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French Students Welcomed to Mournes
St. Louis Grammar School Kilkeel recently welcomed their long-term partner school “Lycée de l’Authie” back to the Mournes. Following on from a recent visit to Picardie in North-west France by the Kilkeel students, the hosts now to reciprocate the welcome and further strengthen the bonds between the students and the schools.
The exchange project aims to forge durable links between language students and was partially funded by the Lefèvre Grant from the British Council. Each visit targets areas of the curriculum as well as cultural awareness and were planned by Mlle Koquert, French teacher at St. Louis.
The visitors were treated to the beautiful scenery of the Silent Valley where the Irish group introduced the French to the history of their area. They also spent a day experiencing school life in Northern Ireland, where they were warmly welcomed by the Principal Mr Martin, who offered a hamper made of Irish food specialities. The Picardie students were especially very impressed by the school building and the uniform, favourably comparing St. Louis to a famous school in the movies- “It feels like being in Harry Potter’s school”!
However, it was the students of St. Louis pupils who decided to put on a ‘real’ show for their French friends by organising a fantastic concert, mixing traditional music and contemporary performances. At the end of the show, each French pupils went to sample the best of the local cuisine as their penpals’ family invited them at their house for dinner.
A Guided Tour of Belfast murals and visits to the Ulster and American Folks Park, offered a great insight in Irish culture both past and present. Of course, no visit to Northern Ireland would be complete without a visit to the beautiful North Coast. Where the Giants Causeway and Dunluce Castle offered its own unique mysticism, as the braver hearts ventured over the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge.
One of the quirkier moments must surely have been the joint Irish-French attempt at ‘river dance’, under the instruction of teachers from the Atticall Ceili Club.
However, if the real focus of the trip to France and the return trip to Northern Ireland were about bringing young people from different cultures together in friendship, then this exchange event was a huge success. Many tears were shed on departure, but also many promises of future encounters to further cement relationships they may well last a lifetime. As the students settle down their examinations the happy memories will surely linger on.
The exchange project aims to forge durable links between language students and was partially funded by the Lefèvre Grant from the British Council. Each visit targets areas of the curriculum as well as cultural awareness and were planned by Mlle Koquert, French teacher at St. Louis.
The visitors were treated to the beautiful scenery of the Silent Valley where the Irish group introduced the French to the history of their area. They also spent a day experiencing school life in Northern Ireland, where they were warmly welcomed by the Principal Mr Martin, who offered a hamper made of Irish food specialities. The Picardie students were especially very impressed by the school building and the uniform, favourably comparing St. Louis to a famous school in the movies- “It feels like being in Harry Potter’s school”!
However, it was the students of St. Louis pupils who decided to put on a ‘real’ show for their French friends by organising a fantastic concert, mixing traditional music and contemporary performances. At the end of the show, each French pupils went to sample the best of the local cuisine as their penpals’ family invited them at their house for dinner.
A Guided Tour of Belfast murals and visits to the Ulster and American Folks Park, offered a great insight in Irish culture both past and present. Of course, no visit to Northern Ireland would be complete without a visit to the beautiful North Coast. Where the Giants Causeway and Dunluce Castle offered its own unique mysticism, as the braver hearts ventured over the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge.
One of the quirkier moments must surely have been the joint Irish-French attempt at ‘river dance’, under the instruction of teachers from the Atticall Ceili Club.
However, if the real focus of the trip to France and the return trip to Northern Ireland were about bringing young people from different cultures together in friendship, then this exchange event was a huge success. Many tears were shed on departure, but also many promises of future encounters to further cement relationships they may well last a lifetime. As the students settle down their examinations the happy memories will surely linger on.
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Written by:
News Desk
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