28 May 2009 a visit to the Yli-Ii School

    I was invited by language teacher **Sirpa Walton** to visit the **Yli-Ii School**.  Ms. Walton teaches English and Swedish to middle school students.  All Finnish school kids study English and Swedish, and some take German or Russian as well.  Ms. Walton is Finnish but is married to an Englishman, which is why her last name will sound familiar to my North American readers.

Yli-Ii is a rural community about 40 miles from Oulu.  It has a combined elementary and middle school with about 300 students.  After they graduate from this place students can opt for high school or technical training in other towns.

I spoke with some middle school students about school in California, and showed them some pictures of Sir Francis Drake High School.  They were attentive but shy, as I was told they would be.  I believe these young people haven’t yet traveled much.

They had recently completed an assignment to research and plan a dream trip to the United States.  Most opted to visit California or New York, but Las Vegas was also popular.

An elementary school class sang me a song (in Finnish) about spring.  In it, all the woodland animals are happy that spring is here and they plan a party to celebrate.

It was a really fun visit and I will go back tomorrow. 

The teachers know that most of of their students will move away from Yli-Ii.  There are few opportunities here for a young adult, and many opportunities in Oulu, Helsinki, and abroad.  They are doing everything they can to prepare their students for a future in the wider world, and are eager to make contacts. 

Ms. Walton and I discussed creating some kind of on-going relationship between the Yli-Ii School and the archaeology team, or between her school and an American school.  We are still just at the thinking about it stage, so if you are an American teacher reading this and have suggestions or want to develop a partnership with a Finnish school, I would love to hear from you!  (mwing [at] tamdistrict.org) These kids are shy but sweet, and they have a lot to offer.  And, not every school has reindeer wandering around outside.  I believe they are computer-savvy and have good internet access.

Update on May 29:  I returned the next day and was able to introduce our leader Professor Ezra Zubow to three teachers at the Yli-Ii school:  Sirpa Walton, Kyosti Rajanen, and Ville Yuorinen. I do not know if I will ever come back here, but as a result of our conversations it appears that next year there will be a closer relationship and more sharing between the school, the Kierikki Stone Age Center, and Zubrow's team.

Kyosti Rajanen is a real woodsman, and in addition to teaching biology and geography, he actually teaches an elective course in hunting and fishing!  Finnish kids can hunt at 15, and he takes them to a shooting range and out into the woods.  Also, he teaches them to tie their own flies and  catch fish.  How cool is that!?