Third Culture Kid: Growing Up in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia: New school

Starting a New School

My brother, sister and I were enrolled in Parents Cooperative School or PCS. It was an international school that went from kindergarten to ninth grade. I remember my dad bringing me to school which was odd because my mom always did. He brought me because women are not allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia.

I was in first grade and my teacher was an American woman named Mrs. Lehman. She was so sweet to me which really made a difference at this new school so very far away from my old one. She paired me with another recent arrival, a girl named Julia, to show me around school. Julia and I became the best of friends during my entire time in Saudi Arabia.

First grade with Mrs. Lehman. I'm on the left in red.

I made friends with kids from all over the world like England, Denmark, Cyprus, Scotland, and Ethiopia. It didn't matter where we had come from because we were all in this strange place together.

We were constantly doing things at school like singing programs and art shows.


Music program

In third grade, we went on a camping trip out in the desert which was both scary and exciting. We were told to be very careful if we removed our shoes because scorpions might find their way inside!