Eleven DHPS learners from Grade 10 and Grade 11 took part in a 12-day language and cultural trip to Paris, France, from 18 to 29 June 2023. The idea was to combine intensive French classes with the discovery of Paris.
To implement this project, DHPS French teacher Camille Detavernier worked with the French language institute Pierre Overall, who organised guest families and French lessons.
This combo allowed the learners to experience the French way of life with its advantages (living in a big city, access to the culture, easy public transport, etc.) but also to discover the challenges (small flats, many people and crowded public transport).
It was also an extra opportunity to speak French with the family in a real-life setting and outside of the classroom context.
A qualified French teacher gave them lessons for three hours per day. It was an intensive programme, orientated to improve their speaking skills. The main aim was to give the learners more confidence in the French language.
Detavernier gave them a good overview of the French capital, its architecture and history, as well as a great mix of culture and entertainment.
On the programme were, among others, a boat cruise on the Seine to see the main buildings; going to the top of the Eiffel Tower; a visit to the Louvre Museum with its star, the Mona Lisa; an evening to celebrate ‘La fête de la musique’ with the Parisians; an interesting exhibition about climate change and the solutions at the Cite des Sciences; a fun full day at Disneyland; discover the King’s way of life at Versailles; a walk in Montmartre, who was a village outside of Paris before to be added to the capital; a relaxing day at a dam because the city is intense; learn more about modern art at Centre Pompidou Museum; a strange visit in the Catacombs, a kind of underground cemetery, as well as shopping time.
“It is a once-in-a-lifetime experience!”; “It is a dream come true”; “I enjoyed speaking French”’; “I learnt more French,” some of the learners said.
Detavernier said with the support of the school, they could offer this opportunity again.
“All the work and stress at the end is worth it when you see the happiness in your learners’ eyes,” she noted.