Have You Ever Hosted A Foreign Exchange Student? How Did It Go?

[wilkeliza]

If I were a woman, I'd be ticked off, too. Have you ever tried to put a marshmallow in a piggy bank?

They are not like that at all. What upsets most ladies is you might have to get a little dirty to use a non applicator type. The non applicator types are actually a lot better for the environment because then there isn't a bunch of plastic out in landfills.

I don't want to derail this thread too much but definitely not a marshmallow in a piggy bank situation haha.

 

[Magpie]

If I were a woman, I'd be ticked off, too. Have you ever tried to put a marshmallow in a piggy bank?

Uh... it's really not like that at all. I've never had any difficulty, other than needing to wash my hands right after (which I'm obviously going to do anyway after using the toilet, so no biggie).

I actually don't like the applicator types, unless they're flushable. I don't want to get stuck with it, in the event I can't find a trash bin in easy reach.

 

[tzolkin]

The difference is that in Europe they just don't have applicators they just have the tampon. I would have just bought the poor kid O.B. tampons when are the same thing as what they use in Europe i.e. sans applicator.

Yes, that's what we wound up buying. She was just looking at all the options (plastic, cardboard, mini) and was completely overwhelmed and confused. I use a cup and really had no idea what types of tampons most teenagers (American or otherwise) have a preference for.

 

[teacherlisa1978]

I'm a host mom getting ready for my second year with high school students from China. This year I have a sophomore and a junior, both boys. I fully admit that I do it for the stipend (single mom and a teacher-this allows for extras in our life we would not normally have) but also try to provide a great experience for the boys. Last year's students preferred not to attend family events or get together with our friends but they were invited.

This year one of our students seems much more interested in doing things with us so I will offer to take him on our outings, to meals out, as I did before, and expect that he will want to join in. The boys last year really wanted more of a hotel type experience I think.

They do their own laundry, clean up after themselves, and make their own dinner once a week. I provide all the food unless they decide to go out with friends or purchase lunch at school. They make their own brown bag lunches for school but again, I provide the food they ask for.

Their only other chores are: 1 is tasked with cleaning their bathroom once a week and the other is asked to take out the household garbage and recycling (not my room) once a week. Should be a 10-15 minute chore tops.

I also expect that they will eat dinner with us, converse, be pleasant and polite. They chose a homestay because they wanted to learn conversational English and if they hide out in their rooms they won't learn it.

If you have questions, OP, or anyone else, just ask. I've learned a LOT in the past year!

 

[kbmartin]

I haven't had students living in my home, but as a teacher, I know a little bit about exchange students. I've had two. My first was from Austria and was taking Spanish 101 with me. Her English was great, and she was a phenomenal student in my Spanish class. (She was in a naughty class, and the kids sometimes would be snarky and mutter that she was a "try hard," which made me furious.) The second was a German student when I taught ninth grade English. She was shy and quiet and never quite fit in with the other kids, despite my every attempt to match her up with really nice kids. She was very pleasant, though. We read Night by Elie Wiesel when she was with me, and I know she felt extremely awkward, being from Germany and all. I felt like I was on tiptoes the whole unit. However, she was able to help with a lot of the German words that we mispronounced.

I've also had a number of French students and teachers visiting my classroom, as one of our French teachers runs a very strong exchange program. They usually come around Thanksgiving and stay with students who are in his French classes. They do a ton of excursions, like traveling to Chicago, Black Friday shopping, etc. The students and teachers are in school for a couple days only. The students go to all of their host's classes when they are not on excursions. My students are always extremely distracted and want to ask the French students tons of questions. They don't always speak good English so sometimes they are kind of shy and don't know how to respond. The teachers also observe classes. I've had French teachers in my classroom a couple of times, and both times they have asked if I can give them a textbook (we can't spare them so it's always kind of awkward).

My close friend hosts French students every year and has had great experiences when they come during the summer for about a month. The stipend allows her family to do things they normally would not (she is a single mom and fellow teacher). She reluctantly agreed to host a student at the beginning of the school year last year, and it was not a good time to do so as that time is beyond busy for teachers. I only know of one bad thing that happened with the exchange program over the summer last year - one of the students was found to be doing drugs/drinking and was sent home immediately. My friend's exchange student knew all about it and said she was kind of "naughty" at home in France, too.

 

[Grumpy's Gal]

Don't they have "hypermarkets" in Germany? I remember reading about how they basically invented them in France, and I though there were at least a few similar businesses in Germany.

Maybe they didn't have them where she lived.

 

[NHdisneylover]

Maybe they didn't have them where she lived.

I'm thinking more along the lines that this must have been 15 or more years ago. Pretty much every area in Germany has large stores these days.
Costco and other big bulk item stores are still really different but big grocery stores with lots of produce, that also sell some toys, clothes, electronics, etc are common here now (as are the butchers and farm stands and produce stores, thankfully those have not gone away)

 

[MattsPrincess]

Not me, but my ex husband's family hosted a girl from Australia our senior year of HS. It was awful! She was a stuck up brat that was used to a much different life style. All she wanted to do was party and drink...she was 15 or 16 and couldn't understand why exMil wasn't ok with it because in Australia it's normal? She ended up switching houses after a while (unofficially) to stay with a girl she'd made friends with. The family was relieved when she left.

 

[thepicklebee]

I was an exchange student and I lived with a family with two young children. I was welcomed like one of the family and did my best to always contribute with chores and things like that.

I would love to host when my daughter is older. I would have preferred the kids in my host family to have been my peers and not young kids so I'd rather provide the same for any kids we host.

 

[Grumpy's Gal]

I apologize if this has been asked before, but:

A local woman works with a foreign exchange program, and she went on the town Facebook page recently, practically begging for people to be host families. I half-jokingly told her that I'd consider it if I had a spare bed, and she told me she'd start making phone calls.

I actually think it might be fun to host a kid from another country, provided that:

a) He was an only child at home, because he'd be an only child here.
b) He was non-religious, because we aren't church-goers.
C) He wasn't allergic to cats.

I'm not a parent, but I do have a "less is more" attitude towards parenting, so as long as he stayed out of my doob, treated the cat OK, and flushed the toilet, I see little room for conflict.

If you've hosted a foreign exchange student, what was the experience like?

curious if everyone's answers made you feel more positive or negative about the possibility of hosting a student.....

 

[rastahomie]

curious if everyone's answers made you feel more positive or negative about the possibility of hosting a student.....

If anything more positive!

I believe the good outweighs the bad in this life. If something happens and we're not a fit, we'll make some phone calls and wish the lad or lass well in his or her new placement.

We're going to look into an 8-week placement to begin with. The facilitator is trying to find out if those are only summer placements or if they have them for the school year as well.

 

[Alice Sr.]

I would not take a student without reading their bio first. You can tell that there are many that are coming over for the time of their life, unless that's ok with you, of course. We had a German boy who got along great in school, he was very social and was very enthusiastic about all things American; except my youngest DD, lol, they fought like true siblings. He was from Nuremberg, his sister was Miss Chriskind for Nuremberg that year so she came to Chicago (Chicago and Nuremberg are like sister cities) to kick off the Chriskind Market and flip the City Christmas tree on at Daley Plaza. He came back for a visit a couple of years later with a friend and stayed for a couple of weeks. I think he went to WDW with us twice, we had him for a year, and also when he came back with his friend. He's a pilot for Lufthansa now so I wish I had stayed in touch with him and taken his parents offer to come visit them.

We also had a girl from Japan, she was very quiet but I think her ability to speak/understand English was a real obstacle. She went to WDW with us also, on the way down we stopped in TN and picked up one of her friends (also an ES) who was the complete opposite. A real live wire, the perkiest, funniest little girl, I was so happy that they could get together. It was good to see Miwako come out of her shell even for just a week. Her parents also invited us to come and stay with them, but Japan was never on my bucket list. I don't think either of my girls see her on FB.

I would reiterate, read the bios and also maybe pick someone from a country you are interested in and would like to visit, you will probably get an invite . Good luck!

 

[Alice Sr.]

If anything more positive!

I believe the good outweighs the bad in this life. If something happens and we're not a fit, we'll make some phone calls and wish the lad or lass well in his or her new placement.

We're going to look into an 8-week placement to begin with. The facilitator is trying to find out if those are only summer placements or if they have them for the school year as well.

Oh just saw that you are starting with a 8 week stay. You should be fine, it's more important to find a good fit if it's for the whole school year!

 

[ols386]

Sorry for your rough family life growing up. Yes some just place kids for the $$$$ like any business there are good reputable ones and bad ones. A lot of money changes hands but the host family gets nothing. Some families will pay anything to get their kids a US visa and have the money to spare. And some kids think everything is NYC or LA.

So the parents of the kids get paid to send their kids to the U.S., to get rid of them AND to get paid?

 

[tzolkin]

So the parents of the kids get paid to send their kids to the U.S., to get rid of them AND to get paid?

No, the parents of the exchange student pay the organization a fee (I know some are up to $10,000) to place their child with a host family.

 

[ols386]

No, the parents of the exchange student pay the organization a fee (I know some are up to $10,000) to place their child with a host family.

Oh ok. Do the parents of the students view their child going to u. s. as a great opportunity?

 

[Colleen27]

Interesting thread. We've considered doing this after DS19 moves out, because our girls' school welcomes several Chinese exchange students every year and they're always searching for suitable host families. Right now, we just don't have the room but as the older kids head off on their own I think having an exchange student for the year might be a neat experience for our youngest.

 

[Arkansan]

My family hosted an exchange student from Finland when I was a Junior in HS. He came with Rotary International and stayed for 4 months. Overall, it was a good experience. He was only a month or two older than me, but the school made him a Senior, as it is a big deal to graduate from an American HS. He had his own money and received a monthly stipend from the local Rotary club. My parents did not get any money for hosting him. He also got many things donated to him--a HS letter jacket (he was a tennis player), a yearbook, indoor tennis lessons, etc. He generally fit into our family well. My parents had some gender bias that revealed itself. I remember they let him stay out later than me for a school Homecoming dance because he "had to bring his date home." I told them that, "I AM somebody's date!" I do remember that my father had to have a hygiene talk with him--taught him about deodorant and putting his clothing into the wash more frequently. (He would shower, but then put the same clothes back on.) He was not allowed to drive (I'm pretty sure he didn't have a license anyway, but it was forbidden.) or drink. We taught him to waterski and took him to many places around the state. He also travelled around the US with the other students. They went to Washington DC and NYC. We were his first family that year (by design, all Rotary students rotate families). We had two HS aged female kids. His second family had several Elementary aged kids and this third was a childless couple who were both HS teachers. I think he got a pretty good representation of American life. He played tennis, sang in the choir, and was in the school musical. We did keep in touch for many years, but it was before Facebook and cell phones so we eventually lost touch.

 

[Kerry Ferguson]

Hosting a student in the UK is a very different experience to hosting in the USA. In the UK host families get expenses for hosting. There is no profit in this but the organisation placing the student must help out with the cost of food and household bills. Also in the UK most families host two students so they keep each other company and that each of them doesn't feel alone away from their parents. In the UK we have many host families but they have to be carefully vetted and screened they have to undergo criminal background checks and receive two interviews. All families are allocated a family support officer who keeps in touch with the family to see if everything is running smoothly.

Kerry Ferguson
Host Family Expert for Study Abroad UK

 

[Prince_Hawkins]

Hosting a student in the UK is a very different experience to hosting in the USA. In the UK host families get expenses for hosting. There is no profit in this but the organisation placing the student must help out with the cost of food and household bills. Also in the UK most families host two students so they keep each other company and that each of them doesn't feel alone away from their parents. In the UK we have many host families but they have to be carefully vetted and screened they have to undergo criminal background checks and receive two interviews. All families are allocated a family support officer who keeps in touch with the family to see if everything is running smoothly.

Kerry Ferguson
Host Family Expert for Study Abroad UK

My family never hosted any international students while I was growing up (we were too poor)...but I always daydreamed about the possibility of being a foreign exchange student in the United Kingdom (from America). Largely so I could expose myself to different perspectives of British culture while also being able to offer them my own individual perspective of the world as an American.

I also daydreamed it would have been kewl to be placed with a family where I'd have a host brother(s), since I never grew up with brothers of my own.