I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Kita Weitblick and will miss the kids and activities we did together! I’ll miss working with Markus, Ankha and Sarah as well and I thanked them for guiding me in this position and also with my language skills. Though of course the default is German, I was surprised at the widespread English language skills and references I encountered in this experience. Markus was proficient, and would translate for me if I did not understand instructions. Or, we would exchange terms, like telling each other what a type of bird was in our respective languages. The kids don’t speak much of either language being toddlers, yet some show up in little English/American T-Shirts or characters that say things like: “Let’s Get Going!”, “Snoopy Gang”, or “Harvard University.” When people hear I’m from the USA they assume I don’t speak German and switch to English until Kirstin corrects them and says I am learning. Nonetheless, I had a great time these past two weeks exploring Germany and work in the Kindergarten! Here is me and my buddy Marc:)
Author: Emma Esposito
Day 7
Working in the Kindergarten, I am treated as an adult. However, I am actually at the awkward age where I am directly in the middle of the kids and adults. I don’t wear diapers yet can fit in the children’s chair and I can talk but I still choose legos over chatting. When talking about my weekend in Belgium, my coworker Markus was shocked that I had a drivers license, and I even showed him and told him I got my permit at 15. Dana (in my host family) turns 18 in October and she is still driving with an adult under her permit. Even Camryn Friedman is driving before her! However, Markus was even more shocked that I was not going to partake in any Belgium beer drinking (the legal drinking age here is 16) and that in the US we have to be 21. Different regulations lead to very different cultures indeed. Today at work was mostly normal but with an outing to a nearby water playground pictured below!
Day 6
More kids, playgrounds, mineral water and naps today. Lighter work today since less kids and more adults evens the ratio, yet challenging myself nonetheless. Todays highlight was when Markus (the lead teacher) took a light snooze on the beanbag chair during lunch and the children covered him in plastic dishes and fake carrots. He woke up when a child tripped while trying to place a bunch of fake grapes on his chest. My comparison for today is how much more available the public transportation is in Germany and accessible to everyone. It’s also cleaner, as I remarked to the host family nothing like the New York subway I know. The trains run efficiently and are located sporadically, effectively connected by smaller trolley or bus systems within the city. While this is apparent in America, in my expertise mostly utilized in popular urban areas. Yet here we were in small walkable Ettlingen where you can see someone you know walking down the street with a highly advanced bus and transportation efforts. In fact, my host family son Jan commutes to his university in the nearby larger city of Karlsruhe through the bus system, and I experienced it myself today. Lots of new riveting things and comparisons, looking forward to another day of exploration tomorrow. Tchuss. 
Day 5
Back again today with even smaller group as there is some sickness going around among the kids. Nonetheless, we had a fun filled day where my group merged with the big kids all on the Kindergarten playground for the entire morning. Today, I will comment on the consumption of Mineral water. I have not had a simple bottled water since I arrived. My organs screech in pain. Every time I ask for water, I’m handed a fizzy, bubbling beverage. Or worse, tap water. Even the children are better accustomed than myself. I don’t understand how one could make water complicated yet here we are. They buy it by the cases. I’ve done the math each person in my homestay averages a couple liters of this stuff per day. The cases stack up in a corner in the kitchen. Full cases are soon filled with the empty bottles ready to be returned for the buyback. I don’t know what to think. It’s pretty good though, once I get used to it. I even put a splash in my apple juice. I wish a Dasani 12 pack would’ve made it through security though.
Day 4
Back today! A few kids were out sick, but one kid and one teacher came back from vacation to a total of 6 kids and 4 adults. We had a relaxed day with a morning trip in the Kinderwagon to the grocery store to get fresh fruit and vegetables. When at the grocery store, we put everything directly from the shelf to the crate we brought, with no plastic waste or packaging – just fruits and veggies in the crate! My host family does the same thing, loading up the crates. Last week I accidentally stole from the kindergarten and today I returned my thieved item. After taking my glass mineral water bottle home, I had to bring it back once empty to put it in the crate of water it came in. Once the kindergarten has the crate full of empty bottles, they then bring it back to where they bought the water and get money back for bringing the glass back to recycle. I thought this was very neat because it’s a more eco friendly recycling system with accountability because of the buy back. My host family buys crates of mineral water by the dozens, and does the same thing. It was nice to better know the sustainability practices of work in Germany! Pic of much loved nap room 
Day 3.5
Today is a European holiday, so everything including my Kindergarten is closed. So we drove to Luxembourg and Belgium for the weekend! It is very strange to fall asleep in the car and wake up in two different countries. I am not used to how close everything is to each other and the functions of the European Union. Also, because it is a holiday, the gas prices skyrocketed. Luckily we drove to the neighboring city with cheaper gas the day before to fill up before our trip. I am shocked how much it fluctuates regularly, rising the equivalent of a dollar a gallon in 12 hours!! Everything is a lot more expensive, I was shocked at the price of a singular postcard. Also, we stocked up on groceries because everything is closed. Now, we have enough chocolate to last us a very long time. Looking forward to getting back to the routine and naps of the kindergarten next week!
Day 3
Another day with more fun in store for the children and me both. Beginning the day with a stroll (and the kids loading up the Kinderwagon), we ventured to a nearby city playground. I really got to know how walkable Ettlingen and most of Germany is. Everything is foot, bike, and Kinderwagon friendly! However, I am used to the pedestrian right of way but Germany yields to bikes, thus I ended up having three close calls just today where I stopped mere inches away from a certain disastrous collision. Luckily, no collisions occurred but I did have to deal with some upset children when I told them they were not allowed to touch the electric fence. We all were happy to see the horses and livestock out and about during our walk, but even happier to settle down for a midday nap, where I again accompanied the kids, exhausted from my near bicycle mishaps. Overall, today showed me how the kindergarten takes advantage of the accessibility of the neighborhood and the emphasis on car-alternative travel for the environment!
Day 2
Day 2 was successful! I now know how to successfully navigate the route to work on my own and how to manage all the kids. I spent today really getting the know the kids, mostly their routine. For example, when it was naptime at 12:30 I slept right alongside them despite my legs hanging off the miniature mat. That was the highlight of the day, along with sharing an apple with Marc during afternoon snack. Today we were low on help so I had more responsibility and often founded myself outnumbered 7:1. I learned the significance of understanding each kid more, studying their interactions to find what toys one kid likes and what actions make another cry. Though I sometimes lag when processing German instructions, I was a big help when the kids were getting picked up and needed some corralling. The picture is from an earlier walk, where the toddlers and I were both thrilled to see many ducks!
Weitblick Kindergarten Day 1
Today was my first day at the Kita Weitblick Kindergarten in Ettlingen, Germany! I arrived at 8:30 and met the kids I would be working with. After lunch, the kids were set down for nap time. I thought that sounded like a great idea jetlagged and tired as well, but instead I went upstairs to the older kids group. Here, more kids, more energy, and more chaos. I ended up spending time with a group of a few girls practicing speaking and selling each other Fisher Price ice cream. Perhaps the most memorable part of the day was when one girl charged me 20£ for a single cone, but said the extra is donated to Ukraine. A lot of the kids are aware of the crisis, or even came from Ukraine. Thus, they require more assimilation and speaking, precisely where I help out. Though exhausted from the day, I look forward to returning tomorrow and spending more time with them!