Written by 91ֿ alumna Kari Dyer
Teaching abroad set me up perfectly to be a super flexible teacher—I have a love for learning and trying new things because of it!
When I taught in Ireland, at the school I was in we taught every single subject (including Irish language, religion, art, gym, etc.) which is definitely different from most US schools— especially since language and religion were out of my realm. I loved how we were constantly doing cross-curricular activities. In my current school we do have specials teacher but our school day is set up more like that of the one I taught in Ireland than in other U.S. public schools. We follow a Reggio-Emilia based approach and the homeroom teachers engage with students in more aspects of the day (ex. teachers eat alongside our students at one table at lunch & facilitate recess).
My experience abroad, alongside my education from Kent set me up perfectly to provide engaging and hands-on lessons for my students!
I spent my senior year spring semester (2022) student teaching in Kilcummin, Ireland. A village in Kerry County, southwestern Ireland, with a population of about 600. I taught in “first-class” (equivalent to a K-1 class in the U.S.) at the local school, Kilcummin National School (KNS). KNS is a small school with only 5 classrooms in the building, ranging from infants to “sixth-class”.
I stayed with a host family, the McCarthy’s. They picked me up from Killarney train station when I arrived and my host dad and sister gave me a tour of the town.
They pointed out some places they enjoy going to before we went back to their house and my apartment. I can easily say I had the best host situation possible—I had my own space in my apartment but was only steps away from my host family's house. We often spent dinners all together; my favorite was always the Sunday roast. Their 3 dogs, Bear (in the picture), Maisy, and Alfie were always excited to greet me before school each morning!
I am so thankful for all the times they fed me a warm meal, drove me to town, and even brought me along to my host siblings sporting events! I was able to experience so much more because of the opportunities they provided me with. I’ve stayed connected with them over the years and was so happy to be able to visit them last spring!
My classroom was led by Ms. O’Connor and had 21 students ranging from ages 5 to 7. We taught all subject areas (reading, writing, math, science, art, physical education, music, religion, and Irish). Occasionally, the school brought in coaches of different sports (hurling, gymnastics, dancing) would come in to teach gym class. During the school day students have two play times on the blacktop, one during “tea-time” and the other right before lunch. My students often played games we taught them during gym or danced together.
Teachers took turns having lunch during these recess times and administrators covered their classes while the students ate. The curriculum was provided for reading, writing, math, Irish, and religion but we had lots of flexibility to do projects based on student interests. One day, we made ice cream from scratch as a science lesson, something that I had done in my prior field experiences back in America. The students enjoyed customizing their treats while witnessing the change in matter as the milk turned from a liquid to a solid!
These types of inquiry-based projects are something that I have always loved to do as an educator and had spent much of my undergrad learning about so I was thrilled to have the opportunity to create them in my classroom abroad.
Many afternoons and weekends I traveled with other students in the COST program to different parts of Kerry county or other areas of Ireland.
In Kerry we went to the Gap of Dunloe, Torc Waterfall, Ross Castle, and Muckross House and Abbey. We spent a weekend in Dingle, touring Slea Head Drive, where we did a bike tour around the peninsula. We also spent time in Galway, we stopped at the Cliffs of Moher, the Burren, and Kylemore Abbey. During spring break I was able to visit Blarney Castle near Cork and Hook Lighthouse (the oldest Lighthouse in Ireland) near Waterford. I enjoyed getting to learn more in each place about Ireland’s history and was able to connect these visits to different lessons in my classroom while I taught abroad.
I left Ireland feeling more in love with my soon to be career than ever before.
It gave me a fresh outlook on what my classroom could look and feel like. I had new ideas on how I could prepare lessons for my students that not only taught them necessary material but also engaged them in hands-on, inquiry based projects. I am very grateful to have landed at Hawken Lower School to start my teaching career, an independent school in Northeast Ohio that believes in the same kind of education I have learned to love through 91ֿ!