Der Erste Schultag

We've just returned from the festivities associated with the first school day of the year. The entire school welcomed the first years in a beautiful ceremony lasting from 8 to 11:30 am (school will finish at 11:30 everyday this week!). It started with a lovely service in the local church (which is enormous). The new children sat on the stage and sang songs about growing up whilst the parents juggled the schuletuete (decorative cardboard cones filled with stationary and lollies) on their laps. There were many parents and grandparents dabbing their eyes with tissues as they watched the service.

After marching back along the cobblestone lanes, the headmaster hosted an outdoor ceremony (which was a little risky as we've had nothing but rain for the last 5 days - fortunately the clouds blew away), in which the older children sang welcoming songs and acted out a sweet little play for the new kids. The play was about new children starting school but encountering a few obstacles on the first day ie mixing up all their clothes; losing books and even finding sheep under the desks! It then seemed to us (with our limited German) one of the children, who had read 2000 books, had the idea to look up a solution in the dictionary.. and found one? Everyone of course lived happily ever after ....

Although Stephanie and Mia are new to the Badelebenschule, they were considered experienced school-goers so were part of the crowd singing German songs to welcome the new German children to their new German school ....

Stephanie has a young pretty teacher called Frau Ritter. She is very musical and sang songs to the class with her guitar. Ritter in German means knight - perhaps she has some aristocratic blood? Mia has a more experienced teacher called Frau Geiersmeyer who is obviously adored by all her old students as many rushed up to her on the first day and embraced her warmly.

So our first experiences at school have been very positive. Obviously when the festivities of Day 1 fade away there will be many challenges ahead .. Steph has already been asked to write a letter to one of the new students about their first day at school and Mia diligently added up all her subtraction exercises....