After a four-year hiatus, it was most thrilling to announce that the joint LEH & Hampton School Paris exchange could resume with our partner school in Paris, Notre-Dame de Sion. Twelve enthusiastic LEH (and sixteen Hampton) pupils departed for Paris to meet up with their Paris exchange partners that they got to know during the home leg in London only ten days before! Despite the ongoing national demonstrations and strikes, pupils enjoyed a most exciting programme of events put together by Notre-Dame de Sion including a river boat cruise on the Seine, visits to the Musée d’Orsay and UNESCO building as well as appreciate the splendour of the Eiffel tower, l ’Arc de Triomphe, Avenue des Champs-Élysées, Musée du Louvre, Jardins des Tuileries, Château de Versailles and Basilique du Sacré-Coeur in Montmartre. All the cultural immersion concluded with a fun day out at Disneyland Paris. It was clear to see that our pupils not only developed their language skills in French but also a cultural appreciation of life in Paris through the eyes of a local Parisian. Please read the brief accounts below where pupils Marie and Rubika detail their experiences.

By M Agulian - Head of French

The French exchange is one of the best memories I have had at LEH so far, one I’m certain I’ll never forget.

It was such a unique experience to visit Paris and stay with a French family, visiting places that you never would have known existed as a tourist. For example, my exchange family organised for us to go to a workshop in a historical parfumerie which was such a fun and unique experience.

The exchange was not only a great experience but a great way to put my French skills into practice and further improve them, by joining in with casual conversations with my host family or asking for something in a shop.

I also learnt a lot about the culture and history of France, which I never could have learnt in a curriculum lesson, like having a guided tour of the UNESCO building or learning about the history of the streets in Paris by visiting many beautiful older parts of Paris. All the host families were so welcoming and I found the exchange a great way to get to know others from another country. The programme our partner school scheduled was fantastic as well, despite the slight restrictions due to the ongoing strikes. My personal favourite was the boat trip on the Seine as it was so beautiful and a great way to see many of the renowned buildings in Paris.

Although my host family was extremely warm and nice, the fact I saw all my LEH friends and teachers during the day gave me great moral support too. I really appreciated all my teachers’ effort to be on the trips in Paris and support us all through the journey.

By Marie (L5R)

 

Participating in the French exchange allowed us to expand our vocabularies and be exposed to much of Paris and its history. We were able to see so many famous and interesting sights, whether it was with our school group or our exchange partners. Staying with a French family was a key aspect in developing our language as it gave us more opportunities to have conversations and to learn new phrases. I definitely enjoyed hearing about French art, food, history and lots more straight from my exchange partner’s family as I learned about their point of view, which you might not achieve as a regular tourist. I would definitely recommend going on the French exchange, not only to see Paris and practise speaking French, but to help further your social skills and overall knowledge of events around the world! We had such a great time as a school and getting to know our exchange partners while being immersed in French culture.

By Rubika (L5R)