For 11-year-old Nayeli Roithner, a first-year 6th-grader at Munich International School (MIS), language has never been just about grammar or vocabulary; it is a profound tool for connection. She vividly recalls a moment at her former school in Berlin at Orientation Day when Nayeli was serving as a student ambassador. Among the new families joining the school, one family was relocating from Egypt. Using the Arabic she had learned while living in Cairo, she stepped forward to welcome the Arabic-speaking family in their home language. “I was able to talk to them in Arabic. Even though it might not have been as well as a native-Arabic speaker, I think it did show them that they are welcome,” she reflects. The realization that languages have the power to comfort and connect people across backgrounds has become the cornerstone of her personal development.
Coming from a diplomat family, transitions are not just an occasional event for Nayeli; they are a way of life. Born in Singapore, she has since lived in Hanoi, London, Cairo, and Berlin before arriving in Munich. While the majority of students at MIS are expats or "third-culture kids" who often struggle with the grief of leaving friends, homes, and family behind, Nayeli has fully embraced this nomadic existence. “I’ve been moving... since I was born and I don’t really know anything else except for learning new languages, getting new friends, going from place to place, and I actually enjoy it,” she says. Rather than seeing a move as losing people, she views it as a “growing circle of global connections”, where friends from Egypt and Berlin remain a permanent part of her life through emails, texts, and visits.
Nayeli’s latest learning journey involves the French language. Although she is Swiss and Austrian by heritage, she had never lived in Switzerland and wanted to learn French to connect with one of her national languages and prepare for the possibility of attending university there. Her determination is striking; after only a few months of taking a French elective at MIS, she recently became the first Grade 6 student at MIS to take and pass the external DELF A1 exam, scoring an impressive 70.5 out of 100.
Looking toward the future, Nayeli hopes to become a third-grade teacher, a role that would allow her to continue traveling while helping other children navigate their own language and social development. She finds middle school life at MIS liberating, enjoying the freedom to move between classes and grow her community. To her fellow students who may feel overwhelmed by the prospect of learning a new language or settling into a new home, Nayeli offers a perspective of openness and persistence as well as encouragement & top tips!: