Week 22 ¦ It's not a goodbye, it's a see you later! ¦ Personal Development

The fact that I am now writing my last blog of Erasmus is none other than heartbreaking. It seems no time at all since I had overcome by nerves, got on the plane to Denmark and was writing about all the ambitions and goals I set out achieve after my very first week. I guess that's how it goes.. all good things must come to an end and sadly this is one of those things.

On Monday, after Kate and I cleared and cleaned out her dorm room, the few members of the class we had left, all decided to meet in town for our 'last supper' together.

After dinner we spent a while walking around the town taking in the sights of Aarhus and cherishing the memories we had made there. I couldn't help but think back, as I was walking through the town, to when I first arrived in that very same train station. Kate and I were exhausted hauling our luggage about and desperately trying to find Jonas (my buddy who had arranged to pick us up). Walking out of the train station I had a quick glance at the town I was to call home for the next four months, and now four months later I'm leaving with a completely new perspective on the exact same place.

I remember, in our first week, Rune giving us a guided tour of the main street and thinking 'how on earth am I ever going to find my way around this place?' but I soon became accustomed to my surroundings and I feel really priviledged that the four short months I had for Erasmus, I got to spend in Aarhus. 

Later that evening we all headed back to Skjoldhøj and sat on the benches together outside our beloved Skjoldhoj bar, drinking a few glasses of wine and sharing our more treasured memories of our time here, some of the best ones being in the bar itself! 

'We didn't realise we were making memories, we just knew we were having fun' - Unknown

he time came when we had to say goodbye to the other half of our Irish group; Poppy, Leah and Jessica. To see the sadness we all had in our eyes would have a passer by thinking the world was ending! Even though us five all are from the same country, saying goodbye to these girls was one of the hardest things I had to do. The friendships bonds I formed with them is one I know will last a lifetime, and to think we barely knew each other when we left Stranmillis University!

The next morning, Kate had an inspection with the caretaker and so everything we had, had to be moved over to my now, fourth room in Skjoldhoj...Stefanias, who very kindly offered up her room in order for Kate, Ivona and I to have a place to stay until we had to leave for home.

With Kate, Ivona, Lara and I all very busy last minute packing, we decided to meet up later that evening and have dinner together at Álvaro's. After dinner, came the moment we had to say goodbye to the boys! With lots of hugs for Paolo, Ian and Álvaro and a final toast to our friendship we made our way back to the room and got a relatively early nights sleep, ready to part ways the next morning for our long journey home. 

From the Beginning...

...to the end.

'True friends; never apart, maybe in distance but never in heart' - Helen Keller

The unappreciated day had finally arrived, the day we had to leave the very place we called our home. Kate and I woke early to walk with Ivona and Lara to the taxi. I never could have prepared myself for the overwhelming emotion I felt when I was giving these two girls a final hug goodbye. With tears filling our eyes and golf-ball lumps in our throats, Kate and I reluctantly sent them on their way to the train station and made our way back to the dorm for our final breakfast and gathering up of our belongings. 

The moment had come when it was time to bid farewell to Aarhus. Kate and I had to catch the first bus into town in order to get our bus to Copenhagen. Taking one last look at the town that had given us so much to remember, we jumped on the bus and began our journey home. On the way to the airport, Kate and I decided to read our personalised notebooks from everyone in the class (not a good idea when you're already emotional enough and surrounded by a bus full of people!) I streamed tears, but definitely happy tears whilst reading the lovely messages everyone had said and I can safely say that book is something I will treasure forever! 

'1 Universe

 9 Planets

 204 Countries

 809 Islands

 7 Seas

 And I had to privilege to meet you.' - Unknown

After the flight touched down in Dublin, I was greeted by my family, delighted to see me back safe and sound. It was great to see them all again, and I couldn't wait to start telling them all the stories I had and the amazing people I had met, I had so much to tell that no one else got a word in edge ways on the car journey home. 

'Travelling - it leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller.' - Ibn Batutta

Now that I have completed my Erasmus semester, I can do nothing but sing the praises of the incredible opportunity I had and the beautiful country of Denmark. Aarhus is one place that I will always hold dear in my heart and although I was sad to leave, there was one thing I was excited to get back to Ireland for... Punjana teabags! 

References

Unknown - http://thedailyquotes.com/making-memories/

Helen Keller - http://quotesgram.com/quotes-about-friends-and-distance/ 

Unknown - http://www.firstcovers.com/userquotes/68009/1+universe,+9.html

Ibn Batutta - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jinna-yang/20-of-the-most-inspiring-_b_8856096.html

Week 21 ¦ The beginning of the end ¦ Professional and Personal Development

Week 21 brought around the week for each group to carry out their second planned activity for the class. 

On Monday the first group had organised a type of scavenger hunt in the Aarhus town. We all met at VIA University to get our first instructions. Here we were ordered to climb all the way to the top of the building (which believe me is not something you want to do at 9am!) to locate a map which gave us directions to follow. After following the map, carrying out the different tasks along the way, a visit to AROS museum and a trip to the Viking museum we ended up back at the botanical gardens. 

Here we had time to reflect on our views of the day, how we worked as a team and our overall perception of the activity. In my opinion I found the activity a really good one; it gave us the opportunity to see parts of the town we never knew existed even after almost four months! 

However, the weather didn’t hold up for us to be running around the town which was the only downfall, but still a good day overall. 

Later on Monday night we all gathered in Jessica’s flat to have dinner together and watch a film, however with the MANY different preferences, we never decided on one and instead the Irish picked a quality programme to show everyone else…Father Ted. Much to our disappointment, it didn’t go down very well because we couldn’t get subtitles and if I even struggle sometimes to understand a strong Southern accent, our international friends had no hope!

On Tuesday, it was my group’s activity. We had planned an activity that incorporated coping mechanisms for stress and to promote mental health and well-being. Thankfully it wasn’t raining so we took to the botanical gardens and began our day with some yoga and meditation. After everyone was relaxed, we encouraged them to partake in some games, the first being Kings, a game quite similar to dodgeball. Then we went back to yoga and some more meditation time, then finished up with a game of rounder’s, something that was actually a difficult concept to explain to our class but it ended up being quite successful. Our aim was to give our class a day for relaxing and having fun and I think we managed to do so rather effectively.

Once my activity was over and done with, we had made previous plans with Dr John to meet for lunch downtown, so that’s where we headed next. We arranged to meet at the train station and go to a little restaurant the girls and I had stumbled across one evening. Dr John informed us that he just wanted to grasp an idea of how we were getting on in University and our course, difficulties we had encountered and the general gist of how we got on living in Denmark. The other girls and I couldn’t speak any more highly than we did of our time in Aarhus and I think Dr John was more than pleased to hear that we had survived this long without any problems and were continuing to make the most of our experience and enjoy the rest of the time we had here.

On Wednesday it was the third group’s activity, and this involved an insight into the nutritional content of different foods that we eat every day, our lifestyle habits and general health and well-being. I can say now that after this activity I was truly enlightened by the consequences of bad diet and lifestyle, and not only was it a enjoyable day but I can honestly say I learnt a lot.

Unfortunately Wednesday wasn’t all good; it also brought about the beginning of saying our goodbyes to our classmates. It was Cristina’s last day and no matter how hard we all tried to ignore it, when the time game it brought an overwhelming sense of sadness. We knew this was the start of what we had to face over the coming week and there was no way to avoid it. We sent Cristina on her way, with lots of hugs and best wishes and although it was hard we had to keep thinking that, it’s a good thing that we all had the opportunity to meet each other and an even better thing that we made some great friendships!

On Thursday it was the turn of the last group’s activity, beforehand we got wind that the activity was mainly reflection based and so I turned up to VIA expecting the day to be quite, sorry to say, but mundane. How wrong was I?! This activity was by far the best to end on, we all got the chance to say our bit about our time in Denmark and the amazing experiences we all had together and although it got very emotional at times, it was heart-warming to hear everyone’s story about the fears they overcame coming to Denmark and how they are leaving an all-round better individual, and I’m so glad to say, that I felt exactly the same.

Later that evening, we all gathered at Dorte’s house for a BBQ to prepare for our final goodbyes to the tutors on Friday. It was a great evening, filled with reminiscing over the past four months, laughs and of course more Øl bowling! Everyone was in a good mood from the day’s activity and the night had such a relaxed atmosphere, we were all just appreciated the good times we had left together and ensuring we were treasuring the moments that would later turn into memories.

On Friday it was the long awaited graduation day! The tutors each gave their insight into their experiences with us and praised us on becoming such a close-knit group that they were sure would continue to be life-long friends. We got shown a presentation of photos, Álvaro gave none other than a hilarious speech and Lea’s broke all our hearts with her rendition of ‘With a little help from my friend’s’. After we were awarded with our diploma’s, we filled ourselves with the spread the tutors had laid out for us. Sadly again this was not a completely happy day as we had to say goodbye to Evelyne and Joliene who were off back to Belgium, after more hugs and well-wishes we left the University together for the last time.

Not wanting to spend a minute without each other we all made our way to Paolo’s that evening for yet another BBQ and to celebrate our graduation, we all went to Skjoldhøj bar together that night.

On Saturday, we decided to host a formal dinner together in Jessica’s flat, for the ceremonious giving out of our message notebooks, personalised books that everyone in the class had wrote a little message in. Yet again, the evening brought sadness as we had to say goodbye to our good friends, Ana and Lea. It was a very emotional farewell but they both assured us that it would be no time until we saw them again!

‘The two hardest things to say in life are hello for the first time and goodbye for the last time.’ – Moira Rodgers

On Sunday, we gathered to bring some happiness to the group and to forget the inevitable that was happening in the next few days and the best way we thought to do this was through a good game of Pictionary! The week ended on such a high and I was glad to have a distraction from the looming moment I had to say goodbye, not only to my new friends but to the country and town I had now grown so fond of.

References

Moira Rodgers - http://quotesgram.com/funny-quotes-to-say-goodbye/

Week 20 ¦ Release your inner child ¦ Cultural and Personal Development

On Monday morning Poppy, Leah, Kate and I had an early start…we were off to Legoland! Seeing as lego originated in Denmark and we were only an hour and a half from the theme park we had no excuse not to go and see the renowned tourist attraction. 

We arrived at the bus station downtown and we were ready and set to head to Billund, however there was some delay in working out the bus tickets, so by the time we went to buy them it turned out we had missed the first bus and we were informed the next one wasn’t for another two hours. 

Slightly disappointed that we would have less time to spend in the theme park, we made our way into the town and had some breakfast, sorted ourselves out and tried again. Before we knew it we were on the road to Legoland. 

We were well accustomed to the long drive from Aarhus to Copenhagen so Aarhus to Billund was a breeze. As we drove up towards the big sign, I felt exhilarated, like the big child that I am and couldn’t wait to get inside. With a brief goodbye to the taxi driver, we made our way excitedly to the entrance sign…’Legoland’ and of course like all good tourists we managed to stop a few passers-by to take our photo.

‘I’m a big child at heart. I think it’s important to stay that way and not lose the wonder of life.’ – Pam Grier

Once inside we were overwhelmed that almost every feature was made of lego pieces, (of course you would think so, but it was unbelievable in real life!) and throughout the day always one of us was stating the obvious with the inevitable question, ‘is that really made of Lego?!’

After an amazing day filled with amusements and excitement, the girls and I called it a day and headed back to Skjoldhøj, ready for a good rest and to see the other ones from our class.

On Tuesday we were scheduled to have a consultation with the tutors about our second group activities, although these were not marked we were still expected to treat them so and to attempt to deliver an activity plan for the class that involved co-operation and reflected aspects of health and democracy.

After everyone had met with the tutors to discuss their ideas and plans, we all met back at my dorm for lunch, along with a game of risk. I delved in and out of watching the game as I had some work ahead of me...the daunting task of clearing out my room!

Thursday brought around my final day in dorm 52, room 10. I had arranged with the caretaker for a room inspection on Friday meaning everything had to be out and cleaned, just as when I had arrived. After an exhausting morning and afternoon and the greatly appreciated help from Kate and Lara, I had finished tidying and cleaning my room. Everything looked so bare and I couldn’t help but think back to the minute I arrived and seen it the same way. Never would I have known, on the 1^st Feburary how much would happen in that room, between the late night parties and the new roommate, and although I cringe at saying it, that room now carries a special meaning and was the starting point to all the friendships I made, and for that I am very grateful.

After a final ‘see you later’ to my other dorm mates I moved all my stuff over to Álvaro's who was now Lara and I’s new roommate!

Saturday finally came around and with it brought feelings of excitement and nerves, as we were all about to do something we will probably regret but at least we could regret it together…get a tattoo. After Jessica drew up some ideas in the previous weeks, we collectively decided on two arrows, a Viking symbol with the meaning, ‘create your own reality’. We thought it was quite relevant seeing as Vikings originate from Denmark and the two arrows together resembled the two ‘As’ in Aarhus.

‘In life you don’t regret the things you do; you regret the things you don’t do.’ – Hugh Jackman

Although the pain wasn’t too bad and I still don’t regret my decision at all, I think now that’ll do me for tattoos!

After enduring the excitement of getting a tattoo together, we decided to go for lunch and spend the rest of the day with each other and to finish the day off we made our weekly trip to Skjoldhøj bar.

References

Pam Grier - http://www.azquotes.com/quote/842131

Hugh Jackman - http://quoteaddicts.com/topic/dont-regret-life-quotes/

Week 19 ¦ A little bit of friendly competition ¦ Personal Development

After the hectic and busy week we had, Monday came around again all too fast! Thankfully we had Monday off and as we were all aware, we were in our last month in Denmark, we collectively decided that every spare minute we had would be spent together, to get the most out of our time.

‘You develop a bond that comes from spending too much time together.’ – Julie Foudy

After a relatively late start, we arose and all met together for lunch. The sun and warm weather greeted us yet again so we made the most of it and laid out on the grass outside my dorm, which seemed to be a popular idea as there was people scattered all over the area.

Weeks prior, Ana’s had displayed her enthusiasm about the Eurovision Song Contest along with a few others in the class and what better way to celebrate our countries than to gather together to watch the semi-finals and that exactly what we did. Everyone headed over to my dorm and we began rooting for our countries, sadly however Ireland and Iceland didn’t make the cut but we had the excuse of our friends to still remain in the competition!

On Wednesday, still determined to spend as much time as we could together, those who were available came over to my dorm and we sat about my living room until Ian found, an apparently well-known game called Risk. I’d never heard tell of Risk before but I was interested to see how the whole thing panned out. Little did I know that this game was about conquering countries and that it went on for FIVE hours! With Ian and his ever competitive nature and with nothing else to do, I agreed to sit on watch the game unfold, after sometime it actually turned out to quite addictive!

On Friday, our ‘Buddies’ organised a long awaited get-together at Rune’s house. He originally wanted to cook us some typical Danish food but because the weather was so nice they decided to host a BBQ. After the delicious food and typical Danish salads, we all went to the grass to watch a game of Øl bowling or beer bowling as it translates in English. The idea of the game is to have two teams made up of two players and a referee. Each player gets the chance to knock over the beer can that belongs to the other team; if they are able to do this the losing team has to drink their whole beer. However it’s not as easy as that, there are a number of rules that cannot be broken and the referee can hand out punishments wherever and whenever they feel they are due, whether that be for breaking a rule or simply talking back to the referee!

After the beer bowling we went inside where Rune and the other buddies served some dessert, they thanked us for coming along and assured us they were definitely be seeing us again before we left for home!

Not ready to hit the hay yet, we decided to continue the party downtown! We went to a number of bars but ended up in Álvaro’s favourite; Kuhstall. Finally willing to call it a night at 5am we headed for the bus and made our way home.

Saturday brought around the Eurovision final, which Ana was extremely excited for. I was slightly disheartened due to Nicky Byrne failing to get through the semi-finals but I was excited to see how it would unfold. Sadly none of our countries managed to reach the top score but of course Belgium was top 3 making Ian a very happy man, and being Ian he was getting a great thrill out of letting us all know it! After the Eurovision ended we thought of no better place to go than the Skjoldhøj bar and that’s exactly where we went to finish of the night.

After all the excitement of the Eurovision we decided to take it easy and have a rest day on Sunday, which was more than happily welcomed!

References

Julie Foudy - http://www.picturequotes.com/time-together-quotes

Week 18 ¦ If you go into the woods today... ¦ Personal and Cultural Development

After a lazy day of lying around the bedroom, Lara and I decided to start packing for the camping trip that was scheduled for Tuesday. Lara is one of the Croatian girls who had some trouble with accommodation and so during April she decided to move into my room, which was great. We were always good friends throughout the Erasmus experience, so it was fun having her as my roommate. 

Lara had to provide a briefing lesson on how to pack for camping as, believe it or not, this was my first time camping in the middle of a forest! So after we had been through the checklist several times, we decided to get an early nights rest in a comfortable bed, something we would surely be wishing we had 24 hours later!

On Tuesday morning we arose early in order to be at school for 8 o’clock, we all met outside our usual classroom in VIA University and gathered all the equipment we needed for our planned activities and essentials for spending the night in the forest.  Sometime after we were expected to leave we all made our way to the bus and arrived at Hørhaven Forest. Despite the miserable weather we were all set and ready for the activity filled day ahead!

The first group’s activity involved us all pretending we were part of a Zombie apocalypse, we were all given different qualities and characteristics, for example I was a ‘twin’ tied both at the arm and leg to Ivona. The team had to work together to complete the challenges meanwhile always remembering to look out for those with the more difficult characteristics like being blind and having amnesia, and always ensured they were informed adequately…which is a lot harder than it seems!

We then stopped for a well-deserved break and before we knew it we were off to do a second activity. The second group had an obstacle course laid out with both physical and mental challenges, again we had to work in teams to complete the course first…and I just have to point out that my team won ;)

The third activity was my groups activity and we decided to play a glorified game of beer pong…without the beer and after the exhausting day we already had I’m sure some people would have preferred a real game of beer pong!

The class was divided into their three groups, each having to throw a bean bag into a plastic cone, under each cone was a task or challenge and whoever completed the task the fastest or the best won the challenge. We had them doing all sorts, even making them strip down and see who could make the longest line of clothes out of the layers they had on. All I can say is thank god the sun had come out at this point and everyone had come prepared for a cold and wet day! 

Unfortunately however, the competitiveness got the better of Lara and Ana as during the three-legged race, Ana took a tumble and badly hurt her ankle, but apart from that mishap I was pleased to say that the activity was rather successful!

The final activity of the day involved more teamwork and again completing challenges together in order to score points and tokens. I can safely say by the end of the fourth activity everyone was beyond exhausted, so thanks to the group in charge of the fire, we all sat and rested a while before it was time to make a start on dinner.

Whilst dinner was cooking on the fire we all headed down to the beach to watch the sunset, it’s something so simple that happens every day but it really is a beautiful sight and one I will never get tired of.

‘Sunsets are proof that no matter what happens, everyday can end beautifully.’ – Kristen Butler

As we all sat around the fire, made s’mores and talked, while Lea played us a few tunes on her ukulele, we appreciated the moment and it began dawning on us that this was one of the highlights of the whole Erasmus experience and I felt privileged to be a part of it and to have met such great people.

On Thursday we met up with the other international class and had a massive BBQ and football match between the two classes but had to call it an early night, because not only our class but the whole of the student population was rearing and ready to go for Kapsejlads the next day!

I had been hearing about Kapsejladsen for months now, a festival that was now in its 25^th year and one that attracted more than 30,000 people a year, and I was so excited to get to see what all the fuss was about. Never would I ever expect to witness what I did that day! 

After been given advice to arrive as early as possible, my class and I got up for the 6am bus. The buses were filled to the brim with people anxiously awaiting the festival, in their summer attire and the crates of beer in hand, I knew at this stage that today was going to be mental!

We arrived at Aarhus University and just seen the sea of people running around filled with excitement, the music was blasting and the atmosphere was phenomenal. After some time of searching we finally found somewhere to base ourselves on the grass. 

All I can say about Kapsejlads is that it is the most outstanding experiences and I’ve already made a pact with some of the people in the class to return next year…amazing!

On Sunday we all met again and had a BBQ at Skjoldhøj, Kate purchased a game of swing ball to prove she was the ultimate champion and we sat and sunbathed until the sun went down. 

Weeks like this make it almost unbearable to think about leaving!!

‘Enjoy the little things in life…for one day you will look back and realise they were the big things.’ – Robert Breault 

References

Kristen Butler - http://www.dailyinspirationalquotes.in/2016/03/12/sunsets-proof-no-matter-happens-every-day-can-end-beautifully-kristen-butler/  

Robert Breault - http://likesuccess.com/807744 

Week 17 ¦ Hard work pays off ¦ Professional and Personal Development

As Monday morning approached, the fear and nerves for our presentation dawned on Poppy, Leah and I. Despite the fact that we were well prepared and knew the topics and areas we wished to discuss, oral presentations are not something I’m particularly fond of...meaning I was apprehensive to say the least. But with some reassurance from Poppy and Leah and knowing that we worked well together, I swallowed my fear and we entered the examination room. 

We decided to focus on the main differences from home and how we would reflect on these to develop professionally at home, each talking about our different areas; the classroom, the SFO and the playground. Once we began speaking my fear completely faded away, we knew what we wanted to discuss and that’s exactly what we did. Our teamwork proved to be a winning success as our tutor informed us after our presentation that she was very pleased with our delivery and awarded us with a high distinction!

Unfortunately official celebrations had to wait one more day as the other half of the class had their presentations on the Tuesday, but I decided to treat myself on a smaller scale. After getting my conch pierced in early March, I was ready for another! So for another small memoir of Aarhus and passing my presentation I got myself a little helix piercing which I was chuffed with, can't say the same for my Mum and Dad though!

On Tuesday night the Studenterhaus, (the students union for Aarhus University) held a rap battle party, we weren’t expected much, we were just ready to be free from the work pressures! It turned out to be a good night, and even better when we heard a very distinct Northern Irish voice from afar. Jessica and I were the only Irish of the group out that night, but once we heard the accent we both turned to each other in shock, we followed the voice and found a young Bangor woman serving behind the bar. Despite not knowing anything about each other, the simple connection of Northern Ireland had Jessica and I feeling as though we could talk to Louise the whole night. After the generic facebook add, we agreed to definitely meet up with Louise again, whether that be in Aarhus or at home in little Ireland!

‘Sometimes you meet people and you feel like you’ve known them for a long time.’ – John Cusack

On Thursday we had class as normal, although we were all pretty drained from the presentation and portfolio work it wasn’t long before the class was hyped again with the help of planning our overnight shelter trip. 

We each split into groups, organising and planning the next part of diploma which was to carry out an activity for the whole class that lasted an hour and a half. The thought of trying to keep our class entertained with an activity for that length of time seemed quite impossible to Leah, Paolo, Stefania and I but once we started coming up with ideas, we knew it would be a fun-filled day!

On Friday night we all gathered at Álvaro’s to host a giant 22^nd birthday party with the help of his dorm mates. Lea treated us with nothing less than perfection in the form of a cake, we decorated his dorm, lit candles, signed a flag and of course made a crown pronouncing him the one and only ‘King of Spain’! After the party we all headed to our regular, Skjoldhøj Bar and continued the celebrations.

Sunday brought around the 1^st May, which although it doesn’t be made a big deal of back home, it is certainly highly thought of across Europe…probably due to the fact that it’s the start of their summer weather, whereas it symbolises more rain and perhaps the occasional sunbeam at home! So in light of the ‘start of summer’ we all made our way to Ian’s dorm for a BBQ, we sat out all day eating and talking and as the sunset we all made our way into his giant common room for some foosball and card games. It was the perfect end to the very long and stressful previous week and the perfect start exciting adventure we had planned for our shelter trip.

                                                                                                                  

References

John Cusack - http://www.picturequotes.com/sometimes-you-meet-people-and-you-feel-like-youve-known-them-for-a-long-time-quote-528595

Week 16 ¦ All Work, Some Play! ¦ Professional and Personal Development

Week 16 unfortunately brought around the end of our placement and time to work on the dreaded portfolio. After having gone so long with, let’s say having spent more time on the social aspect of Erasmus rather than the work aspect, it was difficult to get started and try and maintain focus and concentration on actual work.

For our portfolio, we were expected to present to our tutors a document divided up into five main sections; the introduction, description of institution, observations during the first week, the activities we carried out and the new perspectives we had gained from our time in the different placement settings. The two main focus points of the portfolio were the activities and our reflection on how they went and how we could carry out the same situation only better, in the future. 

The second focus point was the observations; similar to home they play a key role in the development of an Early Years Professional. However the difference between the two were the planning techniques that followed observations and led to activity plans, at home we use the Early Years Planning template however Pedagogues and other teaching professions in Denmark, greatly favour the SMTTE model. This particular model consists of five different elements; Context, Goals, Initiatives, Signs and Evaluations. Encouraging pedagogues to pull together their thoughts and observations in regards to their aims and aspirations, what they witness during observations and reflections on the outcome of the observation or activity. I have found that having access to both similar, yet different models can improve my observational techniques hopefully resulting in better application of theories and planning of activities in future placements.

By working with the other two girls; Poppy, Leah and I we able to share our opinions and views making it a lot easier to complete the portfolio! After a consultation with our tutor, the girls and I had decided to split the observations and new perspectives aspects of the portfolio into three different topics. I based my observations and new perspectives on the classroom, discussing what I found different to what we see at home and how, after my placement experience in Denmark, I can use their ideas to develop my thinking and hopefully portray their effectiveness in settings at home. Likewise, Leah based hers on the outdoor facilities and playground and Poppy discussed her views based on the SFO. Having to complete a portfolio seemed like a pain at the time, but now that  I think about it, it gave me a chance to reflect of my time there and really think about the differences of the schooling system here in Denmark as opposed to home.

We worked really well and effectively as a team, knowing when we had to knuckle down and definitely knowing when to take a few occasional breaks and treat ourselves ;)! These girls are definitely two I would be more than pleased to work with again, it was a pleasure!

'Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress and working together is success.' - Henry Ford 

The weekend had finally arrived and so did the sunny weather at last! The class as a whole decided it would be a good idea to go to Brabrand Lake and just sit and chill, seeing as it had been so long since we were altogether, what with all the hard work we had to do!

When we were leaving the lake, I was surprised to feel someone small hug me, aw I so delighted to see none other than little Maria, a pupil from Åby Skole. Of course Poppy and I stopped to say hello and get a wee photo with her before heading off. 

Later that evening, my class and I went to my dorm and cooked dinner together, then left for the Skjoldhøj bar.  Saturday brought around another daunting workload, this time we had to work on a presentation that was to be delivered to one of our tutors along with a member of staff from a local SFO club. Unfortunately these things have to be done but our super group would make light work of it no problem ;)!

References

Henry Ford - http://www.picturequotes.com/team-quotes/49 

Week 15 ¦ Goodbye for now ¦ Professional and Personal Development

I cannot believe I’m now writing about my final week of placement, initially I dreaded the thought of attempting to communicate with children that didn’t speak or understand much English, and as for my Danish, I’m afraid to say that, that peaked at ‘tak’! But much to my surprise I really, thoroughly enjoyed my time at Åby Skole and am genuinely sad to be leaving the children I became so accustomed to over the past three weeks.

After our first observational week in Åby Skole; Poppy, Leah and I had become more aware of the children’s interests and what sort of activities they thrived best in. After some planning we decided to carry out two separate activities at the campfire and the other in the 4^th grade base.

For our first activity we decided to bring a bit of Ireland to the children and hopefully educate them about the country we are proud to originate from! We thought the best way to do this was through some traditional Irish stew…cooked on a fire! Not completely traditional but it worked very well even if I do say so myself.  It wasn’t as straightforward as throwing all the ingredients into a pan because we had to bear in mind the different ethnic backgrounds and nutritional needs that we were working with. We had to ensure the children were cutting vegetables and meat separately and that all allergies were taken into consideration. 

Apart from this the main idea in our heads was to promote nature, health and democracy, as after all that was the backbone of our whole diploma. 

We incorporated the nature aspect through the use of our outdoor surroundings, the health aspect by promoting the nutritional benefits of the different vegetables and of course the democracy aspect came naturally to the children as they are well used to the freedom of choice and they all worked well together as a team. After this activity turned out so well, the girls and I were chuffed! Despite the language barrier, we really connected with the children and were even able to have a laugh with them…well more them laughing at us trying to say potatoes in Danish!

‘Everybody laughs the same in every language, because laughter is a universal connection.’  - Yakov Smirnoff  

On Tuesday night, my classmates and I met up for our weekly pancake Tuesday. However Poppy, Leah and I came with a motive, to use them for manual labour and help us draw international flags for our next activity.

The next day we set up the 4^th grade base with the international flags and a giant Ireland flag that they could all sign for me to take home as a little reminder of my time in Åby Skole. 

Again we based our activity around cooking, as it was something that interested both us and the children. This time it was sweet treats, traditional Northern Irish fifteens and scones! The children loved baking and they all got really involved, they also seemed so comfortable around us and it’s funny but something so simple had such a great effect, the fact that neither of us could speak each other’s language was a thing of the past!

‘As soon as children find something they are interested in, they lose their instability and learn to concentrate.’ – Maria Montessori

The main aim of this second activity was to encourage discussion about the children’s home countries, as the girls and I came to notice that a large number of the children had different ethnic backgrounds. As well as this we wanted to educate the children more on Ireland, mainly due to the fact that there weren’t so sure about our country and were eager to learn more. But our overall aim was to make sure the children had fun, after all it was our last week and we wanted them to know how much we enjoyed the time we spent getting to know them and on our placement as a whole.

As Friday came around; Poppy, Leah and I felt a sense of disheartenment as we made our way to Åby Skole for the last time. It was an honour to be a part of such a welcoming school for the three short weeks we spent there, I learnt so much and for that I am genuinely grateful.

To finish our day, Niels and the other staff members all met in the staff room for a final farewell session, with tacos and Irish Coffees, of course! Niels presented us with a little gift and letter, wishing us all the best of the future, the girls and I then made our way out of the school gates for the last time. But one thing’s for sure, if ever I’m in Aarhus again, which of course I will, I’ll definitely be paying Niels and the children a little visit!    

References

Yakov Smirnoff - http://www.picturequotes.com/everybody-laughs-the-same-in-every-language-because-laughter-is-a-universal-connection-quote-122780

Maria Montessori - http://www.picturequotes.com/interests-quotes/17

Week 14 ¦ Sitting around the Campfire ¦ Professional and Cultural Development

The fact that we had now reached our second week of placement was overwhelming! Our time Denmark is moving all too fast to say the least!

Although we were thoroughly enjoying our time at Åby Skole we had to start thinking professionally. For part of our diploma we have to complete a final portfolio in which we carry out activities with our 4^th graders. After our first week of observations we were ready to start building on their interests and hopefully come up with good activity plans!

Monday was pretty normal in terms of class; we just went with Niels to both the fourth and fifth graders’ class and sat in on their classes. Niels kindly translated everything that was going on and the conversations between the teacher and pupils, so needless to say we would have been completely lost without him!

This week we spent a lot more time in the SFO, Skolefritidsordning, which is similar to an after-school club at home. However a lot more time and expenses are put into the SFO, which stays open all year round for the children to attend. 

Within the SFO, pupils have their own ‘base’ for their year group where they can play games, listen to music or play out in the courtyard. We soon came to realise that the older the children the get, the greater the privileges they receive…and by privileges I mean food! Niels brought to our attention that that’s the main reason most of the pupils stay on after school, so they can get fed and then head on home when they please!  

Something that I found interesting within the SFO was the ‘checking in’ system. There was a big touch screen in the central part of the SFO, where the children came and checked in and then checked out when they were leaving. I found this quite extraordinary because I know if this existed at home, children would definitely forget to check in and would be more excited to get home, not thinking twice about checking out. It demonstrates again the independence the Danish children have and the responsibility they are given. It’s a system that maybe wouldn’t work so well at home, due to the health and safety aspects of letting children come and go when they please, but it gives me an insight as to how children can be trusted at this age and they are far more capable than we give them credit for!

On Tuesday Poppy, Leah and I went with Niels to the campfire, where every week Niels and Mikkel, another member of the SFO team, cooked up something delicious for the children. When we went outside we were surprised to see the children were cutting vegetables and chicken with sharp knives, something that definitely wouldn’t pass at home! They all seemed more than capable of using the cutlery and again made me think that if we give children this responsibility at a young age, it might promote their learning and reduce the risk of accidents, that we’re so afraid of back home. 

Giving children the opportunity to use these resources allows them to encounter different experiences and outcomes and who knows, this type of teaching could be more beneficial than telling them about it in a classroom!

‘A child learns how to be responsible by being given responsibility, and he learns accountability by being held accountable.’ – Denise Rowden

After our experience at the campfire and witnessing how enthused the children were about cooking, helping to prepare the food and the pride they showed with the end result, we were sure we wanted to plan one of our activities in this setting and couldn’t wait to get started.

Once again Friday had arrived meaning more social time with our classmates! We all headed into a small bar in the town, Bodegaen, to meet up and talk about our busy week in placement which soon turned into a night in Skjoldhøj bar once again, which I couldn’t complain about!

Seeing as our days off only occurred at the weekends now due to our full time placement, we took it easy on Saturday and Sunday, starting to think of activity ideas and getting some rest before our final week of placement began!

References

Denise Rowden - https://www.empoweringparents.com

Week 13 ¦ Back to Porridge ¦ Professional Development

After the Easter week at home it felt quite surreal to be back in Denmark, almost as though I was starting all over again but I didn’t have much time to spend thinking about it as I was due to begin my three week block placement at Åby Skole on Tuesday.

Niels, our mentor, had given us a timetable of the hours we would be in placement for the next three weeks but that was about the height of preparation we had received so we arrived at the school with some nerves but mostly I was excited about the days ahead. When we arrived Niels showed us around the school so as to give us an insight in to the places we would be spending most of our time, especially with the fourth and fifth graders. 

Once we had the tour of the school Poppy, Leah and I accompanied Niels to our first class, in the gym hall. Here the children could choose between three different activities in the gym or there was other apparatus in the playground, either way the children were able to roam free between the two, they weren’t restricted to any given area. 

This came as a surprise to us a students who come from a schooling system were the children are constantly watched and aren’t given the opportunity to choose so freely. Little did we know this was the beginning of our insight into how completely different the schooling system and rules were in Denmark compared to home.

We then went with Niels to a Maths class with the 4^th graders, aged 9 and 10. As we entered the class we brought about an aura of newness with us. Even though there was an evident language barrier between us and the children, we picked up on their curiosity about who we were and they seemed excited to get to know more about the ‘3 Irish girls’.  

‘A different language is a different vision of life’ – Federico Fellini

One thing I found particularly interesting about the setup of the classroom was that there didn't seem to be any ‘hard’ rules as such. The children were allowed to sit on tables, shout out answers, talk to each other and even eat during class! Again it shows how much freedom the children are given throughout the school day and I found that this has both positive and negative aspects to it. 

The children seemed to have a much closer and trusting relationship with the teacher and they all seemed to be comfortable in that environment, but as we came to acknowledge throughout the week, the children appeared to be further behind academically compared to pupils of the same ages at home. But again I have learnt that this works well for both the Danish pupils and teachers and is maybe something I could learn to incorporate in my placements at home and hopefully as a further my career in this profession.

After our first week of placement, we were glad to see the weekend. Better still it was the first time Kate and I had seen everyone since we had got back from Ireland. We all decided to meet at Álvaros dorm to reunite and catch up with each other. Honestly the friendships I have made with them is beyond me! I was genuinely so happy and excited to see everyone again as if I have known them for years. It’s amazing the bonds you can make with others when you’re all thrown into the deep end, and uprooted to a different country. We all have one thing in common and that’s that we took the chance to study abroad and leave our comfort zone and at this early stage I can already tell it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made!

‘Greatness begins beyond your comfort zone.’ – Robin Sharma

References

Federico Fellini – http://quotesgram.com/english-language-learner-quotes/

Robert Sharma - http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/comfort-zone