saw
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Posts posted by saw
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I had a look at the site. We haven't used it, nor do I know the instructor, but the prices are comparable to what we pay for Skype lessons from our tutor in NL. I think it depends on what you're after -- if you want the kids to learn Dutch and learn it well, you might want to go with De Wereldschool. http://www.wereldsch...igrantenpakket/
They have a special program for Dutch kids who are living permanently in a foreign country. We use De Wereldschool for many of our VWO courses and have had a generally good experience. Hugely expensive though. It's accredited by the government and accountable to the ministry for education as the only school of its kind in NL, so you do have an assurance of quality.
Are there any Dutch Saturday schools where you live? That might be another option. I know a Dutch teacher in NYC who might still be teaching kids, it's been a while. PM me if you would like me to see whether I can find her contact details.
Before doing Dutch for K, I'd definitely look around and see whether there are other options, because, while it could be really good, it could be really bad. You could contact the international schools in NL to see who teaches the Dutch as a second language in those schools and see whether those teachers might be available by Skype. We've had quite a bit of luck with using Skype in NL.
Good luck.
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Send him a note asking which he recommends? I did that with DS's choir teacher, who was constantly selecting her favorites and having them do solos etc. and going on about them. DS was later accepted to four world-renowned choirs. I sent the teacher a sweet email asking which of the four she recommend he accept. Oddly enough I never heard back. The least I would have expected was for her know enough about her job to realize that DS had real talent. Oh well, her loss!
Congrats on your DS and on your confidence in his ability!
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My kids (and I) are much happier without their dad living with us. There's much less stress in the atmosphere, even though there wasn't any fighting or yelling before. The kids see their dad once every week or so, and they like it that way. They're seeing the positive side to their dad better now than before, and are less affected by the negatives. It isn't all easy but the kids have handled it better than I thought they would. In fact, right after we told them, the girls started making jokes about it. DS is sensitive and high-strung, so I'd warned his school to be on the alert for any odd reactions in him (he boards). Nothing. The school said he has been completely fine. I guess what I'm saying is I thought it was going to be lots more drama than it has turned out to be, so it is possible. Wishing you lots and lots of strength.
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I don't usually post much and never post such requests, but I cannot get this child out of my mind.
Here is Yong's story:
http://www.lovewitho...en/223/view/860
There is more on the site, including pictures and a video. I don't have any affiliation with LWB but have been donating to them for a while now. I'm an adoptive parent of a little boy from China who was fortunate enough to receive the surgery he needed while he was in an orphanage, and I'm just trying to spread the word about this little boy, who I hope will someday find his family.
If you feel led to, could you pray, think good thoughts, share his story? There's more about him on Facebook as well.
Thanks.
Sophie
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I know several people who live or used to live in London. They all say that it's a very, very, very dangerous place, especially for young white (not that I know your race; just assuming) girls. The landmark touristy places are really spread out and you have to go through iffy places to get to them. I wouldn't let your girls go alone without some serious research into London's social problems and which areas are considered safe and which have been literally taken over by certain groups. I won't say more lest it turn political.
I live in London, and have to disagree with this. My DDs are 14 yo and white and go places by themselves regularly, not just tourist places. They have never once been hassled and never once felt as though they were in danger. FWIW, we lived in a very "mixed" area. Their friends are also used to going places alone, taking buses or the tube, to school and clubs. That's normal around here, and we live centrally. Not when it's late night, but until around 7 in the evening or so.
I'm not sure what you mean by the landmark tourist places being spread out. That is certainly not my experience. It's possible to walk from the London Eye to Westminster Abbey to the Houses of Parliament to Buckingham Palace in about half an hour. I'd let my 11 yo do that, since he knows the way.
I think the biggest problem OP's dds would face is what happens if they get lost, or there is a problem with the tube or the buses. Pickpockets are a problem, but just be sensible and keep valuables close to your person. You'd need a good plan for where the girls were going each day, have them check in with your DH once they get there/once they leave, and have a backup plan if the museum turns out to be closed or the trains are running. I think there's a cab company that allows you to book cabs and hire female drivers, IIRC, so that might be an option. If DDs are sensible and can be trusted to do what they've agreed to do and be where they've agreed to be, and if there's a good backup plan in place for where to meet or what to do if something goes wrong, I should think you'd be fine.
OP, if they do go, and you want a London contact, you can PM me and I'll give you my mobile number.
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DDs (14) are taking a high school final exam as part of their Dutch high school diploma (like a section of the IB, or A-levels, basically one exam that gives you a grade for all your years of secondary in that subject) in English this summer. They're native speakers, but the exam is intended for Dutch students who have been studying English. In addition to the written section, DDs have to do an oral exam, which covers a selection of books/plays (6 total), poems (5 total) and short stories (5 total) that are supposed to be representative of English-language literature. There are no book lists with "required" or even recommended books, so as long as they pick works that are generally recognized as good literature, it's acceptable. They read the works and turn in their list of these in the spring. Anything on the list is fair game during the exam.
I'm helping them make a selection of books and am stuck on the 20th century. Personally I prefer the 19th and am not fond of all that much from the latter half of 20th, with the exception of "light" lit and works that are a bit obscure, or maybe Roddy Doyle or Jonathan Franzen (not sure those are appropriate thematically given their age). I'd appreciate suggestions for books, short stories or poetry that would work for the 20th century. So far I have put down as ideas Hemingway, Orlando by Virginia Woolf, Pat Barker's Regeneration (but must reread myself first) and To Kill a Mockingbird for the novels. F. Scott Fitzgerald for short stories. I'd like to avoid books that are too mature in theme -- problem is that the girls are 14, while most students take the exam at 17 or 18.
In a perfect world there would be connections between the works (Pat Barker's Regeneration could be paired with Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfrid Owen on the poetry side, trying to do the same with the Shakespeare play we'll read and some other works). I think it would be very interesting for them to be able to make connections among different pieces (and get them better marks on the exam, as there's a good chance the examiners will expect more of native speakers).
I'd appreciate suggestions. Many thanks.
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Thanks all for the insight. Interesting that there are so many different views! FTR, it really isn't the "stuff" -- my kids aren't really about "stuff" and are just as happy with . To me the problem is perpetuating a pattern of favoring my youngest son over the other three, in particular over his older brother. I will mention it once again to xDH, something along the lines of "in the future, I will be redistributing the gifts if this continues." We live so far away from the ILs (deliberately!) that contact with them is likely to be limited in the future (largely because the three big kids refuse to go see them!), and I won't mention it to them unless the favoritism gets worse.
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For Chanukah, MIL and FIL sent the four dcs presents. DS6 was given five gifts, DS11 one. DDs (14) received two each, plus one or two joint presents. I know how much the gifts cost because they were selected from the Amazon wish list the kids set up for MIL, and I edited it to ensure that there would be no doubling up on gifts and that no one present was outrageously expensive. In other words, DS11's gift wasn't more expensive than DS6's gifts. It was seriously unequal. MIL and FIL skyped with the kids for the gift-giving so they could see DS6 open five presents and DS11 open one, but they didn't say anything or do anything. I had warned xDH that this was going to happen (gifts were sent here) and he doesn't seem to care.
I'm annoyed on DS11's behalf, not because of the "stuff" (I wish they'd given each child one gift only, I'm so sick of STUFF) but because it was a very in-your-face way of saying something that can be heard as, hey we like your little brother better than we like you (which unfortunately has some truth to it). So do I say anything? If so, what?
DH is newly my xDH, and the in-laws are not happy about this at all. They are the sort of people who are nice to my face, but I'm sure that behind my back they are very not nice -- we were there this summer and they way they talk about the women DH's cousins married is awful. So part of me says, leave it alone, who cares. But I don't want this to be a pattern of favouring DS6 over DS11, which I have already seen developing in other areas. I don't think it's healthy for either boy or their relationship.
The kids have not yet written their thank-yous because one of the gifts was back-ordered and arrived just today, and I told them they could wait and do the thank-you together. I thought I could perhaps add a note saying, thanks for your generosity, but in the future could you please give each child one gift or two gifts so that they have an equal number.
I know some of you have dealt with this sort of favoritism a lot -- any ideas on what works or doesn't work?
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The Louvre has a really nice children's museum shop, including a section of English-language books. More suited for younger children than teenagers. I'd be asking for macarons and marrons glacees for myself. If your kids are crafty, there is a great store called Loisir et Creation (there's one in Passy) that has fun things. Nature et Decouverte is also a fun store that has more nature/sciency things. I think that both of these stores have items that you would not find easily in the States (could be wrong, it's been a while since I lived in the US). If he's there during the sales, he could (if he were brave enough) get pajamas and undies etc at Petit Bateau. Great quality. Might be easier if he just takes you along to help him shop!
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Stamppot
Take mashed potatoes, add sauerkraut, mix up well. Add fried lardons and/or smoked sausage.
Or add steamed chopped up kale to potatoes instead, serve with sausage or gehaktballen/large meatballs.
Or add raw chopped up Belgian endive (the curly kind) instead of kale/sauerkraut.
Vary with pea soup.
Repeat until spring arrives.
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I have been trying Persil (the capsules and the powder with "booster") and it's an improvement over the store brand.
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You don't happen to be using T*sco brand detergent do you? I was using this and noticed that sport clothes were still nasty. I switched to a different brand and the problem went away.
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One of my dds has been a vegetarian since she was six, and she's 14 now. She'll eat a bite of turkey at Thanksgiving, but that's it. We generally eat meat around three times a week, and I will substitute in a different protein for her. If we're having meat/two veg, she will have either a vegetarian "meat", egg, yoghurt, cheese, or maybe tofu. You may be able to find some good vegetarian "meats", although availability seems to depend on where you live. I've found some really good veggie burgers that we will now eat instead of regular burgers because they're so good.
If we're having a curry or something where the meat is mixed in, I'll separate out a portion for her and add tofu or beans or nothing (depending on what else is in there). So for chicken enchiladas she'll get tofu or beans and extra cheese, for chicken curry she gets tofu and sauce. Or if it's chili with meat, she'll get the veggie version without meat.
It really hasn't been that difficult to arrange our meals. It can be difficult when travelling as some countries/places are definitely more veggie-friendly than others. The hardest part was when she discovered that gummy candy and marshmallows contain gelatine, so now much candy is off-limits to her (and vegetarian candy is expensive and difficult to come by!).
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Principality of Sealand
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Thanks! I'm going to collect these and keep them around for when the interrogation starts. I think I may load up the Pink Floyd Hey teacher leave those kids alone onto everyone's iPods and instruct the kids to play that whenever they get a nosy question!
To respond to the question about why not just share the info with them, it's because these people have serious issues with boundaries. I've tried sharing in the past and have always regretted it, because it seems to invite an avalanche of unwarranted interference (to the point that when I homeschooled ds for a term, I was told, well, Aunt J will be delighted to teach him-- (instead of my teaching him-- because she's a teacher for kids that age ...).
Off to find my Pink Floyd now ....
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We're off to the States next week to visit (yay) my in-laws (and not just MIL/FIL, but MIL/FIL, BILs and families, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc). All gathered together in one city. Many of them are quite narcissistic and have serious boundary issues. I therefore avoid them as much as possible, but am now being forced to spend nearly two weeks with them. They also have a fair number of school teachers among them, no homeschoolers, and, the last time we skyped, BIL (in his 30s, living at home, studying to be a teacher, so he now knows everything better than anyone) started quizzing my kids about what they were doing in math, what parts they liked, what level they were on, etc. MIL does that too, and tries to work out what grade the kids would be in.
So I need your best pass-the-beandip responses that I can practice beforehand and help me keep my cool. Also for the kids, who really hate this sort of thing and tend to clam up and seem a bit rude. DH won't help with this; he will, if anything, encourage his family in overstepping boundaries. Don't ask.
Please someone help out? I'm already feeling physically ill about these two weeks (plus there are other serious family issues going on that my MIL/FIL will undoubtedly try to confront us with/interven/mediate). Please? I'll print it all out and keep the responses with me!
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I'm thinking of getting Teaching Textbooks (pre-calc or algebra II) for the coming year. This would be for dds, who are quite math-y but do need the materials presented clearly. Does anyone have any experience with the series they could share? I've done a search here and online but am still unsure (and it's a lot of money!).
Thanks!
Sophie
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While I agree that the indiscriminate affection is a red flag, I think that the length of time the child has been with her adoptive family is also relevant. If the child hasn't been with them for that long, I would be less likely to consider this a red flag. I say this as the adoptive parent of a nearly 6 yo, adopted at 2.5 and supremely indiscriminate in affection for much of his first year with us, yet now securely attached and appropriately affectionate.
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You've probably done this already, but have you tried posting on one of the email lists for home-edders in the UK? I see posts on those from people in out-of-the-way places looking for others. Also, there's a few home-ed campout type things for the whole family. Have you looked into going to those? We're in London if you're ever in the neighbourhood.
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Or as 5 yo ds said this morning, "Happy Easter! Christ is rosen!"
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Don't read Island of the Blue Dolphins. I saw part of the movie when I was a child and am still traumatized (kidding, but not by much!). I seem to remember that Where the Red Fern Grows also upset me. I remember reading Captains Courageous and enjoying it, and I was pretty sensitive and anxious about books too, so that is probably okay.
Are you looking for recommendations for books off the list?
S
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We accidentally did something similar. We put DS5 into a Dutch-language daycare when he was 2.5, after we brought him home from China. English-language daycare wasn't available to us, and other childcare options were bad. We moved to France a year later and DS started Maternelle in French there. We moved from France to England a year after that. We hadn't realized when we moved to France that our stay would be that short, otherwise I probably would have gone with an English-language option. We're now in England and DS is at an English school. I did try to get him into the French school, but there were no places. He now understands some Dutch, because we speak it around him sometimes and go back several times a year. He understands French and has a French babysitter. He has consistently had English, and his English has really improved this year since being in an English school.
I wouldn't recommend this approach since I don't think DS gained much by it. It wasn't our intention, but life just happened. I'm hoping he'll retain enough Dutch or French to benefit from it eventually.
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DS10 has been at boarding school for nearly two years -- when he first went, I sent him with a bottle of shampoo. Last weekend he said, hey mom, it's time to buy me more shampoo! The bottle lasted him two years! And he thinks this is normal!
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My MIL lives thousands of miles away in another country. She doesn't initiate contact, unless it's a birthday card or similar. Neither does dh, except on rare occasions. I have learned it's foolish to start emailing -- MIL is the sort of person who will try to suck you in to her little world if you don't keep boundaries established (when ds homeschooled a couple of years ago, she found out and immediately suggested that the homeschooling be done via Skypd by her sister, a qualified teacher).
She has almost no contact with the dcs for months, but then comes up with the suggestion that I put one or more of them on the plane and send them to her for several weeks. Just today she suggested via dh that the oldest dds go visit Israel with her for a couple of weeks. DDs don't know her well at all and don't want to go, but are feeling the pressure from saying no to repeated requests (this is the third such suggestion since July, and MIL has probably communicated with dds about three times since that time). IOW, there is a good reason we live in a different country a ten-hour plane ride away!
Dutch for Kids - Review?
in Bilingual Education Board
Posted
I just noticed that you're in FL. I checked the Stichting Nederlands Onderwijs in het Buitenland site, and they list the following school in FL:
www.deoranjebloesem.org
Not sure if you're anywhere nearby, but it might be worth speaking with them anyway.