Bonjour!

This past week, I haven't done anything exciting! Just got back into the normal school week, and didn't even take a single picture. I had a semi-busy weekend, however. On Friday, I went to a dinner with all the AFS students in Montpellier at my friend Iveta's house. I love visiting with the other host families and my friends! On Saturday, we had some friends over for dinner too. With the elections coming up, the adults had a lot of debating to do over dinner. Sunday, I had another soccer game. This time, things went much more smoothly! We won 4-3 and I assisted 3 of our 4!

Because nothing else exciting has happened in the past week, I will note some of the differences between school in the United States and school in France.

1. There is no particular room for a teacher. At my high school, each teacher has their own room with their desk and computers etc. etc. Here, almost every class is in a different building, let alone room,  each day…we are constantly in contact with our friends to see if a teacher has said anything about where we are to be.
2. Everyone in your class is in all our your classes. That being said, it is hard to know a lot of people outside of your class, which I really hate!
3. Every class has a different schedule. At Foothill, almost all students start at 8, with the exception of 0 period, and end after 6th period or sport. But here, some kids start at 8 while others start at 1pm.
4. Homework/tests are much different. Homework is optional and almost never collected. Tests and quizzes are never multiple choice, or even have a single answer. My last history test was just two blank pages with a question at the top of the first saying, "Write down everything you know about the totalitarianism governments in the 20th century."
5. Lunch is never brought from home. Everyday, everyone either walks into town and eats at a cafe or restaurant, or eats in the Cantine. The cantine at my school is not very popular though, because nobody likes the food.
6. Lunch is long. We normally have an hour and 15 minutes to eat, but sometimes I get 3, and even some days, 4 hour lunches.
7. There are no electronics rules. Cell phones, ipods, and laptops are completely permitted at all times. Obviously, you can't talk on the phone when your teaching is lecturing, but a few texts is perfectly normal.
8. The students are very focused always. Even with the rules so lenient, teachers never have to ask people to be quiet or pay attention—parents stress education A LOT here, and their kids do not disappoint.
9. There are no sports teams, student government, dances, or clubs. School is for learning, and that is all. Oh, and no lockers either!
10. Girls do not carry backpacks. At all. I really hate this as everyday I have to carry an oversized bag on my arm full of books and notebooks. It's very inconvenient and leaves me with a lot of shoulder aches…

That's all for now! Bisous