Future Plans

When the students of 1.u made the decision on starting at the gymnasium we electively choose to spend the next three years on finishing the education. That we all have in common. But the decision on how to spend the years to come after we have finished our education is different from person to person. Some chooses to spend a sabbatical year or two. This is a great possibility for earning some money by working fulltime and in that way being able to save some money.
It is not only working that is the main priority during the sabbatical year, but also traveling and be able to see the world is popular. Some only wants a few weeks in Europe – others month on several continents. The thought of exotic places in contrast with Denmark draw many young people to travel. But not everyone decides to spend a sabbatical year - some want to continue directly to university. It depends on whether you need a break from the education or you just want to continue without wasting an entire year.
The years after gymnasium are where we individually settle down and create a life on our own.

/Camilla, Kirstine and Malene

Spare time

Many young people living in Denmark like to spend a lot of money. However the money-finding business sometimes can be very hard! But do not despair – the solution has been found and it consists of a job after school! Having a job after school is very common among adolescents in Denmark and you can work as everything from a paper boy to a shop assistant.
Even though the job can be a torment it is worth the effort ultimately – because the money you earn you are free to spend on whatever you want – and considering the possibilities in Vejle (our hometown) you have a lot of options.
You might hang out with your friends at one of our nice cafés and spend some of your money on a cup of hot chocolate or some delicious food. You might also go shopping either at the mall or on our pedestrianized street and spend your money on clothes, music, movies - you name it! If you consume way too many calories you will want to burn them off in one of our fitness centers. A lot of people spend plenty of time there.
Many young people also spend a lot of money on the night life. In Vejle there are some very nice discos, but ultimately it is very expensive if you go to parties every weekend.

Esben: Ready for work at McDonalds - very sad !

This is what Esben spends his money on!

Party!

/Esben, Anne and Sara, 1u

A school day

Our school day starts at 8:05 o’clock, and ends at either 13:35 or 15:20. Our modules last 90 minutes with a 5 minute break after 45 minutes. After the first module we have a 15 minute break and after the second module we have a 30 minute lunch break. One day a week we have something called plenum. Everyone at school gathers in the common area where the principal gives us information and news about the school. When he is done students are free to go up to the stand and speak. In the end music is played and people sing.

In the common area there are lots of couches where people sit eating during the breaks. We also have a canteen where they serve rather good food. You can buy healthy sandwiches, buns of all kinds, juice, soft drinks, fruit and we also have a salad bar.

We have a very smart internet system called Lectio where we can see all our homework, papers we have to hand in, the classes we have, and send messages to everybody at the school and the teachers. We all have logins so we never use calendars to write stuff into – we all use Lectio every day.

Line, Jacob B & Tasja

Our Subjects

When you are a student at a Danish gymnasium (i.e high school) you can choose between several study areas. At Rosborg Gymnasium there are humanities-modern, social scientific and scientific areas. Every class has some compulsory subjects, and then some special subjects that come with the area. We also choose some creative subjects and one language besides English.
It is very good that we can put together our own study areas. In that way we have the possibility to get the subjects we want.

The U-class is a social scientific class. Our main subjects are social studies, English and maths. We have more lessons in our main subjects. In the lessons we work in different ways which makes for variety in the education. It is among other things pair work, group work in both self-elected groups and in groups where the teacher has chosen the groups. The group’s work often ends in a presentation of its product. The product can be a little movie, a PowerPoint-presentation or a written assignment.
The reason why we use these creative methods is to keep focus so it won’t become boring and monotonous.

The subjects are very important, but the social life on our school also means a lot for the students - as you can from some of the other blog entries here.

/Freia, Jacob H and Ellen

Sports in Denmark

In our group we are very physically active in our spare time. Two of us, Camille and Lotte, play handball, and one of us, Kristoffer, plays badminton. We enjoy working out, and several times a week we all do fitness.
Lotte and Camille: "We play handball three times a week, about 6 hours' practice each week and one match every weekend. Every Monday and Tuesday our coach picks us up after school and drives us directly to practice.
"Handball is an important part of our life. We are very serious about our handball and play in the second best league in the country. The local newspaper covers our matches."
Handball is a break from the daily pressures of school; it is a fun way to relax and a good way to put your mind on other things."
Kristoffer: "I play badminton twice a week, Thursday and Friday. I mainly play badminton because it is an individual sport, unless of course you play the double. I enjoy the sense of community at my club as well. I’m not as serious about my sport as Camille and Lotte, but I have won a few titles throughout the years I have played badminton.

Jungle Fever

In Vejle we have some very exciting fauna. Vejle is surrounded by forests and therefore we have had the opportunity to go photograph some of the animals just for you! Like in South Africa we have sanctuaries, but instead of elephants and lions we have squirrels, deer and foxes. We make a great effort to preserve these animals, except from during hunting season. Our fauna is - like faunas all over the world - controlled by the climate. Because Denmark is located "very near" the northern pole our climate isn’t that warm. Therefore our animals aren’t that exotic.

We've decided to take
pictures of deer and ducks in the sanctuary in Vejle called ”Dyrehaven” which means ”the animal garden”. We also took some pictures of the inlet of Vejle, which as you can see is frozen and covered in snow. As you can see in the pictures it’s very cold outside at the moment. There has been snow on the ground since 16 December. The snow makes it hard for the animals to find food, but in the sanctuaries they have no trouble finding something to eat, because they are fed by the keepers.
By the time you read this most of the snow on the pictures has gone, because the temperature is finally above 0 degrees centigrade.

Above: Vejle seen from the sanctuary, the Vejle Fjord Bridge, and Deer

/Cecilie, Pernille and Mathias

What we eat is what we need!

Hello !
We are going to tell you a little about Danish food. In Demark we usually have three main meals each day. For breakfast we usually have cereals like Cornflakes, oatmeal or yogurt served with either muesli, dried or fresh fruits. Some people have toasted bread with some sort of spread. A Danish breakfast specialty could be Danish pastry, which is mostly eaten on Sunday mornings with bread rolls.
For lunch we have the option of buying food in our school canteen. They have sandwiches, salads and “today’s special,” which could be lasagne, soup, pizza etc. However, a lot of us bring our own packed lunches, which could be a salad or bread, Danish rye bread is very common, and is eaten with different spreads, such as sausages, eggs or our Danish liver pate.
For dinner we usually have a warm dish. In Denmark we are very inspired by other countries. For instance we like pizza, lasagne, tortilla and Spaghetti Bolognese. But we also have our own traditional dishes. This could be our Danish “meatballs” (in Danish “frikadeller”) made on oats, minced beef, eggs, onions and spices. They are for instance served with potatoes and a gravy or sauce. Another common dish is Danish pork roast with potatoes, gravy and boiled vegetables.
In-between these meals most people have a snack such as an apple, a chocolate bar, etc.



Written by:
Marie Hjermitslev, Sofia Kvist, Søren Schmidt, Iben Thorsen

Youth in Vejle

There are many things to do when you are part of the young generation in Vejle. Clothes, work and parties play an important role in defining the choices young people have to worry about.










- "Bryggen" (shopping Mall in Vejle)

Rosborg Gymnasium is part of our everyday life. There is also a business school, and a technical school that young people attend to. Most of the young people have a job after school so they can earn some money for parties and fun. When young people are partying in Vejle, we go to dance clubs in the city of Vejle. The clubs in the town are attractive meeting places for young people.

Another place where young people meet is the sportsclubs. Many people in Denmark (and Vejle) love to play football, handball and all kinds of sport.

In the summer many young people go to the beach and swim with their friends. It's hot in the summer, and it is VERY cold during the winter months. The lakes around Vejle are all frozen solid with ice. It is fun to ice-skate. So it's possible to walk on it – but it is not safe. These things are part of the fun of being young in Vejle.

- it is not a polarbear, it is just a dog!

/ Anna, Mona, Christian, Pernille Maj

The Weather

Winter in Denmark
The last three months Denmark has been the victim of a harsh winter. Therefore Denmark has been covered by snow. The weather has been unbelieviably cold in proportion to the last couple of years, and that has had both negative and positive consequences for Danes. The large amount of snow has meant something very pleasant. Namely a day off. This day was enjoyed inside with friends, family and hot chocolate. Furthermore both children and adults have retrieved their playful inner child. Sledges have been driven down our small hills and snowmen have been built in every small child's garden.
In our spare time we also drive ATV´s. It is a four-wheeled crosser. We find it very funny especially because of the slippery roads. Even though we have enjoyed the weather we have had traffic problems. Our roads have been so slippery that the cars slide into the ditches. Some of us have had very near experiences with traffic accidents because of the hard weather conditions. Now we all just want spring to come and take over.

By Christina, Celine and Andre.

The Traditions of Rosborg

The Musical

Every second year the whole school comes together and makes a musical. Every student from all 3 grades is allowed to participate. It is a really big thing for the school but also for the city we live in, Vejle.
Because it is so big, there is a lot of work to do before the shows go on. Therefore we are a lot of groups. Some need to make the styling and the costumes and some are in the band or in the choir. of course there are also the actors. None of the groups can just pull out, because everyone needs each other particulary in a musical. This year we made a kind of "Mamma Mia" ( You know it if you have heard of the Swedish band ABBA)

Bacchus
Bacchus is our event organization and therefore also the name of these parties we have. The organization plans 5-6 parties every school-year. Every party has a different theme.
The parties have music from bands, you can buy mild forms of alcohol and some people are smartly decorated. There is an amazing atmosphere at these events. Our Christmas-party is the biggest party. There is a well-known Danish band and the old students from the school may also come. Usually our class has a pre-party, where we are getting in the right mood - we dance, we drink and have a blast.

/ Rikke, Thomas and Sif from 1.u, Rosborg, Vejle

Welcome ...

... to the global blog of class 1u at Rosborg Gymnasium & HF, Vejle, Denmark.

1u have been preparing themselves for their partnership with the Leap School of Gugulethu / Cape Town, South Africa by studying South African history and literature as part of their English course.

So far the following materials have been studied:

- "A Short History of South Africa" (www.southafrica.info)
- Nadine Gordimer: "City Lovers" (1960)
- J.R.R. Jolobe: "The Making of a Servant" (1974)
- Euzhan Palcy (dir.) "A Dry White Season" (1989; film)
- Richard Rive: "The Man from the Board" (1983)
- Nelson Mandela: "Inaugural Address" (1994)
- Alex Perry: "McMandela? Protecting the Brand of a Legend" (2009)
- Blomkamp (dir.): "District 9" (2009; film)

More materials will be added to the list shortly.

The class are planning how to spend the month of March on this blog to introduce themselves and aspects of their daily lives to our South African partners. The intention is to post new content two or three times a week.

/ Peter Lindhardt, English teacher