A hundred years ago, my great-grandfather worked as a teacher for the blind. My mother teaches arts and crafts. And a few years ago I also discovered what a great profession teaching is!
My first foreign language (besides English, French and German at secondary school) was Italian, so I know both how exciting and how trying it can be to acquire a wholly new language. I also studied Cultural Anthropology, English language and literature, and Renaissance Studies. Finally, I trained to be a teacher of Dutch as a second language, which is the best job I’ve ever had.
One of the guiding principles in my classes is that all students should feel safe and welcome, and dare to freely express themselves.
I live with my two teenage children and their hamsters in a terraced house with a garden. Apart from teaching, gardening is one of the activities which I enjoy most, so you will often find me in my garden, tending the rosebushes and a tiny frog pond.