Visiting a Finnish Primary School!


Ever since even before coming to Finland, I have always wanted to learn more about the Finnish education system since it is known to be the best in the world. So when I came here, I had messaged a couple of schools and asked them if I could join them and learn and experience but never got a reply so this was a great opportunity for me! Let me start with day one.

On day one, I went to the school at 9.00 and was greeted by the amazing teacher! She was so happy and passionate about her job and you could see that by her expressions and also she had a very theatrical way! She divided me and the other 4 girls into groups and sent us to different parts of the school with papers to help us. We all sat down with 5th and 6th graders and talked about their favourite foods and interests. Some of them were very shy and some of them were very excited. 

We even talked about what I was studying and the aim was so get them to talk English so I think we did a good job. We also met the principal who was very nice and even talked with other teachers and discussed the school hours and how that was why it was the best education system. Also I was pretty impressed by the condition of the school since it was from 1998 and actually older than me since I was born in 1999. Another interesting thing was the children didn't wear shoes but had socks on! Also, the teacher was very nice as she offered us some ginger tea! The first day went by like that, we had groups from 9.00 until 13.00 and we were all tired since we talked none stop all day!

Day two was so cute and amazing! I must say, I was extremely tired from the other day but this day we met with 3rd and 4th graders! They were so bubbly and full of energy and were so excited to talk! They were even asking me questions, even if I had a boyfriend or not! That was very funny. Also we talked a lot about Netflix, Minecraft and TikTok. Nobody really liked books and were keen on Youtube. I guess this is the new generation! Also they loved it when we played a English word game were I was the judge for checking if they were cheating but I might have helped some people to equalize both teams. It was fun to watch them having fun and we were laughing too! With 3rd graders, we talked to them about our country, we sang and danced and we played a spinning game where the partners would change every time and ask different questions. We also played some number games with them which they really enjoyed and were laughing a lot.

Overall, I was very excited about this opportunity and it was amazing to go there for two days but when I realized it was over, I was upset. We also got some very cute hugs and waves from the students and that was very lovely!





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