YFU Eesti keeletuur uues kuues!

YFU Eesti on taas korraldamas Keeletuuri! Keeletuur toimub vahemikus 26.01-06.02.2015 ning selle raames külastatakse Tallinna, Harjumaa ja Tartu koole. Keeletuuriga paralleelselt toimub YFU Eesti Facebooki (https://www.facebook.com/YfuEesti) kampaania, kus on võimalik võita auhindu Juustukuningatelt ning Loodusväelt. Samuti leiab aset suur stipendiumikampaania! Õpilastel, kes esitavad oma täielikud taotlusdokumendid hiljemalt kuupäevaks 26.02.2015, avaneb võimalus kandideerida selle hooaja viimases vooruses välja pandavatele stipendiumitele järgnevatelt toetajatelt: LHV Pank, OÜ NG Investeeringud ning Estravel. 

Kuidas me selle info täpsemalt noorteni viime ja milline Keeletuur 2015 välja näeb, võid lugeda juba meie pikaajalise vabatahtliku ning algatuse Noored Kooli esindaja Iiris Oosalu kirjutisest.

Nädalavahetuse veetsin üle pika aja yfukatega. Valmistusime koos YFU keeletuuriks – kahe nädala jooksul käivad yfukad erinevates Eesti koolides ning viivad läbi võõrkeele tunde, kus nad aitavad õpilastel omal nahal kogeda kultuuride erinevusi, mõtisklevad koos selle üle, miks on oluline keelt õppida ja mida on vaja selleks, et multikultuurses maailmas hästi hakkama saada, ning jagavad oma vahetusaasta kogemusi.

Keeletuur on vinge näide, et õppimine ei toimu enam ammu ainult klassikalisel viisil koolipingis istudes – õppimine on mitmetasandiline ning vastastikune. Yfukad avardavad vahetusaastal oma silmaringi, arendavad suhtlemisoskusi, omandavad uue keele, õpivad märkama ja väärtustama kultuurilist mitmekesisust. Keeletuuril toovad nad tükikese sellest kogemusest igasse klassiruumi, kus nad keeletundi annavad. Ka yfukad ise õpivad – tunni andmine on põnev väljakutse igale tuuritajale – mõtestatud tunni läbiviimine, klassitäie õpilaste õppimise toetamine on sulaselge juhtimiskogemus. Seega õpivad nii õpilased kui ka tundi läbi viivad yfukad.

Nädalavahetusel rääkisime tuuritajatega läbi, mis on keeletuuri raames antavate tundide eesmärgid, õppisime, kuidas haarata õpilaste tähelepanu, kuidas muuta tundi õpilaste jaoks tähenduslikuks ja mida silmas pidada nii tundi ette valmistades kui ka läbi viies. Mängisime tundi mitu korda ka praktiliselt läbi, nii et tuuritajad said ise keeletuuri tundi kogeda mitmes rollis – õpetajana, õpilasena, kõrvaltvaataja ja tagasiside andjana. Hea tund sünnib erinevaid vaatenurki arvesse võttes.

Loodan, et nädalavahetus süstis keeletuuril läbiviijatesse sama palju energiat kui minusse. Mul oli suur rõõm näha ja kogeda, millise sära ja energiaga on YFUkad valmis oma kogemusi jagama ning maailma igasse klassiruumi endaga kaasa võtma. 

Iiris Oosalu (käis vahetusaastal Hollandis 2004/2005)

Kui Sul tekkis huvi meie töötoa vastu, siis kirjuta meile ning lepime kokku aja, mil saame külla tulla! :) Samuti on oodatud kõik päringud vahetusõpilaseks hakkamise osas.

In love with music

Tere!

My name is Karl, I am from Germany, 17 years old and I chose the YFU music program for my exchange year here in Estonia.

Why did I choose this program?

First of all: I love music. Music has always made up a big part in my life and that is one of the reasons I chose this program.
The second reason is that I have been playing the trumpet since I was 8 years old and I didn’t want to stop it during my exchange year, I also wanted to improve my instrumental skills during my exchange.

What does this program offer you?

This is actually very different and depends on where you live and which school you are going to visit. You can either attend a normal High School in the morning and visit an extra music school in the afternoon or you visit one of the three music High Schools in Estonia (two in Tallinn, one in Tartu).
Fortunately I am able to visit one of Estonia’s three music High Schools in Tartu, the “Heino Elleri Nimeline Tartu Muusikakool”. There you have normal subjects like Math, English, History, Physics, etc. and of course musical subjects like your main Instrument, Piano, Solfeggio, Music History and if necessary additional singing lessons. The subjects are may be different, depending on your school and individual situation.
Important for me is that I have my main instrument three times a week for 45 minutes. This is much more than in Germany and enables a better and faster learning.
You will probably also take part in ensembles that your school offers, like different orchestras, choirs, etc. depending on your instrument.

Is a certain skill level needed?

This question is not easy to answer. First of all, you have to send a sample of your playing to YFU and they will check out, if it is enough. So don’t be afraid, just give it a try, I think they will find the right place for every level.
In my own opinion it is necessary to have certain skills (by this, I mean at least an intermediate skill level) because then you can enjoy your year much more, you can compete in one of the many contests and play in every ensemble you want.
Estonia’s culture is very strong influenced and connected to music. That’s why they have a very high level in this special field. This should absolutely not scare you. It is a perfect environment to learn more than you ever did.

 

Estonian composer Arvo Pärt

All in all this program is great for anybody who has a strong relation to music and wants to improve his musical skills and learn more about music. Estonia is a great country and offers unique possibilities to get in touch with very talented and also famous musicians. It is possible in such a small country because the star instrumentalist of the national orchestra might be your teacher. The Estonian music scene is very strong connected and allows you to get in touch with very exciting persons.

I really hope I could give you a short impression of this program.
Maybe you will see everything what I wrote down in a few years by your own.

All the best.
Karl
14/15 Estonia

Why Estonia?

Why should one want to spend an exchange year in  Estonia? In this article we will explain why an exchange year in Estonia might just be the greatest year of your life.

Exoticism

Our current exchange students agree that little is known about Estonia. It is even hard to find information about it online. Therefore the first months in Estonia mean constantly experiencing new things. Everything seems fresh and unknown. It really makes you come out of your comfort zone and is therefore more interesting than spending time in a country you already know a lot about. Also, most people will probably think that you are a little bit crazy (in a good way)

for wanting to live in a country like that.

Meelika Riiberg 2013/14 - Estonians are weird sauna-people

The language

Estonian language belongs to the finno-ugric language group. It might sound strange and complicated in the beginning, however, once you start to learn it you will realize that it is not so difficult after all. It is rare to find a foreigner who can speak Estonian – this makes learning the language even more rewarding.

Estonians themselves

In the beginning people might seem cold but once you get to know them they are warm and kind. Therefore creating friendships might take courage but it will pay off as the friends you make here will probably be your friends for a long time. Also, as Estonia is a small country everyone knows everyone and it is easy to visit people in other towns.

The host family is probably the social group the student will spend most time with. On weekdays a normal Estonian family leads a quite busy life (school/work, hobbies) so there is little time to spend together. However, many families dine together in the evening which is also a time to share each other’s joys and sorrows. Weekend is the time for family activities which include visiting relatives/friends, spending time in the countryside, doing sports together, visiting the sauna.

                                                                                      The nature

Jef Declerqc 2013/14

Estonia’s nature is beautiful and untouched with lots of forests, bogs, swamps, lakes… It is quite common for Estonians to visit country houses on the weekends so one will definitely spend time in the nature during the exchange.

The schools

The teachers in Estonia are very social, They try hard to make school as enjoyable as possible and are interested in each student. They are very happy when our exchange students try to speak Estonian.

In addition to this, Estonian schools are very clean (because students have to wear separate school shoes) and the school lunch is delicious!

Jõulud ja vana-aasta õhtu: Serbia vs Eesti

Jõulud ja uue aasta vastuvõtmine on nüüd läbi ning on aeg teha kokkuvõtteid. Serbiast pärit vahetusõpilane Maja räägib  jõulu- ja uusaasta traditsioonidest Serbias ja Eestis – erinevustust, sarnasustest ja kõigest muust olulisest.

                                                                                                         Jõululaud Serbias

Serbias on suurem osa elanikkonnast õigeusklikud. Kuna õigeusklikud kasutavad Juliuse kalendrit, tähistatakse jõule 7. jaanuaril. Paar nädalat enne seda paastutakse: keelatud on loomsete produktide (munad, liha- ja piimatooted) söömine ning lubatud on vaid kala. Tänapäeval siiski ei ole selle traditsiooni järgimine kohustuslik, kuna korralikult söömata on keeruline käia tööl ja kolis.

Päev enne jõule süüakse väga vähe ja tegeletakse jõululõuna valmistamisega. Enne jõulupäeva valmistatakse „badnjaki“, mis koosneb  kuivatatud tammeokstest, maisist ning kuivatatud nisust. Seda säilitatakse laua all kuni jõulupäevani, mil „badnjakid“ põletatakse kirikute ees üle Serbia. Jõuluhommikul minnakse kirikusse liturgiale ning seejärel on istutakse perega sööma. Tarbitakse Serbia toitu nagu sarma, prebranac, podvarak, pita ning magusaid asju nagu orasnice, vanilice ja suured koogid (väga kalorirohked aga väga maitsvad). Eesti jõulutoit on mõnes mõttes sarnane aga ka erinev. Samamoodi nagu Serbias süüakse kartuleid ja liha aga lisaks sellele ka verivorste, hapukapsast ja magustoiduna piparkooke.

                                                                                                           Maja jõulud Eestis

Serbias tähistasin jõule oma vanemate, vanavanemate, onu ja koeraga. Nagu igal pool mujal on laud toidu all lookas aga erinevalt teistest riikidest ei saa me kingitusi. Need saame me uue aasta õhtul, mil kingitused kogutakse jõulupuu alla. Me saame nad kätte ilma Jõuluvanale luuletust lugemata. Jõuluvanale luuletuste lugemise traditsioon üllatas mind Eestis, ent samas on see ka hea, kuna siis on lapsed motiveeritud luuletusi õppima. Tänapäeval on sarnane komme tekkimas ka Serbias: Jõuluvana kutsutakse firmade jõulupidudele ja töötajate lapsed saavad kingitusi.

Vana-aasta õhtul valmistatakse samuti pidulik lõuna, peale mida jäävad vanemad enamasti koju või lähevad restorani ning noored lähevad peole. On ka eraldi õigeusu uusaasta 11. jaanuaril, mil kõik on nagu tavaliselt välja arvatud see, et noored tähistavad seda kas kodus pidusid korraldades või klubides.

Jõulukaunistused nagu advendipärg või –kalender ei ole väga populaarsed. Aga see ei olegi oluline: igal pool üle maailma on jõulud aeg, mis veedetakse perega, andestuse ja headuse aeg, uute alguste ja enesetäienduse aeg; aeg, mis on täidetud armastuse, õrnusega ja hoolega.

PS. Vahel on meil ka lund! HAA!

Maja Simišić, vahetusõpilane Eestis 14/15 (Serbia, Belgrad) 

Christmas and New Year's Eve: Serbia vs Estonia

Have you ever thought what winter holidays in Estonia are? Our exchange student Maja from Serbia agreed to share the differences and similarities between Christmas and New Year celebration in her home country and in Estonia. 

In Serbia most of the population are Orthodox. The Orthodox community uses the old Julian calendar so they celebrate Christmas on the 7^th of January. A couple of weeks before Christmas they fast: it is a  period were basically anything what is from animals (eggs, milk products, meat) is not consumed; just fish is allowed. Not everybody does that that, I guess, because it it hard to go to school or job without eating properly.                    

                                                                                                         Christmas food in Serbia

The day before Christmas is the day when we eat very little food and prepare some food for the Christmas meal. Before Christmas day we also have “badnjak” which is a mix of dried oak tree branches, a little bit of corn and a little bit of dried wheat.  We store it under the table until the evening before the Christmas day, when all the “badnjak” are burned together in front of  churches all around Serbia. On Christmas morning we go to church for liturgy and at home there is a big family lunch or dinner (or something in between) with a lot of special Serbian food such as sarma, prebranac, podvarak, pita,…and so on, and of course something sweet like orasnice, vanilice and big cakes (with a lot of calories, but also very tasty!). In Estonia the Christmas food is also similar but on the other hand totally different. In Estonia we also eat potatoes and meat, but in addition to this verivorstid (blood sausages) and hapukapsas (sauerkraut) and for dessert here is piparkook (gingerbread).               

                                                                                                          Maja's Christmas in Estonia

In Serbia I celebrated Christmas mostly together with my parents, grandparents, uncle and dog. There is always a lot of food like all around the world when people are celebrating Christmas but we don`t get presents on Christmas like everywhere else. No, we get them on New Year’s Eve when the presents are under the Christmas tree and we take them without saying a poem to the Santa Claus. Therefore a very weird thing for me in Estonia was that on Christmas Eve children get presents: they sing to Santa Claus and then he gives them the presents from his big bag. It is weird, but also cool, because children then have motivation to learn different poems. Nowadays we have a similar tradition in Serbia: Santa is invited to companys’ Christmas parties and the children of the workers get presents before New Year’s Eve.                                                                                                                                      
After the New Year’s Eve dinner the parents mostly stay home or go to restaurants to celebrate, and the “teenagers” (like me) go to different kind of parties. We also have our “Orthodox” New Year’s Eve on the 11^th of January where usually everything works like normally, just the youngsters celebrate it  at home or in clubs.

Christmas decorations such as Advent wreath or Advent calendar are not so popular in Serbia. But it doesn`t matter when or where: everywhere around the world Christmas is a time to be  with family, a time of forgiveness and goodness, a time to start over and improve yourself; it is filled with love and tenderness and shows that we should be more together and care for each other. So Christmas is not very different in Serbia and Estonia

And btw sometimes we have also snow! HA!

Maja Simišić, exchange student in Estonia 14/15 (Serbia, Belgrade)