Two weeks after the visit of M. Thorel, I went to visit my French counterpart in order to continue to develop links between our two schools. When we arrived at the school (l'Ecole Michelet, Auchel) I was delighted to be greeted by the whole school who sang a couple of songs that they had prepared in English for me. I then spent part of the morning with M.Thorel's Year 6 class. I took part in their Maths lesson and I was also treated to another couple of songs (in French this time) sung by the students with M. Thorel accompanying them on the guitar. I also gave out the booklets that my class had prepared and the French students really did seem to appreciate them.
During the afternoon I had the opportunity to visit the other classes in the school (with only 1 class per year group, it's a much smaller school than ours). I observed part of a handwriting lesson which was very interesting and the students also had the chance to ask me some questions and tell me some English words/phrases that they had learnt which was nice.
This experience has had a very positive outcome as, since my trip, the year 2 and 3 teachers have expressed an interest in working with us. This is wonderful news as it will go a long way in helping us to establish a truly whole school partnership.
Watch this space
Au revoir!
P.S. The food was great!