Maudland Skole is a typical Norwegian primary school in a small village called Hommersåk in the south of Norway. It offers classes 1 to 7 which are from ages 6-13. There is an average of 24 children in each class. Children have one formal test during this time but are not graded until they move onto lower secondary school. This means there is no pressure on children through exams through the whole of primary school.
Due to it's spectacular location between mountains and forests the school places a strong emphasis on the outdoors, like many Norwegian primary schools, with the 1st and 2nd class having an outdoor day once a week in which they can explore the outdoors. This outdoor day involves den building, digging, climbing trees and making a fire. The children are not required to do any work while they are outside, nor are they told what to do; it is just a day for them to enjoy the outdoors and learn through their senses. In Norway there is a saying that there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing. Only when it reaches below -10 degrees do they keep the children inside!
School days begin at 8:30 and can end anywhere between 12 and 2:15 depending on the day and year group. As the school days end so early there is an after-school programme called SFO offered to children in 4th class and below. This is open from the end of school until 4:30 and gives children the opportunity to receive a meal and play. The majority of the time children will simply play outside but sometimes other activities like card games, drawing and lego are also available. Twice a week there is also the opportunity to do your homework with adult support.
Norwegian is the language used in school however children learn English from 1st class and so by 4th/5th class they are able to talk to you and tell you what is going on. Teachers also have very good English and so the language is not a barrier.
We stayed with relatives in Hommersåk which was really helpful as Norway is an expensive country. If you wanted to stay in a hotel or youth hostel we would recommend looking into staying in a city like Stavanger as a small village like Hommersåk has very little or nothing to offer.
If you have the option of staying with a family we would recommend this over paying for a room somewhere as they would be able to help you with the cost of living and the language. Accommodation would probably be quite expensive as well.
Nearly all children and teachers get to school by either walking or cycling so you do not need to worry about transport for getting to school. There was one day that we went to a nearby town to visit a barnehage (kindergarten) and for that we used the bus but every other day we walked. In Norway the government try to spread schools out well enough so that everyone can walk to school.
On the west side of Norway there are a large amount of fjords and so another common form of transport is the boat. To visit the closest city (Stavanger) you will need to get the boat. Both the boat and the bus will cost you around the equivalent of £5-8.
Norway is an expensive country, therefore you may choose to do activities that do not cost very much. There are many different walks that you can go on locally, whether you just want a stroll or a hike up a mountain the views are beautiful wherever you go. We would highly recommend taking the boat to Stavanger, where they have a good shopping centre, museums, a beautiful cathedral and a lot of activities available, such as cycling, swimming, iceskating and boating to name a few. There are many scenic walks as well. Another place to visit is Sandnes, where you can go climbing, walking, canoeing, cycling and horse riding for example. The majority of the above activities do cost, however the walking and the hiking options are free of charge, so we did a lot of those.
A beautiful place to visit is Gloppedalsura, located in Gjesdal and Bjerkreim in Rogaland. This is Northern Europes largest rockery and is spectacular to see. We even climbed up some of the big rocks and the views were incredible!
There is a local sports centre in Hommersåk, which has a nice swimming pool and dance classes are held there regularly. There is also a sports hall there where a variety of sports are played.
Things to do, things not to do
Things to do: Take the boat to Stavanger, where you can go shopping and do some sightseeing.
Visit Gloppedalsura, located in Gjesdal and Bjerkreim in Rogaland. This is Northern Europes largest rockery and is spectacular to see, however it is a fair distance from Hommersak so you would have to find out the best transport to get there. A trip to Sandnes is recommended.
Walks are they best activity to do in Norway as the scenery is beautiful and it won't cost you anything. There are many places to walk in Norway wherever you are staying so find out from locals some of the best walks around.
Telephone number for Maudland Skole: 51 97 62 10
It is recommended that you change your money before you leave. Norway's currency is the Krone and £1 is the equivalent of 9 Kroner. Norway is quite an expensive country and so it is highly recommended that you multiply what you expect to pay in pounds by 1.5 and then have that converted into Kroner. If you will be buying your own food make sure to take plenty of money with you as food is a lot more expensive out in Norway than in the UK. If possible staying with friends or family is your best option. It is very rare that you will need to pay to get to your placement as most schools are in walking distance. Find out before you go how you will be getting to your placement because this will also affect how much money you will need to take as public transport isn't cheap!
You do not need any vaccinations when travelling to Norway but you do need to sort out health insurance and make sure that you have travel insurance.
Try to book your flights as soon as possible because as the seats are filled up, the prices increase! We paid around £360 for our flights but we didn't book them particularly soon, flights can be bought for around £150 if done in advance.
Be sure to have a good pair of walking shoes, warm and waterproof clothing before you go. Norway believe in going outdoors whatever the weather and there tends to be a lot of rain!
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