Mittwoch, September 14, 2005
It should be illegal to be this happy.
(OK, I am cheating. I didn't post yesterday because I was swamped, so we will just pretend that I did)
All these great things happened today. Ina took be to her High School to speak with her English class. They had just learned about America--they read the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, listened to MLK's 'I have a dream...' speech, and talked about freedom. The class opened with students sharing their homework; they had to recite a line from the Declaration. It nearly made me cry hearing all this German-accented English quoting, 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.' Doesn't that just send shivers up your spine??
I talked with them about how I see freedom: something fundamental to Americans' identities but also an idea that is easily manipulated by politicians. I talked about college life, being in a sorority, the differences between America and Germany, McDonalds and Wal-Mart. They also got to ask me questions:
*How do Americans feel about immigrants?
*Do Americans read about Germany (or other international news) in the paper? [It actually has been a bit of a shock to see how much press America gets in the German papers]
*Why is New York called the Big Apple?
It was really fun talking to the class, and Ina has offered me to her colleagues. Hopefully I will get to go in again :) I am going to Henrik's 3rd grade class on Tuesday to help them learn colors and numbers. It will be a very different lesson than the tenth-graders--who all spoke English so well.
I got a job!!!! I am going to be an Adjunct Instructor at the University of Hannover--teaching two classes per week (the same subject). I will be teaching 'Academic Research and Writing'--hopefully my skills from the WRC (and no comments about my crappiness at grammar!!) and my thesis skills will come in handy. (I feel like Napoleon Dynamite!!) I am soooo excited. I am going to be a 'college professor' already!!!! (Unless the government screws up....I hope it all works out.)
At night I went out with Tara. She just started her German lessons this week (I start 4 October). She was a little stressed, and I know I will be too, because the classes are taught entirely in German! It will be a challenge.
Finally, Tara taught me that if you go into the McDonalds to use the bathroom but not buy anything, that is called a McSh*t. Feel free to spread that one around.
All these great things happened today. Ina took be to her High School to speak with her English class. They had just learned about America--they read the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, listened to MLK's 'I have a dream...' speech, and talked about freedom. The class opened with students sharing their homework; they had to recite a line from the Declaration. It nearly made me cry hearing all this German-accented English quoting, 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.' Doesn't that just send shivers up your spine??
I talked with them about how I see freedom: something fundamental to Americans' identities but also an idea that is easily manipulated by politicians. I talked about college life, being in a sorority, the differences between America and Germany, McDonalds and Wal-Mart. They also got to ask me questions:
*How do Americans feel about immigrants?
*Do Americans read about Germany (or other international news) in the paper? [It actually has been a bit of a shock to see how much press America gets in the German papers]
*Why is New York called the Big Apple?
It was really fun talking to the class, and Ina has offered me to her colleagues. Hopefully I will get to go in again :) I am going to Henrik's 3rd grade class on Tuesday to help them learn colors and numbers. It will be a very different lesson than the tenth-graders--who all spoke English so well.
I got a job!!!! I am going to be an Adjunct Instructor at the University of Hannover--teaching two classes per week (the same subject). I will be teaching 'Academic Research and Writing'--hopefully my skills from the WRC (and no comments about my crappiness at grammar!!) and my thesis skills will come in handy. (I feel like Napoleon Dynamite!!) I am soooo excited. I am going to be a 'college professor' already!!!! (Unless the government screws up....I hope it all works out.)
At night I went out with Tara. She just started her German lessons this week (I start 4 October). She was a little stressed, and I know I will be too, because the classes are taught entirely in German! It will be a challenge.
Finally, Tara taught me that if you go into the McDonalds to use the bathroom but not buy anything, that is called a McSh*t. Feel free to spread that one around.
# posted by Heather @ 11:52 PM 
