Bonjour to our French Friends
At the beginning of October, Year 10 students from Burgess Hill School for Girls welcomed their exchange friends from the Collège Champfleury in Avignon, France.
The fourteen visiting students spent time in lessons with their exchange partners during the first two days, noting with interest the differences between school life in both countries and impressing teachers with their serious attitude. The girls were intrigued by single sex education and loved the uniform as neither of these feature in French schools. They also enjoyed finding out about sports rarely played in French schools – such as hockey or netball.
As well as spending time in school, the exchange girls enjoyed a guided tour of Preston Manor in Brighton where they discovered the differences between life upstairs and downstairs in an Edwardian household. They also spent time in London visiting Madame Tussauds, learnt about the history of London at the Museum of London, and were thrilled to see St Paul’s Cathedral and the River Thames.
Recent links have also been made at Skinners School, a boys’ grammar school in Tunbridge Wells, enabling boys from the visiting school to run an exchange programme at the same time as their girls were visiting Burgess Hill School for Girls. The two groups met up in Brighton and enjoyed the sights that attract thousands of people to visit the seaside city.
The highlight of the trip for the girls was the unique opportunity to spend time with a British family and to experience first-hand the life of an English teenager. They enjoyed family meals in traditional pubs, outings to bowling alleys and sleepovers. All were very touched by the warm welcome they received and said they could not wait to host their partners in beautiful Provence in June next year.
The exchange is now in its second year and, if the enthusiasm with which it has been met on both sides of the Channel is anything to go by, it looks set to be a rich source of cultural exchanges for years to come.
Year 9 student, Amy said: “The French Exchange has been an amazing experience. I have made a lifelong friend with whom I have so much in common. I enjoyed getting to know her, going shopping and bowling, and finding out more about her family life.”