Tips For Hosting An Exchange Student
Andrea Bunker and Michele Jaques are parents of two Grade 10 boys at Crescent School. In Fall 2019, they hosted Alex Richardson and Frank Finlayson, Year 10 students from The Scots College in Sydney, Australia, for six weeks in a new international student exchange program.
Why did you sign on as a host family in Crescent School’s first exchange program?
Andrea Bunker - Charlie was very keen on participating in an exchange with Scots in Australia. He is keen to travel there, meet new boys and experience a different culture and community. Charlie was also happy to have an exchange student here and eager to show an Australian around Toronto.
Michelle Jaques - We wanted to open our doors as Canadian ambassadors for someone who has never been here before. It was a great opportunity to make a connection, to teach, to learn and to adapt to someone new living in our home. Hosting a student was a great way to shake up the family routine, while also opening our eyes as to how much Toronto has to offer. As a result, we discovered more about our own city and community.
How has your family benefited by hosting an international student?
AB - We hosted Alex Richardson, who is a wonderful boy. Charlie has two younger sisters and Alex has a younger sister about the same age so it was a good fit. Alex is a keen skier so we decided to take him out west to Banff for a couple of ski days. It was a great trip for the boys, and not likely something we would have booked if we didn’t have our Australian guest here as motivation.
MJ - Our family has benefitted by having Frank living with us by learning some good Australian slang and getting to know this individual who has a 9 p.m. craving for Fruit Loops and is not fond of mushrooms. We have embraced Frank as a member of our family and we have ventured out to rediscover the Toronto and Ontario sights which we take for granted.
What are some things that you hadn't considered (but perhaps should have)?
AB - I don’t think we realized how busy all the Crescent boys are with academics and sports (at Crescent and outside of school) until the exchange students arrived. At first we were a bit worried about how Alex would fill his time when Charlie was playing hockey or studying, but Alex became involved in the Crescent swim team and soon had his own schedule to manage.
MJ - Things that we hadn’t considered is what a smooth transition it has been for everyone having Frank in our home. He is polite, considerate and gracious. He is very funny, smart and enjoys talking to everyone. This is likely to be a new lifelong friendship between the boys and their group of friends. The world is a small place and getting smaller every day.
What are some tips for making this the best experience possible for the host family and the guest student?
AB - The Crescent boys all embraced the Australians and included them outside of school as well. That has been so helpful and I would definitely suggest to future host families that they set up a more formal process of different Crescent families committing to having the exchange student for dinner or include them in their lives, to give the exchange student a little variety as well as fill his time while the host boy is busy. (This is my biggest suggestion – really a must for future exchanges). In our house, we are lucky to have an extra room and bathroom. I think this helped make for a smooth exchange experience. The exchange is almost seven weeks long and I think it’s important that each boy has their own space and privacy. Alex has always been polite and helpful around the house. He quickly learned with Charlie how to take the bus and get himself around our neighbourhood. I think that helped him as it provided him with some independence.
MJ - Have meaningful welcome gifts, something Canadian. Be prepared to take them shopping for missing items that they need in case of weather changes, such as winter boots. Plan but don’t over-plan, provide your guest with some down time too so that they can do what they want to do. Provide them with their own room near where the rest of the family sleeps so that they know that they are safe and welcomed. Stock the refrigerator and freezer with lots of food. Teenage boys seem to be hungry all the time. Remember to include his favourite food, ask him what he likes to eat. Have lots of fun things to play with hanging around, footballs, balance boards, video games, guitars etc.
Photo on left: Alex Richardson (left) with the Bunker family members: Charlie P., Beatrice and Grace.
Photo on right: Andrew Jaques (left) with Frank Finlayson.
Read more about the student exchange program between Crescent School and The Scots College
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Andrea Bunker - Charlie was very keen on participating in an exchange with Scots in Australia. He is keen to travel there, meet new boys and experience a different culture and community. Charlie was also happy to have an exchange student here and eager to show an Australian around Toronto.
Michelle Jaques - We wanted to open our doors as Canadian ambassadors for someone who has never been here before. It was a great opportunity to make a connection, to teach, to learn and to adapt to someone new living in our home. Hosting a student was a great way to shake up the family routine, while also opening our eyes as to how much Toronto has to offer. As a result, we discovered more about our own city and community.
How has your family benefited by hosting an international student?
AB - We hosted Alex Richardson, who is a wonderful boy. Charlie has two younger sisters and Alex has a younger sister about the same age so it was a good fit. Alex is a keen skier so we decided to take him out west to Banff for a couple of ski days. It was a great trip for the boys, and not likely something we would have booked if we didn’t have our Australian guest here as motivation.
MJ - Our family has benefitted by having Frank living with us by learning some good Australian slang and getting to know this individual who has a 9 p.m. craving for Fruit Loops and is not fond of mushrooms. We have embraced Frank as a member of our family and we have ventured out to rediscover the Toronto and Ontario sights which we take for granted.
What are some things that you hadn't considered (but perhaps should have)?
AB - I don’t think we realized how busy all the Crescent boys are with academics and sports (at Crescent and outside of school) until the exchange students arrived. At first we were a bit worried about how Alex would fill his time when Charlie was playing hockey or studying, but Alex became involved in the Crescent swim team and soon had his own schedule to manage.
MJ - Things that we hadn’t considered is what a smooth transition it has been for everyone having Frank in our home. He is polite, considerate and gracious. He is very funny, smart and enjoys talking to everyone. This is likely to be a new lifelong friendship between the boys and their group of friends. The world is a small place and getting smaller every day.
What are some tips for making this the best experience possible for the host family and the guest student?
AB - The Crescent boys all embraced the Australians and included them outside of school as well. That has been so helpful and I would definitely suggest to future host families that they set up a more formal process of different Crescent families committing to having the exchange student for dinner or include them in their lives, to give the exchange student a little variety as well as fill his time while the host boy is busy. (This is my biggest suggestion – really a must for future exchanges). In our house, we are lucky to have an extra room and bathroom. I think this helped make for a smooth exchange experience. The exchange is almost seven weeks long and I think it’s important that each boy has their own space and privacy. Alex has always been polite and helpful around the house. He quickly learned with Charlie how to take the bus and get himself around our neighbourhood. I think that helped him as it provided him with some independence.
MJ - Have meaningful welcome gifts, something Canadian. Be prepared to take them shopping for missing items that they need in case of weather changes, such as winter boots. Plan but don’t over-plan, provide your guest with some down time too so that they can do what they want to do. Provide them with their own room near where the rest of the family sleeps so that they know that they are safe and welcomed. Stock the refrigerator and freezer with lots of food. Teenage boys seem to be hungry all the time. Remember to include his favourite food, ask him what he likes to eat. Have lots of fun things to play with hanging around, footballs, balance boards, video games, guitars etc.
Photo on left: Alex Richardson (left) with the Bunker family members: Charlie P., Beatrice and Grace.
Photo on right: Andrew Jaques (left) with Frank Finlayson.
Read more about the student exchange program between Crescent School and The Scots College
