A happy homestay
A foreign student can be a great addition to the household just set a few ground rules first,
After a four-year break, we were a little hesitant to host a foreign student as a homestay at our house. We have two small boisterous children, who sporadically sleep all night and wake at the crack of dawn. We wondered not how they would enjoy having a new person live with us for the next four weeks but how a homestay would cope.
When Chinatsu Ishikawa, 19, arrived from Japan last Saturday afternoon we knew she’d be a great addition to the family.
Leo, 4, and Alexandra, 2, initially found her a novelty, running to see if she was still in her room, eating politely after fighting to sit next to her at the dinner table.
Now they treat her as a sister – dragging her up to bounce on the trampoline, asking her to make them never ending origami animals – ‘‘We’d like a mouse, a horse, a snail!’’ She’s even bought a book on how to make these requests.
Yes, the homestay fee of $280 which includes breakfast and dinner, has helped our finances, but more importantly, Chinatsu has been a fun and fantastic new family member.
Setting up your house for a homestay is straightforward; you need a spare bedroom, bed and a place for them to store their clothes.
‘‘It’s always nice to have a few homely things around like pictures on walls or shelves where they can put their own photos, a few cushions on the bed – a bit of colour is always good,’’ Auckland Homestay Services manager Tina Angelova suggests.
American students often prefer a larger room, whereas students from China, Japan and Korea are used to small rooms Angelova explains.
While most families have great experiences, some challenges can arise from our cultural differences.
For example, we had to explain to Chinatsu on her second night that the duvet was to sleep under, not on top of.
It’s important to familiarise the students with your home routine say Queenstown’s Jeremy and Tessa Payze.They have been hosting international students from all over the world for the past couple of years. They too have two small children Elie, 6, and Ryder, 4, and have enjoyed having them as part of the family.
‘‘They may ask if they can have a shower at any time, which is normal for their culture. We just explain to them that it was generally fine as long as it wasn’t after 10pm,’’ Jeremy says. ‘‘When they arrive, Tessa would show them the laundry and let them know they could put on a load once a week. We’d ask them to make their bed and be in contact if they weren’t going to be home for dinner.’’
Explaining the way the home operates from the outset is important, agrees Angelova, and this should be talked through in all areas of the house.
In some countries – such as Japan and Korea – thebathroomis often all tiled with a plug hole in the centre and is considered a ‘wet area’.
When students come to New Zealand, they may splash water all over the floor thinking it’s the same as ‘home’ Angelova explains.
Some students may never have done housework.
‘‘Parents just want their children to succeed academically and not to spend time doing ‘chores’. There’s a lot of pressure to get top marks. However, many are willing to learn when they get here if coaxed gently into it,’’ Angelova says.
‘‘Helping in the kitchen or even garden can be seen as a language learning exercise.’’
Renata Cabral-McIlroy has also often hosted homestay students and suggests giving them a home tour on arrival.
‘‘We talk to the girls about where to place their sanitary items, and about not putting just two items of clothing in the washing machine for example.
‘‘We also explain they are responsible for keeping their room clean and tidy and would give them a change of sheets and a new towel once a week,’’ she says.
Things can also go wrong with appliances and families cannot assume that students will understand how these operate.
‘‘Even if they say, ‘Yes, I know,’ that could translates as ‘‘Yes, I know what a microwave is,’ not ‘I know how to work this’. We’ve heard of awful disasters – [food heated] too long, the wrong utensils used,’’ Angelova says.
In Japan, Chinatsu would do her washing daily. She now understands our way is to do a wash when there is a full load of laundry.
‘‘Often they’ve never had to worry about these in their own homes…students from large cities are used to putting all their clothes in the wash every night after their shower, even jeans, because of the city pollution. It is better for a homestay mother to be in charge, or to be able to explain the amount of clothes per wash,’’ Angelova says.
When it comes to dining, homestay parents may need to explain to their students about dining together.
‘‘We always asked that they let us know if they are home for a meal as it’s annoying if you have cooked a meal and it’s left uneaten,’’ Jeremy Payze says.
Families do need to be aware of other eating habits and to explain some Kiwi table manners from the outset.
‘‘For example, in Asian cultures it is often considered polite to make noises when eating, like slurping soup or even hot drinks.
‘‘It’s good to warn family members, especially children that this may happen and it’s just what is done in another culture,’’ Angelova says.