Starting at the second school

So we finished up our first round of teaching at one school after two weeks. I was excited to go to the next school because the kids were supposed to be older, and things I had prepared were not for the 10-12 year old kids that I had at the first school. My new school was further away that the last one, which was only one metro stop from our place. It was going to be a 20 minute walk, a 15 minute bus ride, and then another 10 minute walk. I could skip the first walk for a 25 minute ride on the metro into the city centre and back out on another line. The bus was also going to be interesting because of how you stop the private bus here, but yelling “Hey stop, I want to get off here, please”, but only in Russian.

On the first day of school a friend of an AIESEC member brought me to school so I could find the way and also have a translator for the first day. I was told that the teachers didn’t speak English, the English level of the children was poor, and I would have the same group of about 15 all day for five hours. I was a little nervous, I was unprepared for this long with the same kids all alone, and what would I do if they didn’t speak English well enough? How would I talk to the teachers if I needed something. The guy who brought me to school the first day also told me he had to leave a few minutes before me at the end of the day and he couldn’t help me get home. He wrote down what to say to stop the bus on a piece of paper so I could do it myself.

When we got the school, I couldn’t believe it. It was the French school of Kiev. The head teacher spoke French, and somehow could understand the French I remembered. The kids were really fun and enthusiastic too, and their English was fine. Not perfect, but they got me, or I could try and say it in French too. They were really keen and interested. They liked all the topics we had prepared for them and really wanted to know a lot about Canada and the countries of the other interns.

So far I really like working with this group. The kids all have other commitments, like swimming or soccer or dancing, so there is usually between 10 and 20 people there. They are between 14 and 17 years old and the group works really well together. I like that the sessions are meaningful and I think the kids are getting something out of it. I think this project fits really well with the mission and goals of AIESEC. The children are learning about lots of other culture and I’m learning a lot about theirs. They are also developing their leadership skills and thinking about the world outside of Ukraine.