A great way to learn about culture

As a parent, I am very concerned making sure my kids don't just learn about other cultures and people through books, but through real-life experiences.  One of the best ways I have found to do this (other than extended travel) is to host exchange students.  We've hosted a couple of times and now I work with students during their time here in this country.  My kids love the students and love learning about their home countries.

Having a houseful of children, travel is just difficult and expensive.  Hosting is a great way to bring culture to your kids in a season of life when you can't travel.  Hosting is a great learning experience, but also a lot of fun.  I'll never forget my 4 year old pretending one day that he was going to fly in a plane over the ocean to visit Germany.  He loved his German sister.

We experienced German holidays, German food, and German music and books right in our own home.  My kids don't just know in their head that there is a country called Germany, but they lived it and it is personal and understood to them.  Having our student with us for a year went far beyond any learning we could achieve with a unit study.  And it helped them to step outside of our own little world and see the world with a wider perspective. 

And beyond learning about her country, we learned about our own.  We were able to teach her how we do things, and through her questions, we were able to stop and think about why we do things the way we do, what is important to us, and how we live life in a way that was much more introspective than we normally would have been.

When I studied in England, I learned first hand how difficult it can be to be in a new culture and far away from family, and how important it is to have local support.  I loved my family's experience hosting when I was in high school, and now it is my honor to be able to help these students find families and to support the families and the students during their time here in this country. 

I would love to talk to you more about the possibility of hosting if you are interested.  Even if you aren't local, I can put you in touch with the right people.