Hosting Guidelines Phillip Murray Language Academy / Collège Alberto Giacometti Dear families: First, we would like to take this opportunity to express our deep appreciation to each of you and your family for your hospitality and willingness to welcome a French student into your home. We hope this experience will be enjoyable and enriching for your family as we trust it will be for your young guest. Without you, this program and our collective effort to promote international understanding would be impossible. Merci to all. By opening your home to a student from another country, you offer them the opportunity to be more than a tourist here; they are welcomed as a guest of your family, making friends, practicing language skills, experiencing new customs, eating different foods, and discovering our great city of Chicago. These everyday activities will broaden your family’s and your guest’s perspective about the world in which we live. SPEAKING ENGLISH: The language level of the students might vary dramatically. Some will speak and understand English very well. Others will be unsure of their speaking ability or shy to try out their English. French students are often exposed to British English and may be confused by some of out accents, colloquialisms, and slang. A supportive, encouraging atmosphere will help your guest feel more confident about practicing his/her language skills. COMPANIONSHIP: If the host student has many after-school commitments, try to free up as much time as you reasonably can during your guest’s stay. If your other children are not close in age to your guest, you may want to make arrangements with other Murray students or neighbors who are closer in age or share common interests. At all costs, you should avoid leaving your guest alone for long periods of time. Being alone can lead to homesickness and general unhappiness. However, keep in mind that the student may need some downtime, after a long day as a tourist, to rest or catch up on correspondence from home. Speaking another language all day can be very tiring. Think of your own child in a similar situation abroad to best understand. FAMILY RULES: Being a guest in someone’s home also means abiding by the rules of conduct you have for your own children. Be clear with your guest at the outset what those rules and expectations are, particularly regarding curfews, telephone/computer use and household responsibilities. We will provide you with a contact list of all host families, students, chaperones, and host teachers. TELEPHONE USE: Student guests are expected to pay for any long-distance calls themselves. If they want to call home, you may allow them to use your long-distance service, help them place the call collect, or help them obtain a long-distance calling card. In any case, you may feel free to curtail long-distance calling at your discretion. With wifi, you can make a free phone call through Facebook messenger, if both parties are on Facebook.

RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCE: If your family participates in an organized religion, you should feel free to invite your guest to attend a service or religious ceremony as a part if your family (e.g. mass, Seder, etc). However, please respect his/her right to gracefully decline from participating in your family’s religious observance, including mealtime prayers. If your family participates in day-long religious activities, you may want to invite your guest to attend for part of the day, and help them make other arrangements for the rest of the time you will be unavailable. MONEY: Incoming students are told to bring spending money with them. Therefore, do not feel obligated to provide money for purchases or entertainment. As you know, they will be going on a number of excursions during the school day. However, many of these do require transportation and a bag lunch (itinerary forthcoming). DEVELOPING FRIENDSHIPS WITH HOST STUDENTS: Making friendships among guest and host students can be a challenge due to cultural or language differences. Your visitor might want to seek out other visiting students after-school or on the weekend. Please do not feel obligated to fulfill these requests. Remember, they already spend the entire school day together. They do need to make an effort to adjust on their own to life with their host family. MEALTIME AND FOOD: Our usual mealtimes, and the kind of food at each meal, may require some adjustment for your French guest. If yours is a family that eats breakfast “each person for him/herself,” please make certain that your guest knows what is available. The midday meal for most French is the principal meal of the day. This may take an adjustment to our dining customs. SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES: French students are not all that different in what they like to do than your own children. You are welcome to share any activities and share any places you would like to. Keep in mind that they will be taking field trips to many places so look at the agenda to ensure there is not any duplication. MEDICAL EMERGENCIES: Whenever possible, contact the visiting student’s chaperone, using the numbers on the contact list. In a serious emergency, take action as you would with your own child. If you incur any expenses, keep your receipts. HOST STUDENT HOMEWORK TIME: When the host student is doing homework, the student guest may be encouraged to spend time with a sibling, help prepare a meal, write postcards, write in a journal or help run errands. Watching TV or using a computer are also acceptable, but you should monitor content as you would your own children.