Last day of School

Today was my last day of school. I can't believe how fast these past 7 months have gone! Saying goodbye to my students and the teachers at my school was both sad and awkward (what do you say to people that you know that you will most likely never see again? Have a nice life?). I have really enjoyed being able to give the gift of a foreign language to my students. Most of all though, they'v'e given me so much joy, laughter and fun times that most of the time, I forgot that I was even at work.

One of the most unique parts of my assistantship was the school that I was placed in itself. Being one of only 3 immersion schools in France, Jean Jaurès in Nancy is so unique in the system that most French people that I now are unawere that it even exists. The fact that it is a public school where the students (as of now) who are in the first, second and third grades spend half of their hours learning in English made being at JJ so easy and interesting! I'm sad to leave my students and their wonderful teachers who welcomed me with open arms and who were so wonderful to work with!

I'm going to miss being called Jenny-fur, the way that my students answered "I'm happy" when asked how they were, being a mini celebrity on the playground, being asked to play hopscotch by students who didn't speak English almost every recess, being tackled by one particular student in a huge bear hug every time she saw me, the way that the students mimicked almost everything I said (especially "goodness gracious"), and most of all, the chorus of "Hello Jenny-fur" that rang through the class whenever I walked in the room. These children have really made it difficult to say goodbye and I know that I will always look back on this year and feel blessed.

On my last day of class, I went to the swimming pool (where one student happened to have an accident and for the second time of my life, I've had poop on my leg), read 2 stories to my classes, got numerous hugs from a few students before telling them it was my last day, got a HUGE bear hug from the majority of my class, was greeted with lots of groans and boos when they found out I wasn't coming back from vacation and had a little boy tear up after realizing I was leaving. It was a lovely day that reinforced the wonderful feelings of this year that I've been having. While I'm sad to leave JJ, I'm excited to go forth on my journey in life and will forever hold this experience near and dear to my heart.