A taste of Yorkshire life for French visitors

First it was the Tour de France, now it’s a tour of Yorkshire for a number of French exchange pupils.

The pupils from the Ecole Bilingue de Haute Savoie (EBHS) in Annecy close to the Swiss border visited Cundall Manor School as part of their visit to the UK.

Pupils from both schools have been writing to each other for a number of months and it was the first opportunity to meet their pen pals in person.

Head of Modern Foreign Languages, Katy Hunzinger said: “It was a real pleasure to welcome our visitors to school.  At Cundall Manor we have managed to pair up all our French learners from year 4 upwards with penfriends from three different French schools and this visit was hugely exciting for our years 5 and 6.  The French EBHS school presumed they would see a typical school day, however far from it!  They were very lucky to pick one of the more unique days at Cundall Manor, with our annual Go-Kart race, sponsored walk and afternoon tea on the lawn rounding off the end of term.”

She added: “I had to reassure our visitors that this doesn’t happen every day.”

Trip leader Hélène Jaeger (co-founder of EBHS) is hoping that the lucky Cundall pupils will return the favour and visit their pen pals in the idyllic town of Annecy, in Haute-Savoie, close to Geneva.

Opened in 2010, this nursery and primary school welcomes children (about 200 on 2 sites for the 2016/2017 school year) between 3 and 11 years old and teaches the pupils in both languages whilst following the French national curriculum.

Contacted by the French department of Cundall Manor, EBHS started to exchange letters with their English pen pals back in 2013.  Ms Jaeger said “Using the language you are learning as a way of communicating with friends your own age is highly motivating for children, which is why EBHS were absolutely delighted to be offered this opportunity of creating links with a British school.  The CM2 (equivalent or years 5/6) had been preparing their trip for months, raising money by putting on various activities and selling pains au chocolat.  It was a brilliant day visiting the school. The Go-Kart race looked like so much fun.”

Apart from going to Cundall Manor school, EBHS also visited the North York Moors, Whitby, and York and stayed at the lovely camp site Cote Ghyll in Osmotherly.

To find out more about Cundall Manor School and the huge range of trips, visits and opportunities available, visit www.cundallmanorschool.com or call 01423 360 200.