Eifel Tower, Alexander Spatari, Getty Images
Most highschool students only dream of traveling to France, staying there for a full week, and having their whole trip planned out. Well for some Encinal students who have, or are currently taking french classes, this dream has become a reality. This upcoming spring break, a select group of 35 students and 5 staff members from Encinal are taking a trip to France to immerse themselves in the culture and the beautiful environment.
Ms. Krautler, one of Encinal’s french teachers, and Ms. Kaplan, Encinal’s College and Career counselor, had the idea of this experience for a couple years, but only launched the official trip with the help of EF Tours last May. EF Tours is an organization that offers educational tours for students that will help them learn, explore and understand the world beyond traditional classroom learning.
The students and supervisors will be staying there for one full week, with planned experiences during that time. They will be hitting the most exciting sites like the Louvre Museum, the Eiffel Tower, as well as going on a river cruise. For right now, where the group will be staying is unknown, but it will be somewhere in Paris.
Outside of these tours, they will be taking a 2 day trip outside of the city to go to other cities like Versailles, Chartes, and then to Loire Valley. But they won’t be constantly going on tours and visiting sites, there will be flexible time in between their travels.
“We have some free time as well where students can give input and help create our itinerary,” said Ms. Krautler. This means that the students will get to travel to places they personally want to go to. And because of this, the students and supervisors are exhilarated about this trip, and are super eager to explore these landmarks.
This being the first year that this trip will be happening, means that there’s a lot of excitement buzzing amongst the supervisors that will be attending. Ms. Calahane, an Encinal English teacher, will also be attending the trip as a staff member. She took a similar trip alike to this one in high school, and she’s thrilled to be able to relive one of her most cherished memories.
“I’m so excited to be on the teacher’s side of it, and get to sort of experience that first trip again through the eyes of the young people,” said Ms. Calahane. Her memories spark excitement for the upcoming trip. The scholars will go to new places, learn about the french cultures, and make amazing memories together. Their adventure is just beginning, with planned tours and trips throughout the time that they will be staying there.
While the planned trips and the free time the students will have seem to be the most exciting part of the trip, most students are both excited, and nervous about different parts of this experience. The trip for most, will be a wonderful memory that will always hold a special place in their hearts. So, we have asked students what they are most excited or nervous to see and participate in.
“[I’m] probably most excited about seeing the Eiffel Tower in person, because I’ve only seen pictures,” said freshman Jamie Kitts. But this huge trip can be scary, traveling to a foreign country, for some, can be nerve wracking. “I’m most nervous about having to speak French, at least I think we’re supposed to,” added sophomore Kai Gordon. The students will gain a lot more than just experience with the language that they are learning.
But what else will they gain? What do the staff think that they will appreciate from this experience, and why create the trip most of all? The staff members believe that the students will enjoy this trip, but also will learn a lot and that this trip will help them gain a lot of educational experience with the language that they have been learning in classrooms. Not only that, but they hope that they can use that language outside of schooling because it will benefit them in the future.
”Proficiency in another language is beneficial in many ways. It definitely opens doors in the job market. Traveling abroad is also the best way to learn about another culture,” said Ms. Krautler.
This experience will be beneficial to students much more than just advancing in french, they get to submerge themselves in an environment that they have been studying about, and create memories that will last them a lifetime.