1. Personal and Familial Development
Interaction with diverse cultures is a part of life. When individuals and families open their homes to students, personal development is inevitable. Familiarization with another race, culture and ethnicity expands the mind. It demonstrates how different yet similar we all are.
2. Inspires New Language Possibilities
Learning another language as a host family can be a lot of fun. Children in host families — even adult children — develop and expand analytical skills and even improve their English. It can be beneficial for both a host and their family. When children are exposed to international students, they can learn the fun and simplicity of learning a new language.
3. Lifelong Acquaintance
At the conclusion of a student’s stay, many host families and students remain long-term friends. Saying good-bye represents only the next phase of the newly developed, lifelong relationship.
4. Have Fun
Host families and students laugh. Whether giggling over the mispronunciation of words or sharing students’ excitement about new found joys, host families have a tremendous amount of fun.
5. Learn More about their World
Hosting is an excellent way to learn about the world without leaving home. Host families can get personal insight into the world beyond their backyards, learn new skills and even become excellent international cooks! Living with a student from another culture is an education in itself.
6. New Found Respect and Understanding
Once hosts open their homes to students, a natural family-like relationship transpires between the student and the host family. By opening your door, you open a student’s eyes to the real New Zealand : real people, real experiences and real life.
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO KNOW TO BE A HOST FAMILY?
Our host families are all different in size and make up, including single parents, families, couples and retirees. We welcome applications from anyone in the local area who speaks English, has a clean, tidy home and a spare furnished bedroom.
Students come from many different countries, including Japan, Taiwan, Germany, China and Mauritius. They usually come and study with us for 4 terms, but some come for a short term stay, from anywhere in between 2 weeks to 3 terms. We pay $250 per student per week to cover the costs associated with hosting student, such as: wifi, heating, meals, etc.
Before accepting a host family we are required to police vet anyone 18 or over in the house and visit the house to do an inspection. We must also visit the house during the year to ensure that it is still a suitable place for a student.
We also need help from families keen to host temporary stays, where students can stay for a day or two, to help support our long stay host families.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON BECOMING A HOST FAMILY
Contact Jenny Fugle: international@hastingsgirls.com, 06 873 1133
