The camera loves birthday girl Princess Isabella
Summary of article in Billed Bladet #17, 2012.
Prinsesse gavtyv - Princess rogue. (*)
Written by Ulrik Ulriksen.
Who informs us that the three pictures of Bella were taken by Mary at the hunting lodge in Trend just before easter.
Her birthday however was celebrated at Amalienborg.
After returning from the funeral of Mærsk McKinney Møller shortly after 16.00 farmor Margrethe, grandpapa Henrik, farbror (**) Joachim and tante (***) Marie visited Isabella to wish her a happy birthday.
They stayed for about 45 minuttes and Joachim and our Marie must have strolled across the square because Joachim said to our reporter: "Yes, we were at Isabella's birthday, but Nikolay and Felix weren't there".
The invited guests started to arrive around 16.30 and the last guests lefte around 20.00.
With the exception of Caroline Heering and her daughter, Rosemarie, who attends the same class as Christian. They stayed on. - A sleepover?
Other guests were Jakob Reese with his two daughters Mathilda and Rebecca.
Juliane Meulengracht and Peter Bang with their son and daughter.
Christian and Elisabeth Buchwald.
Julie Mølsgaard.
Frederik told later that the guests had been treated to a layered cake and cookies.
A typical Danish layered cake: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yFtA4qj_rlY/TpHeHDvy4gI/AAAAAAAAAQo/wvOm1aGftVA/s1600/IMG_1799.JPG
Frederik also had news about his twins to our reporter Ken Richter: "They are well on their way (to walking). One is doing pretty well. Vincent is by nature curious and he has already stood up from four to two legs.
Right now we are focusing on the two oldest children. I'm pretty pleased with their attitude in regards to moving about and being outside. I would like to be a good example by bicycling and playing soccer with them in the garden - and go swimming, when there is an opportunity for that (****). The things I show pleasure and enthusiasm about, I think also rubs off on them. This winter saw Prince Christian for the first time confidently on alpine skis. It's good to see that selfconfidence and that the child itself can control movements on skis. He really enjoyed that for the first time and so did I".
(*) Gavtyv. Typically a child full of funny mischiefs.
(**) Farbror = father's brother = uncle. (Pronounced as "far" as in far away + a drawn out "bra-a-a" as in brawn).
Morbror = mother's brother. (Pronounced as "moor" + a drawn out "bra" as in brawn. Easy, eh? Now you can speak with Jutlandic accent).
Onkel = uncle in general or someone who has married into the family.
(***) Tante = aunt in general or someone who has married into the family.
Moster = mother's sister. (Pronounced as in "muster").
Faster = father's sister. (Pronounced as "fa" as in Fabienne + "ster" as in muster. See? Now you can speak Danish)
(****) Fredensborg, Marselisborg and Gråsten have outdoor swimmingpools, but not Amalienborg.
My pleasure.
Hopefully a gallery will emerge soon. It is remarkable to see with which confidence Christian face the photographer. Obviously adults taking pictures of him is something natural to him.
Does Isabella start school this year? I know in the U.S. children start elementary at 5 with kindergarten, but it seems in Europe they start at 6 with first grade, kindergarten being separate?
Is Christian going to first or second grade (or its equivalent?)
Christian is currently attending preschool = børnehaveklasse, which is also called 0. grade. In August he will start in first grade.
It's normal in DK for children to attend nursery from six months or so until they turn three. Then they'll move on to kindergarten and at age six to preschool.
Christian is expected to leave school after graduating from ninth grade and I will be extremely surprised if he doesn't attend gymnasiet = high school, which he will graduate from after three years around the age of eighteen.
And as he is destined to become king, he will most likely opt for voulnteer conscription in the military.
At present that is about three months of basic training, unless serving in special units like the guards battallions of the Royal Lifeguard Regiment or the mounted squadron of the Guards Hussars or serving onboard Dannebrog.
Christian will in all likelyhood start a career in the armed forces and that means he will attend NCO school, along with other conscripts who have been selected for that. That will last about eighteen months, during which he will be in charge of training his own section, under the supervision of his platoon NCO.
Upon completing that he will join the officers academy. I don't know for how long. He will graduate as a first lieutenant and be in charge of his own platoon.
By then he will be in his early twenties and it's very likely he will attend a university.
Thanks! It appears to me that he is in the equivalent of American kindergarten. Our "preschool" is nursery school, for children below kindergarten.
Biboquinhas, in the U.S. children are starting school later these days. While traditionally, 5 year olds went to kindergarten, and 6 year olds to first grade, there is a tendency to start them later. Christian's grade may also be due to the fact that he has a fall birthday. Sometimes the school system or the parent will not start the child if at the start of the school year, they are not yet five or six. I have a feeling Muhler can help us out on this one.
I may.
Christian started in preschool/børnehaveklasse/0. grade at the age of five, because he was considered mature enough. Felix on the other hand wasn't considered mature enough, so it was advised that he waited one more year.
As a thumbrule children in DK start in preschool at the age of six and first grade at the age of seven.
My own children started in preschool shortly after and just prior to turning six.
I was an "old" six year old when I started in preschool myself, many, many years ago.
Back then we were attached to the school for two hours a day, but it was still mostly play with a few tasks here and there, partly because back then a considerable number of mothers were homemakers and many of us had never been to a kindergarten.
My own children were taught basic arithmetics and reading and writing in kindergarten. Something I was only taught when I started in first grade.
Nowadays children graduate from school after ninth grade, for a total of ten years in school. Some go to "efterskole" = continuation school for a year afterwards. That is usually a boarding school. Others start in high school - and others get an apprentticeship or attend a more practical school.
In my time (the 70's and 80's) it was very common to graduate after tenth grade, for a total of eleven years at school.
As a curiosum, my children roll their eyes way back in their heads when I tell that we were required to stand behind our chairs at the end of the day in kindergarten and sing the going-home-song. After which we bowed or curtsied to our teacher whom we addressed with last name and Mrs/Miss.
Later on some of our teachers would sometimes slap us if we misbehaved or pull our hair.
No calculators, no computers and the teachers only had blackboards! It's pure Oliver Twist to them.
Sounds similar here, even down to the odd slap (I went to school in the 70's and 80's too, 13 years of school, kindergarten through 12th grade, all blackboards, and later... TYPEWRITERS!! ).
Do you not still call teachers by their last names???? In the U.S. it's a must. You can tell your kids that kids in the U.S. must still stand up at the first bell, place hands over hearts, face the flag and recite the pledge of allegiance.
And carbon paper and correction fluid. Something utterly incomprehensible to our children nowadays.
Yes, children call their children by first name now and use informal you as a matter of course.
That began in my time, when the 68'ers entered the schools as teachers. But the old teachers were still addressed with last name and Mr/Mrs. to the day we left. It simply felt natural.
Some DK schools back then and now start the day with a song, but that's about it. I don't know if they do at Christian's school.
Sounds similar here, even down to the odd slap (I went to school in the 70's and 80's too, 13 years of school, kindergarten through 12th grade, all blackboards, and later... TYPEWRITERS!! ).
Do you not still call teachers by their last names???? In the U.S. it's a must. You can tell your kids that kids in the U.S. must still stand up at the first bell, place hands over hearts, face the flag and recite the pledge of allegiance.
I may.
Christian started in preschool/børnehaveklasse/0. grade at the age of five, because he was considered mature enough. Felix on the other hand wasn't considered mature enough, so it was advised that he waited one more year.
As a thumbrule children in DK start in preschool at the age of six and first grade at the age of seven.
My own children started in preschool shortly after and just prior to turning six.
I was an "old" six year old when I started in preschool myself, many, many years ago.
Back then we were attached to the school for two hours a day, but it was still mostly play with a few tasks here and there, partly because back then a considerable number of mothers were homemakers and many of us had never been to a kindergarten.
My own children were taught basic arithmetics and reading and writing in kindergarten. Something I was only taught when I started in first grade.
Nowadays children graduate from school after ninth grade, for a total of ten years in school. Some go to "efterskole" = continuation school for a year afterwards. That is usually a boarding school. Others start in high school - and others get an apprentticeship or attend a more practical school.
In my time (the 70's and 80's) it was very common to graduate after tenth grade, for a total of eleven years at school.
As a curiosum, my children roll their eyes way back in their heads when I tell that we were required to stand behind our chairs at the end of the day in kindergarten and sing the going-home-song. After which we bowed or curtsied to our teacher whom we addressed with last name and Mrs/Miss.
Later on some of our teachers would sometimes slap us if we misbehaved or pull our hair.
No calculators, no computers and the teachers only had blackboards! It's pure Oliver Twist to them.
I suppose that Christian is not addressing his teachers as "ma'am" and "sir". There's also a lot more male teachers at the elementary level down here. It that the same as Denmark?
Also, I noticed Christian is in a public school, which I think is admirable. But I don't believe it is the neighborhood school. In the U.S you generally are only allowed to go to the school in your zone, unless there is a program the child needs in a different public school. Is he in the different school due to security concerns? I suppose this is not so much an issue in Denmark. It is a big issues here, comparing it to the children of the President.
I also suppose that he does not ride the big yellow school bus you see all over the roads here. Do they have "school busses" there, or are children expected to make their own way?