The most asked question we get about hosting exchange students, besides “they still do that?” (I even asked that too!), is WHY? And do we like it? Well we are on year three and have signed up for year four already so I guess we like it.
We had one student for year one and two (lingo alert: double placement) ever since; totaling 5 students to date with 2 more waiting in the wings. All young ladies. And to be honest we only host female students because as a woman I don’t want to put a bra on while I am at home. Ha! No, seriously, that is one of my reasons. Other reasons include: females are generally more open, they don’t have that “teenage boy” smell, and they easier to keep alive.
So that is why we host female students, nothing against the guys, but that is what works for us.
Okay, back to the reasons why to host.
Most will tell you its a fantastic experience and it changed their lives. Sappy? Yes. True? Also yes. I don’t like getting sappy and lovey-dovey, it’s just not me, but seriously…these ladies have changed our world. We don’t have kids of our own, so this was a way to experience “parenthood” without too much actual parenting. Now, I am told that having an exchange student in your home with kids is just as worth it; your kids get a new sibling and learn about a culture they might not have otherwise. And we all could afford to learn a little bit more about the world and the amazing people in it!
What do I mean by “changed my world”? Well for starts: I am now going to high schools sports games, plays, prom pictures, and the such. Wouldn’t be doing that otherwise. But I have also learned so much about myself. I have learned to have hard conversations with teenagers that have only been in my home only a month or so. I have also learned how to be a bit more “sappy” and expressing my feelings. Because they need to hear that you care and that you are not just tolerating their existence. I do care about them all so much and include them as my family. I love my girls! (I did say it might get sappy in here).
So yes, hosting an exchange student makes your world bigger and brings you another family member. Actually it usually brings you a few new family members, because their parents are so happy that you are taking such good care of their baby that they want you to be family too. So I have family and homes to visit in Germany, Italy, Norway, and Switzerland. And hopefully more to come! We truly have an international family.
Now, all this amazingness doesn’t discount that there will be days that you ask yourself “wtf was I thinking?”. Because “raising” foreign teenagers can be exhausting! But then they say something technically correct but in the funniest way; we had a student ask for “scotch”….like the tape but it took us a minute because we have the adult beverage Scotch in the house and then had to explain we just call it “tape”. Or they are amazed at something you that you are so used to its barely a thought, like deer crossing the road (we live in the country). And then you are like…”oh yeah that’s why”. I suppose it’s similar to watching your own child grow: you get to watch someone experience new things for the very first time. And you get to watch them mature and grow as humans; they get better at English, they learn to be more independent, they learn our history and culture, and they even take on our idioms. And so much more!
The final reason I have for you to host an exchange student is that it is fun. We do so much more than what we would do by ourselves. We love showing them our area, what we did as kids, what we wished we did as kids, and other parts of the country as well.
So if now you believe me that you should host an international exchange student, talk to your family about it and then contact me and I can get you in touch with my company (if you are out of my area, as I am a coordinator as well as host mom).