Students travel north to study French

Eighth-grade French students at the Cranbury School prepare for a three-day trip to Quebec City, Canada.

By:Jessica Beym
   The French students at the Cranbury School will be saying "au revoir!" to their classmates today (Friday) when they depart by bus for a weekend trip to Quebec City, Canada.
   During the three-day trip, 40 eighth-graders, their parent chaperones, and French teachers Michele Guye-Hillis and Anahita Diana will explore the streets, shops and museums of the French-Canadian city and will stay with French-speaking host families.
   By immersing themselves in the culture of the French-Canadian city, the students — some have been taking French lessons since elementary school — will have a chance to put their foreign language skills to practical use, Ms. Guye-Hillis said.
   In preparation for the trip, the students have been practicing their fluency in the classroom through skits, plays and mock trips in which they converse with each other solely in French.
   "We do a lot of skits in class where we act out real situations and get graded on how fluent we are," eighth-grader Kelly Chambers said May 19. "It’s really practical. Like how to ask questions in a store or a restaurant — a lot like what we’re going to be doing in Quebec."
   The students said they are excited to spend the weekend speaking the foreign tongue and learning about the culture of the city.
   "I just love the way French sounds," said eighth-grader Rachel Bozich on May 19.
   Rachel, who lived outside of Paris with her family for three years before moving to Cranbury two years ago, said she likes French because, "it’s so fancy and it just rolls off your tongue."
   But the Quebecois dialect is different than what is spoken in France, said Ms. Guye-Hillis — or "Madame Guye," as she’s known to her students. The people of Quebec have a different accent and arrange the words in each sentence differently, which the students have been studying in preparation for the trip. But despite hours of practice in the classroom, the students said they are a little nervous about holding conversations with the host families.
   "We know basic conversation, but you have to make it a good conversation," said Rachel. "I’m afraid they’re going to be asking all kinds of questions and I’m just going to keep saying ‘Oui.’"
   Ms. Guye-Hillis said that while the students may be a bit anxious, she has confidence in them because for the past few weeks they have demonstrated their fluency in the classroom through tests and various exercises.
   Last week, the students took a foreign language assessment pilot test called STAMP, in which they were tested on their speaking, reading and listening comprehension. During the audio portion of the test, the students had to respond to questions in French and record their answers through a microphone on the computer.
   Even though she doesn’t have the results of the test, Ms. Guye-Hillis said she thinks the students did well, just from listening to their conversation during the test.
   "Just listening to all the French around the room was so beautiful," Ms. Guye-Hillis said. "I couldn’t believe it. They were speaking for almost 45 minutes of just French."
   In April, the eighth-grade students also participated in an annual national French contest called Le Grand Concours. Twelve students from Cranbury School had scores above the 90th percentile.
   Those students included Olivia Huang, Danielle Dredger, Elizabeth Suttmeier, Jennifer Conover, Maxwell Currier, Sarah Dilella, Aaron Palmer, Annelise Quinn, Amanda Chen, Kelly Chambers, Hailey Walsh and Rachel Bozich.
   In addition to tests and classroom exercises, the students also strengthen their French-speaking skills through the French club. As the adviser, Ms. Guye-Hillis said she brings in French movies for the students to watch to get a taste for the culture. The club also performs a fairy-tale play each year, such as "Snow White," for the kindergarten.
   "They love it," Rachel said. "It’s funny because they are familiar with the story but they have no idea what we’re saying."
   The students are expected to arrive in Quebec City at 6 p.m. today (Friday) and will spend the night with their host families, Ms. Guye-Hillis said. On Saturday they will visit the Museum of Civilization and an ancient Huron Indian village where they will learn about ancient customs, food and history.
   On Sunday the students will take a guided tour of Old Quebec City to get a sense of the settlement and history of the city, Ms. Guye-Hillis said. There, they will experience singing and dancing from the street musicians of the city.
   The students will spend the nights at their host families’ houses.
   Ms. Guye-Hillis said the host families were arranged through an exchange program with Prometour, a division of the Quebec Tourism office.
   "We love it," she said in an e-mail Tuesday, adding that the families often have young children and are very welcoming. "The kids have always loved it once they realize they can truly communicate."