I think the English exchange has been an enjoyable and unique experience I would definitely recommend to everyone learning a foreign language.
When we arrived I felt really welcome. At the beginning I was a bit confused that the English drive on the left side but I soon got used to that. I felt really welcome with my host family and integrated quickly into their daily routine.
During the week we went on different trips where we were able to see lots of interesting and educational sights such as Stratford-upon-Avon or the Black Country Museum. Lilly: “My favourite one was the trip to Stratford and the day in school because the teachers and the other students were friendly.” Laura: “One of my favourite trips was the tour through the Safari Park, where we could see a lot of wild animals and got to visit a fun-park afterwards.“
On Monday morning we saw Arden School for the first time. There we were welcomed by the principal Mr.Murphy. Shortly after that, the small group of German students and teachers immediately left school to go to the West Midlands Safari Park on the minibus owned by the school. There we were driven through the enclosures of the animals. Sometimes lions were so close to us that only the door of the car divided us from the wild animals.

After we had gone through all enclosures we visited a fun-park where a free-fall tower and roller coaster and many other things could be found. Some of us convinced the teachers to take a ride with us, which they thoroughly regretted afterwards.

On Tuesday we visited the Black Country Museum. It is an open-air living-history museum in Dudley where we explored the history of the creation of the world's first industrial landscape. We were first led through a mine and after that we went into different houses where the staff dressed in Victorian clothes told us about the times back then and we were able to ask lots of questions. We even took part in a Victorian lesson, which was strict!

Time had flown and it was already Wednesday. We stayed at school for a whole day with our exchange partners. We realized that school life in England is completely different - even the teachers are! Some of us experimented in Chemistry and some just talked about the French Revolution, however, it was a great day and all of us made a lot of new friends.
On Thursday we went to Stratford-upon-Avon by coach, which was really interesting. I learned lots of new facts about Shakespeare. We visited his birthplace and other places that were important in his life. It was quite good but it rained a lot and it was windy too so I was a bit cold – a typical English June... So it was good that we also went shopping after the town trail and I could go to shops which we don’t have in Germany, so I really enjoyed visiting them.
On Friday we went to the town centre of Solihull. There we had lots of free time after visiting a church, which all of us enjoyed. Many of us went shopping, bought souvenirs or clothes. We went back to school and took part in the fourth and fifth period of our exchange partners. In the afternoon, we played Lasertag, which I had never done before. So I was a bit confused at the beginning but it was quite fun. In the evening we met at an exchange student’s house, where we listened to music, played football and ate pizza and ice cream. I really enjoyed being there with everyone taking part in the exchange and having fun.
On our last day before our departure we were free to do what we wanted. Some went to London, Stratford-upon-Avon, a cricket match or stayed at home and went swimming.
On Sunday we flew back to Frankfurt. I was very sad that the week was over, but I decided to come back again – a few of us have even planned a private exchange. The exchange has, so far, been one of the best experiences in my life and, to my surprise, I didn’t really have problems with understanding and speaking English. I am sure I have learned a lot about English culture, the English language and I would be glad if more English students were interested in doing an exchange with Germany, because in the end we can say that we really made friends with our partners.
Lilly Bormann (8c), Laura Koke (8e), Ali Batu Pesen (8f)