A new building isn’t the only change for some second grade students at Northside Elementary this semester. They also have a new instructor, Beth Kornman, an exchange teacher from Australia.
Northside second grade teacher Amy Callen swapped schools and houses with Kornman, who comes from a small school in Oberon, a town of about 2,500 three hours west of Sydney. The exchange will last through the end of the calendar year to coincide with the Australian school year.
Kornman said the students and staff at the school are helping ease the transition, answering questions and making sure she feels at home.
“The kids were very accepting. They’re just lovely,” she said.
Callen thoroughly prepared her students for their new teacher, including introducing them to some Australian words and phrases. They were delighted the first time they heard their new teacher call a cardigan sweater a “jumper.”
“One student said ‘Oh, I’ve been waiting for you to say that.’ They love all the different words.”
Kornman said there have been a few minor misunderstandings due to a difference in vernacular, but the students in her class are excited to hear the Australian words and phrases.
When she told them to put their work under their desk instead of in it, papers ended up in piles on the floor. “I laughed about it and the students laughed about it once we realized what the misunderstanding was,” she said.
Kornman has been teaching elementary students since 1984 and spent time in the Outback teaching students who lived in areas too remote for them to attend a regular school.
She has also been an exchange teacher in Edmonton, Alberta and Boulder, Colo.
Her Australian home is nestled in the countryside and she said she likes the rural feel of Nebraska City. “It’s nice to look out and see fields,” she said.
Kornman said she has had a positive experience meeting the locals. “Everyone I’ve met has been so kind, friendly and helpful,” she said.
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A new building isn’t the only change for some second grade students at Northside Elementary this semester. They also have a new instructor, Beth Kornman, an exchange teacher from Australia.
Northside second grade teacher Amy Callen swapped schools and houses with Kornman, who comes from a small school in Oberon, a town of about 2,500 three hours west of Sydney. The exchange will last through the end of the calendar year to coincide with the Australian school year.
Kornman said the students and staff at the school are helping ease the transition, answering questions and making sure she feels at home.
“The kids were very accepting. They’re just lovely,” she said.
Callen thoroughly prepared her students for their new teacher, including introducing them to some Australian words and phrases. They were delighted the first time they heard their new teacher call a cardigan sweater a “jumper.”
“One student said ‘Oh, I’ve been waiting for you to say that.’ They love all the different words.”
Kornman said there have been a few minor misunderstandings due to a difference in vernacular, but the students in her class are excited to hear the Australian words and phrases.
When she told them to put their work under their desk instead of in it, papers ended up in piles on the floor. “I laughed about it and the students laughed about it once we realized what the misunderstanding was,” she said.
Kornman has been teaching elementary students since 1984 and spent time in the Outback teaching students who lived in areas too remote for them to attend a regular school.
She has also been an exchange teacher in Edmonton, Alberta and Boulder, Colo.
Her Australian home is nestled in the countryside and she said she likes the rural feel of Nebraska City. “It’s nice to look out and see fields,” she said.
Kornman said she has had a positive experience meeting the locals. “Everyone I’ve met has been so kind, friendly and helpful,” she said.
