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Ik heet Michaela, en ik spreek een beetje Nederlands (I am Michaela, and I speak a little Dutch).  This is one of the few phrases that I learned in my first Dutch class yesterday.  Most of what we learned was how to introduce ourselves.  Our name, home land, current home, and how we got to school were among topics of conversation.  We learned how to greet each other, at different times of day, and inquired into each others well being. 

There are about 10 people in my class, of which I am one of the youngest.  Most seem to be within ten years of me, but we have a few older students as well.  They come from Eastern Europe, Russia, and the Middle East, with one other student from the US, Michigan.  My teacher, Dirk, has a lots of energy, and likes to pick on the students who try to stay hidden.  Luckily, he speaks English and French, as well as Dutch (obviously) so he can answer questions, but he tries to speak in Dutch the whole time.  Most of the learning is done with pictures and big gestures to help get the point across.  A lot of Dutch sounds similar to English, so it hasn't been too difficult yet, but it was only the first day. 

The second I picked up the kids from school, they started pelting me with questions about what I had learned.  "Can you speak Dutch now?"  Thomas asks, expecting me to now be fluent.  Anytime I use Dutch they ask if I learned it in my class, even if I have been using that word, or phrase, for weeks.  Marie asked me what my homework was, and if she could help, and was appalled when I informed her that I didn't have any homework, not yet at least. 

To close I will do as the title asks...introduce myself!

Mijn voorname is Michaela (My firstname is Michaela).

Mijn familienaam is O'Neill (My lastname is O'Neill).

Ik kom uit de Verenigde State (I come from the United States).

Ik spreek Engles (I speak English).

Ik woon in Merelbeke (I live in Merelbeke).

Ik kom met de bus en tram naar school ( I came by bus and tram to school).

Hoe is 't (How are you)?

Goed (Good).

Dank u wel (Thank you very much)!

Ok, I hope that is a good introduction to what I have learned, and will keep you up to date on my knowledge!