Alpharetta Christian Academy (ACA) is hosting three Korean exchange students for the month of January.  In December, fifth graders Peter Park, Tony Park, and Anne Kim arrived in the U.S. from Gimhae, Korea, along with their teacher.

The children will be in the United States for five weeks and are attending Alpharetta Christian Academy for four weeks of their time here.  The four visitors are staying with their teacher’s son, Mr. Kim, who is a student at Georgia Tech. On weekends they spend time sightseeing around Atlanta.

While the three students miss their families in Korea, they are finding this trip to be a good experience.  Anne is enjoying P.E. and science and is happy to be getting help with her English.  Peter and Tony like American food, but miss Korean food.  Tony has no problem finding entertainment in the U.S., since he plays video games in both countries.  While Peter is in this country, he has a good time playing Frisbee and basketball in addition to going to the library.

Although their classes in Korea are much larger than at ACA, they are pleased with the smaller class sizes.   According to teacher Deidre Britt, “I’m impressed by their knowledge of English, and they are teaching us some Korean.”  Teacher Stephanie Conner says, “They are good and fast at math.”   

Their teachers and classmates have been enriched by this experience and have grown really close to their Korean visitors. Both students and teachers have come to appreciate the courage it takes not only to come to America, but also to be placed in an American school without the benefit of fluent English or any friends.  ACA considers itself blessed by the three visitors and will miss them greatly after their return to Korea.  The American students do plan to stay in touch with Peter, Tony, and Anne and continue a lifelong friendship with them.