Hallo,
wir haben den Elternbrief zunächst selber auf Englisch geschrieben, und dann durch eine Bekannte, die Anglistik studiert hat, polieren lassen. Rausgekommen ist folgendes:
Dear host family,
Have you ever tried to describe your child? It is not easy for us to do so, especially when preparing to send her abroad, to live with people whom we do not (yet) know; but we will give it a try.
Our Annika is a very kind, intelligent and warm-hearted girl with a quiet disposition. As she is very sociable and honest, she is an easy and pleasant person to live with.
She is particularly good with younger children, who are likely to feel drawn to her quickly.
Although she actively participates in family live, she always needs a place of her own where she can read or work for school. As she does not like music, no noise-related problems are likely to turn up, which is quite untypical for a teenager.
She is rather mature for her age, a well-balanced person. Having her own stable opinions, she is comparatively independent of the views others hold. Although she prefers to avoid disagreements, Annika is always willing to support her personal stance by means of rational argument.
She can adapt easily and is likely not to suffer much from homesickness. She very much looks forward to her one-year stay in the United States and personally works towards her goal of going there.
Our daughter is an intelligent girl who gets good grades at school, even though she is a year younger then the average in her class. Due to her unobtrusive, helpful and kind personally, she is rather popular among her classmates. She enjoys helping other with regard to school-related problems, that is, she sometimes meets her friends for learning purposes and mutual assistance. Hence, her students have nicknamed her “the kind one“.
Mathematics and sciences are her favorite subjects at school. Her thinking style is structured and logical.
Annika also has a distinct sense of justice. She will speak up for others if she feels that they have been treated unfairly, even if it might be to her own disadvantage.
Although Annika is quite happy to be at home, she is very interested in sports. She trained in her swimming club for about a decade and play handball to this day. Meanwhile she has stopped swimming, but has started Jujutsu instead. She usually spends her weekends at home, but will sometimes participate in handball matches, swim or cycle with her friends, or go to the cinema with them.
Of course Annika does not only have bright sides. To stick the truth, it must be said that she occasionally needs to be told to tidy and clean up her room. On the other hand, she will always do her homework diligently and is an attentive learner at school. If she dislikes something, she might – like most pubertal girls – be a little touchy at times. This, however, never last long, and her pleasant character quickly makes up for these little quirks. She rapidly earns people’s trust and never disappoints them.
Unlike most others in her class, she doesn’t care much about going out in the evenings, or going shopping for stylish clothing. She mostly prefers staying at home together with the family, or watching TV, reading a book, or something else.
She is also uncomplicated in her diet. She seldom eats meat, preferring vegetables or other fixings. But she is used to try at least unknown food. And generally, she like’s it.
You will soon find out that your visitor is a wonderful young woman who is in no way demanding and is an enrichment to the family.
Thanking you in advance for your willingness to offer our child a home during her year in your country,
sincerely yours,
Ich hoffe, meine Tochter kommt nicht mal zufällig in diesen Thread
Gruß Rudi