Week 11 ¦ Luck of the Irish ¦ Professional and Personal Development

We began week 11 with a placement preparation class with Marie. During this class we discussed what would be expected of us during our in placement, the goals we wish to achieve and how we will go about reaching these throughout our time in placement. Marie also covered how we will be assessed once we have completed our three weeks in placement, through both an oral presentation and a presentation portfolio. Being bombarded with exam information was daunting and also brought about a sense of realism; that even though Erasmus is a brilliant opportunity to meet new people and experience new things, we also have to put in the hours and work to really get the most out of our time here in Denmark.

After our intense class with Marie, my class and I were ready to relieve ourselves of the pressure of assessments and celebrate with Ian for his 21^st Birthday. We all gathered at Ana’s flat to welcome Ian with sparklers and Lea came prepared a yummy apple cake. It was a great night with beer tasting and Belgian games.

On Wednesday we got the opportunity to visit each of our placements for the day. I felt slightly nervous when I first arrived at Åby Skole because I wasn’t sure what to expect from a Danish school and how their values and principles differed from ours back home in Ireland. After searching for some time we finally found our mentor, Niels. He was more than welcoming and thankfully spoke very good English. We had a quick tour around the SFO (after-school club)  and got to see the different ‘class bases’ or common rooms along with the areas home to a wide variety of activities such as the creative room where they work with all different types of materials and textiles, the drama and theatre room and the fourth grade base; where we would be spending most of our time. I thought it was a really good idea that each grade had their own common room, it gives the children a sense of independence as well as personal space and I’m sure we’ll see this displayed as we spend more time within the school and particularly the SFO.

After the quick tour we sat with Niels and discussed our hours and our role whilst out on placement, we briefly discussed with him that we are required to carry out activities with the children in relation to our Nature, Health and Democracy module and when we finish this will act as the vital component to our presentation portfolio.

After finishing our placement visit at Åby Skole, I was excited to get back, meet the children and because of the vast amount of resources and opportunities at this setting, I was already beginning to think of ideas for activities and couldn’t wait to get started.

Thursday brought us St. Patricks Day and I was really looking forward to introducing my classmates to the iconic Irish day of celebration and how to celebrate our feast day in true Irish style. There was no better place to do this than an Irish bar itself, Tir Na Nóg and that’s where we spent the majority of the night, listening to typical Irish music and just by chance meeting some other Irish people. What better place to meet fellow Irishmen than in an Irish pub on St. Patricks Day?

‘Being Irish is very much a part of who I am. I take it everywhere with me.’ – Colin Farrell

Unfortunately we had to call it a night pretty early, as I had a flight to catch on Friday back to Ireland to spend the Easter break with family and friends. I felt saddened having to part with my class mates for just this short break so who knows what state I’ll be in come the end of May, it’s not something I really want to think about just yet!

References:

Colin Farrell - http://heavy.com/social/2016/03/st-patricks-day-quotes-2016