On Monday we arrived at the school around 8:30 and got onto the bus. Two and a half hours later we arrived in Kamminke, got our rooms, and had a teachers meeting to review the schedule for the week. Then it was time for lunch. After lunch the students played games to get to know each other and break the ice a bit. We then took a walk down to the Kamminker Hafen (harbor) before dinner. After dinner Jesse and I went back to our room and I watched some German TV and got to bed early.
Tuesday began with breakfast and a walk to the Golm War Cemetary. The students were charged with filling out a worksheet as they walked around the cemetery. They were then given some information about a particular person buried there, and they were asked to summarize the information and present it to their classmates. This was a tough excursion, as I was starting to notice the students who had a tendency to act out to impress their friends. It was difficult getting everyone to listen up to the presentations, and at this point I was also unsure how much of a supervisory role I had on this trip, so I didn't want to overstep my bounds.
After lunch we took a bus to Ahlbeck on the Baltic Sea and walked through the town and along the beach to Heringsdorf. Jesse and I were often surprised on this trip how much autonomy the 8th graders were given, and this excursion was no exception. Students were given free reign around the town until the designated meeting time, and they were also asked to find their way back to the train station themselves. Of course, some of them were late, but overall it went surprisingly well.
On Tuesday evening after dinner Jesse and I went over to the recreational room to see what the students were up to in their free time. We ended up playing one game of Foosball and hours worth of table tennis. I had never played table tennis before, but by the end I was feeling pretty comfortable with the game. It was also fantastic getting to know some of the students a little better, and I think they liked seeing me have fun and make a fool of myself!
It ended up being really good that Jesse and I were there to keep an eye on the students, because elsewhere the teachers were doing room checks. They did find some contraband, and some students had to call their parents and explain the situation. After 10:00, which is the time that all students needed to be in their rooms, Jesse and I walked around, broke up parties, and herded students into their rooms. It was tough, because there was so much gossiping and drama going around, but eventually things started quieting down and we headed off to bed ourselves.
Wednesday was a day spent at the youth hostel. In the morning, students listened to a presentation about youth during Nationalsozialismus. Again, it was tough to keep the students attentive; many of them were passing notes or just falling asleep. Then in the afternoon students participated in a ropes course. It was fun watching them go from trying to complete the course individually to working together as a team. Once they had completed the course (whenever someone touched the ground, everyone in the entire group had to go back), they identified teamwork as being an important quality that helped them be successful. Dinner was a grill-out, and then Jesse and I went and played Tischtennis again for a couple hours. Jesse also wowed some of the students with his card tricks and explanations of his life in Nebraska.
We ended the night with another patrol to make sure students were where they needed to be, but it went quickly this time around. I was also pleasantly surprised that the students seemed to be listening to me when I asked them to get to their rooms. I had found my place as a supervisor on the trip, and I felt like I was doing a good job. The teachers also mentioned later how much of a help Jesse and I were in this area.
Thursday was my favorite day, because I got to ride a bike for the first time in 12 years! I was a little nervous, but riding a bike really does seem to be something you don't forget how to do. We all rode together to Swinemünde in Poland, and then the students were given time to go on a Fotosafari and take pictures of certain locations in the Altstadt. We had pizza for lunch and then had a little more free time in the town. The plan was to ride down to the beach, but unfortunately the rain was only getting worse, so we just rode back to the youth hostel.
After dinner, the students had a Discoabend. It was funny seeing this middle school dance in action, because so many of the students didn't want to dance or only danced for a couple songs. The dance ended up petering out a little early, so Jesse and I put on some of our own music and hung out with a couple students who wandered in after that.
The next day we cleaned up our rooms and headed back to Löckntiz. Jesse and I were really excited to get some sleep when we got back to our apartment, but other than being worn out, we were glad we were able to go on this trip. I felt like I got to know these students a bit better and I was able to establish my role in the group fairly well. I also have so many wonderful memories of the trip, since it was also nice for me from a travel perspective. I got to go to Poland and a couple towns on the Baltic Sea. I have already been asked if Jesse and I want to go with the 11th graders to Berlin in November or December, so I have another trip to look forward to!
- Amy
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