her first overseas trip in our class trip to Hawaii in Year 13 and then there was me.
I've been living in Australia for about 10 months now, and its the first time in my life that I have only really lived in one house. So I finish this rant with what I consider the funniest thing I have said without meaning to in years.
"I like this living in town in one house, I totally understand why people do it"
Wow. Loved your comment Gina. I wonder if my guys will ever say "I totally understand why people do it". I've asked them all if they plan to travel when they're older or if they think they'll stay put. Everyone one of them says they think they'll stay put but before they do...they think they'd like to travel. :-)
DeleteSounds like a great school. I"ve been in the US school system for 16 years now (well, my kids have) and I still don't really get the term Language/Arts. I always feel like saying "Just pick one."
ReplyDeleteI asked EXACTLY the same question last night. I was told because language is an art form, the same as music - you have to create, compose, edit and mould it into a piece.
DeleteWe just call it boring old "English" in Oz.
Thoughts?
14,500
ReplyDeleteFabulous post! My daughter has just started in Middle School, so I can empathise with the multi-nationalism completely.
ReplyDeleteAt our induction day her home-room teacher went around the class (parents only) and asked for our nationalities / previous countries lived etc. It was utterly fascinating. Out of a class of 24, there are only 3 native English (not British English) speakers.
She will get such a shock when / if we move back to the UK.
I will be doing this so soon, and I noticed there is no allowance for old grannies to get from class to class. I think I'll send my granddaughter on ahead to see how she's doing.
ReplyDeleteWhat you describe for your children is exactly how my husband and I grew up: numerous schools, multiple countries - he, in fact, graduated from an international school in the P'pines - maybe the same one G attended? I finished high school in Germany (my 3rd high school/10th school overall and 5th country) and had some serious culture shock upon returning to the US for university, where people would ask me where I was from -I never really knew how to answer. We have spent the last 18 years living in the US -moving frequently, but not overseas. Coming to Seoul for us was almost like coming home, even though neither of us had ever lived in Korea before. In the expat community here, I'm just one of the crowd: nothing unusual about being bilingual, having passports from two countries, and saying things like, 'when I was in school in Bangkok.' Funny how our definitions of 'average' can differ so widely based on our communities, isn't it?
ReplyDeleteWe just moved to Dubai and my kids have just started at an international school. It was a bit of a shock at first for them, but in a day or two it's all normal. I do wonder what it will be like for them when we return to Oz.
ReplyDeleteWell, Hello neighbour!
DeleteI think about the same thing Corinne. I'm doing all I can to transition the kids for their eventual move back to Oz. We spend 3 months (our summer) back there each year and we've looked at schools in Sth Aus. They obviously hang out with their Aussie friends and gain constant reminders that their Doha world is very different to their Adelaide world. I think its really important to talk about it honestly, and talk about home and what would be happening at home, and to watch Aussie tv, listen to Aussie radio etc so that they can see both sides of the world. Of course, all of this could be wrong - I'm just muddling my way through it, so far so good. :-)
Sounds good to me! I think muddling is what we do in this parenting lark no matter where we are!
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