Dear host family,

Thank you very much for hosting in the program and for your time reading this letter. First of all I would like to introduce myself. My name is Marina and I’m just a 14 years old Spanish teenager. I’m more of an extrovert person and I tend to get along really well with nearly anyone. My friends and I spend a lot of time outdoors walking my dog, chatting or simply being together. I’m not a very competitive person at sports but I enjoy them. I’m currently in a baseball team and I also practice yoga.

I was born in a great family. My mother and my father have always shown me they loved me. They both work for the government as a nurse and as policeman in the Spanish National Police Corps. Even though I sometimes argue with my older brother who is also called Ivan I know he loves me just as much. He is seven years older than me but that’s something I like. I’m also fortunate for the friends I have. I belong to different groups and I feel comfortable in all of them. I have a nice big group of friends at my school, we meet every week and it’s always so much fun. We all live in different places and we have completely different personalities.

I’m studying first year of high school so in America I would be a sophomore next year. I’m proud to say that so far my grades have always been excellent. I don’t have a favorite subject but I like English and History the most. In the future I’m thinking about becoming either a lawyer or a psychiatrist. Every day I have some activities after school(arts, baseball, English, yoga and skiing in winter). I usually study an hour everyday, but a week before an exam, I study a lot more.

My week is always super busy. I have to get up really early to get to school on time. I live near two friends so we walk to our high school together. After school I meet up with my friend Daniela, and we go for a walk with our dogs. I have a dachshund who’s extremely lazy. Later on, I set the table while my mom heats up the food and we wait for my brother to arrive. My dad travels a lot because of his job so I only see him some weekends. Before going to my after school activities I tidy up my room. On weekends, if the weather allows to do so, my family and some family friends go skiing together. During weekends we visit my grandparents when we can or we stay at home and my friends and I go watch a movie or do some other activity.

I’ve been in foreign countries a couple of times. Last year I went to Egypt with my father and my grandparents and I really enjoyed the trip. I’ve also been in America in 2019. I spent ten days with my brothers host family. I’m really looking forward to visiting the USA and enjoying the country. I know this is a great opportunity. I’m sure the host family that chooses me and I are going to get along really well and we’ll both get to know another’s culture. I’m hoping to make some good memories and improve my English skills. Thanks for giving me this opportunity!

See you soon!

Marina

Dear host family,

My name is Coline, I'm 15 years old and I'm French. I live with my dad, my mom, my 21-year-old sister and my 19-year-old brother. I get on very well with my family, I can talk to them about everything and I do lots of activities with them. I love hanging out with my sister, shopping, eating out, going to the cinema. At home, we all help with household chores, especially in the kitchen: I set the table, empty the dishwasher, go to the grocery or help my mother with the cooking.

I'm a serious student, and I've always worked very hard. I have an "English Euro" option, where our teachers speak to us in English. Alongside my high school studies, I'm also taking an online Dual Diploma program, which will enable me to obtain the American High School Diploma at the end of my high school studies. To manage all this, I have to be organized and studious, because French high school is already a lot of work. Every evening when I get home from school, I have to work for about 2 hours. But it's important to keep my balance with the things I love, like my sport, my family, my friends and my time alone.

I've been cheerleading for 1 year and it's my favorite thing! I train two or three times a week, on Tuesday and Friday evenings and sometimes on Sunday mornings. I often go by metro with my friends because we go out before training, or my dad takes me by car. I also love baking things like cookies and brownies for family and friends, which I do once or twice a week, and I love making pancakes for breakfast. I'm very interested in different cultures, I like to travel but also visit museums and exhibitions on art, history, fashion...

I've always wanted to be bilingual and living abroad has always been a dream of mine. I chose the United States as my destination because I wanted an English-speaking destination outside Europe. I'd already been to the USA 3 times, and each time I'd loved the welcome and hospitality of the Americans. The culture of the USA is incredible, and I hope to be able to live like in American movies. I also find that the American school system is very different from the French one. Discovering a new way of learning could help me a lot in the future.

During the year I'll be spending with you, I hope to share my culture with you, just as you'll share yours with me. I see this program above all as a cultural exchange. I'm always willing to help with household chores, I love playing with children and animals, especially dogs, so if you have any I'd be happy to look after them. I'll be there to bring good humor and participate in family life. I'm very adaptable and I hope I'll be able to think of you as my second family. I'd like to join the cheerleading team at my American high school, as I already do in France, but if that's not possible I'd like to join another sports club.

I would like to thank you for your generosity and hospitality and hope to spend the best possible time with you!

Coline

Hello!

My name is Alejandra, I am 14 years old and I'm a very adventure person, I always like to do a lot of activities and to live new experiences. I'm also a really organized person, I like to have all my things collected and in order, and to have all my school tasks up to date and done as best as posible. Furthermore I like going out with family and friends as much as possible.

I love my country, it has lovely sea landscapes and mountain ones too, a great cuisine, that I'd be pleased to show you, with its typical plates like "paella", potato omelette or "croquetas" and a very nice climate, neither too hot or too cold. I live in a big city next to the sea, and I love it because whenever I need to disconnect I like to go there.

In my family we are 5, my parents, my 2 brothers and me. My both parents are 51 years old, they are welcoming and they support us in all our decisions guiding us to be always a better person. I'm the middle sister, but it doesn't matter because me and my youngest brother are twins, so he's only 5 minutes younger than me, we share room but not many interests and although we have a good relationship we aren't as close as with the oldest one, we have more common interests so thats why we are closer. He is 16 years old and this year is going to graduate from school.

This year I'm doing 3 ESO that in the US would be 9th grade.

I like my classes because I go with all my friends, my favorites ones are history (it's super interesting to know what happened in the past and to understand peoples behavior), science (to understand how our world works) and art (I love drawing, it makes me disconnect and it reminds me to my dad because he taught me). My school is the biggest one of the state where I live, it has a lot of sports facilities like football, basketball, volleyball or roller hockey pitches, gymnastics spot, athletics track among other things. It has more than 3000 students.

My friends and I spend a lot of time together, we make good and fun plans the weekends because is when we have more time. Our favorite plans are go shopping, to a coffee shop or restaurant to have a snack and to watch each others matches.

Normally I don't have much time during the week because I like to have a lot of extracurricular activities, this year I play volleyball twice a week, I have 3 dance lessons a week and I play paddle once a week. But in winter my family and me love going skiing the weekends.

At home I try to help my parents, doing my bed, taking out the dishwasher, tacking out the trash, organizing the common zones, putting and quitting the table and helping to cook. I normally cook the meat, I make pasta, sandwiches, soup, omelette or "croquetas".

I'm really looking forward to next year, it's a very great chance to live a school year in the USA, to improve my English, to grow like a person and to live new experiences and I'm so thankful for it. I'd like to show you my culture so that we can compare both of them!

See you soon! Best,

Alejandra

Dear family,

thank you very much for considering taking me in your home for a year. I look very much forward to meet you.

For me, a normal day starts at 5:50 am. Often, I have breakfast with my dad before I leave. When I arrive at school it’s about 7:20 am and I had a way of at least one hour. Until the first lesson starts, I use the time to organize myself and some tasks I have to do. Three times a week, I have school from 7:50 am until 3:35 pm. Only Wednesday and Friday I have until 1 pm. I do much for school: learning vocabulary and studying for class tests. That’s why I'm the best in my class at the moment. I love having fun with my classmates during PE or other lessons, when we work in groups. In the evening, I eat dinner together with my father, my stepmother and my brother. 

In my free time, I take part in many different activities. Between these activities, I do my homework. If it’s possible, I do my homework on the bus, but often I have to do it when I’m at home and have some time, until I have to leave again, for the next activity. 

Tuesdays and Fridays, I'm at the local YMCA. While I'm working as a volunteer every Friday, I'm a participant on Tuesday. We have fun playing games, cooking or doing competitions. We pray and from time to time and we sing together. That's something I love, too. I love the community we have, whether singing, praying or playing games. It's definitely more fun with friends. With the YMCA, I was in Sweden and Italy and also there I made many friends.

For one year now, I help in the students counsel and love working there with many friends. Another friend, I've found by a school project, is an Irish student. I have contact with him on Snapchat. I'm working at a farm in our city, where I've learned driving a tractor, a fork lifter or a wheel loader and have very much fun.

Generally, I love to learn new things and getting to know new people, with different interests and cultures. This is why I'm interested in the year in the U.S. I want to get to know new friends and see more than what I know here in Germany or Europe. I want to see how people in a different culture live and what beautiful places the world offers.

I am sure I will learn a lot from you during my stay. Furthermore, I also look forward to telling you about my country, my family, my friends and our culture. I hope I can feel at home with you and that we can create a warm and friendly atmosphere, where we can all learn from each other.

Thank you for welcoming me in your home. I am very grateful for this opportunity and can’t wait for the adventure ahead. If you have any questions or want to know more about me, please feel free to write me.

I can't wait to meet you and start my exciting year in the U.S.

See you as soon as possible!

Best wishes,

Etienne

Hello host family,

My name is Carlota, I’m 14 years old, and my dream has always been to go on an exchange program to the United States.I am writing this letter to tell you how grateful I am that you are making it possible for me to fulfill my dream.

When I was younger, I always watched American movies and loved them because they show a life that is totally different from the one we have here in Spain.

My older brother went to Oklahoma last year to study for a year, and he had a great time. I don’t want his experience; I want my own, and I would love for us to do everything we can to make it the best one.

From what I’ve heard, people there do a lot of sports, so I would love to play volleyball on the school team if possible. I would also love to be a cheerleader like in the American movies, although I’m not sure how good I’d be at it, but everything is a matter of practice.

I love spending time with my friends, going out to eat, and going to the mall because I love shopping, but I also really enjoy spending time with my family, going on trips, eating out at restaurants, or cooking together.

I have a younger brother who is 12 years old; he’s not that little, but I really love babies, and whenever I have the chance, I play with them and feed them. Even if a friend has a dinner, I usually stay with their kids to take care of them until they come back.

I absolutely love Spanish culture, our way of dressing, like the flamenco dresses, but I think the thing I’ll miss most is the food. So, to make it easier for me, and for you to get a bit of my culture, how about I prepare a typical Spanish dish once a week? It would be great if we could do it as a family, but if not, I would be happy to do it on my own.

What you are doing for me is incredible, and I don’t think I’ll ever be able to fully thank you for it.

Thank you so much,

Carlota