After a much needed night’s rest in the homes of our new host families, we all arrived at school bright and early. The sun had just come up as students filed into our room for our Ashford group morning meeting. Since Rheda-Wiedenbrück is a little further north than Ashford (Ashford is about 41 degrees North while Rheda is 51 degrees North), the sun rises a little bit later- around 7:30 in the morning. Sunset, however, is around the exact same time: 4:30. Even though we are further north here in Germany, the weather has been a bit warmer: it got to be 17 degrees C! This brings us to one of our cultural difference- in the United States, everything is measured in the Imperial system. This means that we measure temperature in fahrenheit, distance in feet or miles, and weight in pounds. In Germany, everything is measured on the metric system. This means that temperature is measured in Celsius, distance in meters or kilometers (kilometre in German), and weight in kilograms. 17 degrees C is roughly 63 degrees F. We talked about what we were experiencing with our host families and what our first impressions of Germany were. Students noted all of the recycling and green energy, as well as some difference in the doors and light switches. We also took some time to journal our thoughts in our German notebooks, have a snack, and take a little rest. Then, we got to take a tour of the Rathaus, or town hall. We were met by the Mayor, who formally welcomed us to Rheda-Wiedenbruck and spoke about the importance of international collaboration. We then received a guided tour of the Rathaus and even got to go up to the roof- the highest point in town, where we could see the castle as well as lots of windmills in the distance. All of our students felt very honored to have been welcomed so warmly. After our tour, we stopped quickly for some German pasteries, soft pretzels, and chocolate bread. Then it was on to Schloss Rheda or Rheda Castle. That’s right- our town has its own working castle! One of the families of the Einstein students lives there- they are the Duke and Duchess. We began our learning by seeing the grounds and carriage house, which still has working carriages. They had beautiful coaches. Next it was onto the castle which has a real moat around it! We walked over the castle grounds. to the castle chapel. The chapel at Schloss Rheda was built over 1,000 years ago! We were treated to some traditional German fairy tales and legends about the castle. Inside the chapel, we even saw a sword fight and a trapdoor! Then we went into the old living quarters, which had many important historical artifacts, including historical clothing and furniture! Students wandered the rooms wide-eyed. It was an incredible day filled with amazing learning- there is so much to see and do, and our hosts are being just wonderful. If you want to see more, check out the slideshow below:
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What a welcoming and warm reception we had here at the Einstein Gymnasium! Two wonderful Einstein teachers, Eva and Marlene, greeted us just outside baggage claim and brought us to our bus. We toured the countryside, marveling at the beautiful hills, sunrise, and bright colors of the changing leaves. We also saw some windmills as we drove by. Our partner school had breakfast, juice, and water waiting for us! After recharging a bit, we decided to take a tour of the school. Despite some fog early in the morning, it quickly turned into a beautiful fall day- 62 degrees and sunny- which was perfect for taking a look at the grounds! Then, it was time for a quick lunch and an Ashford GAPP Group photo in front of the iconic "E". Then, students had a choice of taking a quick nap, hanging out quietly and getting to know one another, or going for a walk downtown. Everyone chose the option that was best for how they were feeling. Our partner school has been doing such a wonderful job of accommodating our needs and making us feel very welcome here in Germany! After our afternoon activities, it was time to head home with our new host families for a good night's sleep. Our adventure is off to a fantastic start and we are looking forward to an amazing two weeks! We’ve landed safely in Germany! Last night, we boarded the plane with ease, and quickly rose to 35,000 feet. We watched the sun set over the United States as we headed northeast towards Frankfurt. The flight went by relatively quickly- once we were in the air, we were served a nice dinner, and then we had a wide variety of entertainment choices to keep us busy. Students were also able to read all about environmentally sustainable business models in the in-flight magazine, but most opted to take a nap and rest up for the upcoming adventure! Now that we’ve landed, we will be heading directly to the Einstein Gymnasium in Rheda-Wiedenbruck. We will get a tour of the school, meet our host families, and begin experiencing life as German students! We will continue to update on our experiences when we have time and when we aren’t busy engaging with our new partners. Ashford students made it through security, had a great time eating a late lunch in the airport, and are ready for take off! While on the flight, students will have the opportunity to jot down some of their thoughts in their Germany-UNSDG notebooks. At our final meeting, we all picked the goals that we will be investigating during our time abroad. Students picked all kinds of great goals! One group of students is investigating goal 6- clean water. They are curious as to how many drinking fountains are available in Germany vs how many are available in the United States, and will be creating maps of drinking fountains in both locations. They will also use this to help assess goal 12- responsible consumption and production, because more drinking fountains and refills means fewer single use plastics. We have now boarded and ready for take off- next stop Germany! This morning, Ashford students arrived bright and early for their GAPP Adventure! They have come prepared for 2 weeks worth of cultural learning experiences around the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. After checking in to school, we loaded all of our luggage onto the bus, waved goodbye to our families, and boarded the big yellow school bus for the airport! The excitement on the bus was palpable- our students were bouncing with excitement! On our drive, we snacked on Doppelkeks, a type of Germany sandwich cookie. We hit no traffic along the way, and were able to easily unload our luggage and head into the terminal- ready to go on our journey! It's hard to believe that in just a week, Ashford students will be headed off to Germany! For the past several months, we've been learning about German culture and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Students have been staying after school every Friday for "A Glimpse of Germany," a course generously provided to our students through UConn and the Geothe Insutit . Graduate students Maria and Juntao have been teaching us all about German words and culture! Es war wundervoll! We've also talked about the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, which are 17 goals that we as a world want to achieve by 2030. While in Germany, all students will be responsible for creating Story Maps with ArcGIS on UNSDG indicators around their inquiry questions. You can learn more about the Global Goals here: Our whole school has even gotten in on the action by Skyping with our German partner school and sharing care packages back and forth. It's been wonderful to share cultures and community with each other! As we get ready to go, feel free to check out our itinerary in the post below. T-Minus seven days until we embark on our adventure!
Interested in learning more about what we will be up to while in Germany? You can check out our itinerary below! This itinerary has been updated for our arrival.
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AuthorsMr. Young Archives
November 2022
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