Insights
On our Insights page, you will find current information from everyday school life. Here we present exciting projects and provide you with the latest news from our schools. You can also look forward to picture galleries and videos.
Have fun browsing!
Young Voices in the European Parliament
"You could feel how much your own voice matters and that participation, especially from young people, is very important." (Isabel) expressed a student from the Heidelberg Private School Centre (HPC) after a joint visit to the European Parliament, as the seminar course ‘International Cooperation’ of the Vocational Gymnasium and the Bilingual Gymnasium recently seized the opportunity to participate in the European Parliament's ‘Euroscola’ program. On March 14, 2024, 11 participants of the seminar course, together with seminar course leader Anja Sölter, set off for Strasbourg. Thus, the students also had the opportunity to explore the city a little before they, on March 15, 2024, were able to slip into the role of a Member of the European Parliament for a day. The students were offered the opportunity to gain an impression of how parliamentary democracy works in Europe.
In the plenary hall, the students not only conducted an interview with Rainer Wieland, Vice President of the European Parliament, but also participated in a simulation of the work of a member of the EU Parliament. Divided into different factions, they debated together on the topics of rule of law, democracy, and European values. The students were thus introduced to the working methods of the EU institutions and were also able to express their personal views on decisions at the EU level on this occasion.
But what ultimately counts and is particularly important are the impressions of the students and what they can take away from the program. That this excursion was a fascinating experience for the students can be seen from their statements. A student from the HPC expressed: ‘I hope that today's day has encouraged many students to vote [...] the simulation illustrated the role of the parliament very well’ (Paula). Furthermore, Hanna, another student, added: "The day was very informative and totally exciting [...] the program is a way to inform oneself and thereby it is also shown how important youth is because we are writing the future..." and Arew's statement also shows the positive experience the students have had: "[...] I think that today's experience motivates many to participate politically. I continue to wish for such involvement of young people in the political system."
With this positive experience of political participation, the seminar course's outing was undoubtedly a great success and strengthens a hopeful outlook for more young voters in the 2024 European elections
Thank you for the answers, Mr. Born!
Daniel Born, vice president of the state parliament of Baden-Württemberg and constituency representative for the southwest of the Rhein-Neckar district, visited the vocational Gymnasium and the bilingual Gymnasium of the HPC on 03.03.23. He was able to make the work of the state parliament and the work of a member of the state parliament tangible through many examples and personal experiences. Our students were especially interested in the school system and the future of democracy.
History lesson on class trip
Our BG10 was on a class trip to Berlin in July. These great pictures were taken at the Documentation Center Flight, Expulsion, Reconciliation.
This place of learning and remembrance focuses on the history and present of forced migration. The flight and expulsion of around 14 million Germans after the Second World War is also addressed - a great history lesson for our students.
Photos: © Thomas Bruns for the Documentation Center Flight, Expulsion, Reconciliation
Here's something for the ears
Our introductory class produced podcasts in German class - they organized interview partners, production and editing themselves. The podcast by Lea, Johanna, Selma is entitled "Hate Speech". The 7-week project took place as part of the media unit "Danger Media".
The students were asked to work on a problem in line with the topic and to process and stage it in a suitable format, e.g. podcast, film, reportage. The entire project, including reflection, was documented in a project folder.
German teacher Ms. G. about the project:
"Hate Speech is super topical and pedagogically valuable! [...] I would repeat it at any time, because the students have acquired many competencies."
Keep calm and go to London!
We have had a student exchange program with Lampton School in Hounslow, London. 20 students from the vocational high school in grades 9 and 11 participated this year, 15 students from the London partner school.
At the end of June, the students from Lampton School were our guests. The joy of reunion was great when our students were in London from 10-14 July. Friendships were formed during the two weeks, and thanks to news and social media, they continue to be nurtured. It was hard to say goodbye!
One student captured her experience of the exchange:
"Our trip to London began 4:45 Sunday morning, July 10, at Frankfurt Airport. After arriving in London at 8am UK time, we headed to our hotel to drop off our luggage and then had lunch together near Westminister Bridge. After the short refreshment we explored the center of London and visited there among other things the London Eye and also participated in a boat trip on the Thames.
The next day we were able to see our exchange students again, who we already met in Heidelberg. They made it possible for us to spend a day at Lampton School, which gave us a live experience of the academic and cultural differences between the German and English schools. This school day was a wonderful experience for all of us, as it gave us a lot of contact with our exchange students, allowed us to be part of their lives and we generally learned a lot. After this short insight we left the school early to take the bus to Richmond together with the Lampton students. There we ended the day with a meal together at Nando's.
On Tuesday we met the Lampton students at 9 am at Hounslow Central Tube. From there we drove together to Green Park to visit the most famous sights of London such as the Buckingham Palace. Lastly, we had some free time in Covent Garden, and after that we headed back to the hotel.
Our last day in London began with a trip to the Science Museum. There we were free to visit the different levels and themes of the museum in smaller groups with our exchange students. Afterwards we went to Hyde Park to see the Diana Memorial Fountain and to have a picnic together in the park. The picnic gave us plenty of energy to go shopping in central London's Oxford Street for the next two hours. Shopping was incredibly eventful, because we had a very large selection of buying options, but you can imagine that shopping is very exhausting. Therefore, we all benefited from the dinner that followed.
After the meal we went to the end of the day in the play 'Moustrap', which was also our last stop of our London trip.
Probably the hardest part for us was saying goodbye to our exchange students on Thursday morning, because afterwards we already had to make our way to London airport."
Prepared for the workplace: the professional internship
Grow for the Future means that we also prepare our students for their future careers.
With this in mind, our 9th and 10th graders at the vocational high school completed their internship from May 30 to June 3. They independently looked for professions and internships and gave their teachers an insight during the internship visit.
The internship always takes place in grades 9 and 11 for at least one week. Due to Corona, the 10th graders first had to take a break - now they could finally catch up on their internship.
The internships were as diverse as our students: For example, Arina was in the Heidelberg Orchestra and Henri was in the Heidelberg Zoo.
Curtain up: We cooperate with the Heidelberg Theater
The Realschule, the bilingual Gymnasium, the Berufskolleg and the vocational Gymnasium have had a cooperation with the Theater Heidelberg since the school year 2020/21. Unfortunately, this could not be fully exploited in the last school year due to Corona. However, we will make up for this in the new school year.
The cooperation with the theater means that each class will attend a play or concert of the Theater und Orchester Heidelberg once a school year at a "student price". The play is selected and booked by the class teachers. For the younger classes, there is a choice of plays from the "young theater", which are adapted to the age of the children.
The aim is not only to make performances from all sections of the Heidelberg Theater and Orchestra accessible to the students, but also to give them the opportunity to take a look behind the scenes. The aim is for the students to gain a deeper understanding of theater and build a longer-term bond.
Flying high: BG9 at the Speyer Climbing Forest
Lots of classwork and often in online classes: this school year has demanded a lot from all students*. Due to the Corona relaxations, field trips could take place again at the end of the school year - a time everyone was looking forward to.
Class 9 at BG used the field trip days to visit the climbing forest in Speyer with Mrs. Langbein. A great destination for a trip where team building is the top priority.
The students had a lot of fun and were also able to further integrate two exchange students into the class community.
London is calling!
BG8 went on an exchange trip to London in 2019. Read more about their impressions here:
"Our first English language exchange to London was a great success! HPC students from BG8 and EK classes spent 5 nights in the English capital together with students from FSLZR. Our partner school, Lampton School in Hounslow, welcomed us warmly, and we all enjoyed seeing firsthand what life is like in a large comprehensive school (Lampton has over 1,500 students!). We took a tour of central London and saw a wonderful production of "Mary Poppins" in a West End theater. We also enjoyed everyday experiences such as shopping in supermarkets and riding the Underground. Although our exchange partners were unable to visit us in Heidelberg this year as planned, we hope that the friendship between our two schools will last for many years to come!"
Pauline reports on her internship
In the 11th grade, all students at the vocational Gymnasium complete an internship. Pauline Neureither was interested in the teaching profession and was able to get a taste of everyday life in the profession through her internship.
Where did you do your internship?
At the Carl Freudenberg Elementary School in Schönau im Odenwald.
What did you do during your internship?
During the one-week internship at the elementary school, I was in the second grade the entire time and took on a wide variety of tasks there to support the classroom teacher. The main task here was, of course, to help the children during the independent work phase and to support them with questions. Checking and jointly improving incorrect assignments was also part of my work. In addition, a large part of my time consisted of observing the teachers as they implemented a wide variety of teaching methods. But of course I also took on practical tasks, such as copying and sorting teaching materials or distributing letters to parents. Furthermore, on the last day of my internship, I was allowed to design my own lesson in order to teach the children something new in a playful way and to gain new experiences at the same time.
What did you learn in the process?
Although the internship was only one week long, I gained an incredible amount of impressions and new experiences in this relatively short time. I learned how important it is at elementary school age to prepare topics in such a way that the children enjoy learning them and how much patience the teachers have to show in order to motivate the children again and again. It is also a challenge to do justice to all the children, because some just learn quickly, while others need a lot of support and work more slowly. Now I also know what it really means to prepare a lesson and how much work is behind it (preparation and follow-up time included). But also how great the feeling is when the children then understand exactly what you have so painstakingly taught them!
To what extent did the internship help you in your choice of career/studies?
The internship confirmed my interest in the teaching profession even more, because I carried out all the tasks with a lot of joy and enthusiasm and learned a lot - so the teaching profession could definitely be an option for me! But regardless of whether I work as a teacher or in another profession, it is clear to me that I would definitely like to work with children and young people in the future. The internship was a complete success in terms of professional orientation!
Our Artwork
Lesson: Impressionism and Expressionism (J1; Sj 20/21)
The new way of seeing the world has been achieved by our artists in an impressive way.
Lesson: Architecture and model making (J2; Sj 20/21)
Who doesn't dream it - the dream of owning their own house.
Here, the architects of J2 have made their dream come true, even if only as a model for the time being.
