by Sarah Kulick
The French Honor Society presented La Semaine du Français, or French Week, to Woodbridge High School from Wednesday, November 5th to Friday, November 14th.
The French Honor Society, under the advisement of French teacher Madame Zeitz, hosted a variety of school-wide activities to promote French culture. “As a French teacher, I feel that it is an opportunity for all those who are curious to learn something new and exciting,” Zeitz said.
One of the big hits during the celebration was Crêpes Day on Monday, November 10th, where students cooked and ate delicious crêpes in room 122—a favorite, by far, of all of the few attendees. Though the turnout was not as what was expected, FHS president Prabh Jassal, senior, said the attendees enjoyed the thin pancakes.
Other activities included games and cultural trivia, French music, and a viewing of Une Vie de Chat, an animated French film known in English as A Cat in Paris. Through the activities, “[students] learned the regular traditions of the French culture. No one celebrates Mardi Gras around the school, so it’s kind of different,” said Jassal.
Through the facilitation of Madame Williams, Woodbridge High School’s newest French teacher, students also learned modern and traditional French songs, including the wildly popular 1969 Joe Dassin hit “Les Champs-Élysées,” so named after the famous avenue running from the Arc de Triomphe to the Place de la Concorde in Paris, France.
Music was a large part of the weeklong festivities, as 40 students from the French program attended a day trip on November 12th to Summit High School to attend a concert featuring Le Vent du Nord, a French-Canadian folk group. The students learned a bit of Canadian history through the band’s set, and enjoyed the music.
In the building, one of the more exciting events the French Honor Society held was a schoolwide scavenger hunt, featuring “petite” Eiffel Towers. Winning students Billy Dulay and Daniella Campos, both juniors, who found the most petite Eiffel Towers around the school, were awarded prizes for their participation.
The week was not simply fun and games, however, and students gained a valuable insight into the culture of French Africa when Ms. Gulics, presenting as a guest speaker, discussed her experiences in Ghana and Burkina Faso while enlisted in the military. Her after-school PowerPoint presentation included the day-to-day lives of people in these countries.
Regardless of whether or not students participated in the activities, students and staff alike gained a bit of culture during French Week from the myriad of labels around the school identifying various objects in French—for instance, “L’escalier,” meaning stairs, near the staircases.
“Our goal is to prepare all our students to be global citizens,” Madame Zeitz said. “Students who participated in the organized activities by the French Honor Society walked away with a better understanding and appreciation for the francophone world and bien sûr much more open-minded.”
WHS can thank the hardworking members of the French Honor Society and Madame Zeitz for putting together a great week while promoting French Culture around the school.
