THUNDER BAY - Students at a local elementary school are receiving a unique language lesson, courtesy of fellow students half a world away.
Grade 7 and 8 students at Edgewater Park Public School are making new friends and learning about another culture through a pen pal program with students from Toulouse, France.
The program was started five years ago by core French teacher, Brooke Robinson. According to Robinson, corresponding with French-speaking students in another country not only helps the students learn the language, but also creates a greater sense of global awareness.
“It’s authentic communication in French,” she said. “You can do any kind of writing in class, but to actually have them be able to write a real letter that they are going to send to somebody and that they will get a response back, it’s just a great way of inspiring them to write and they sure love to communicate with their friends.”
The students will learn about daily life of their pen pal friends, including interests, family, and the city in which they live.
“It’s neat for them to see the difference in the culture and the lifestyles,” Robinson said.
Grade 8 student, Parker Jackson, said it has been a lot of fun writing letters to pen pals and learning about a culture in another part of the world.
“It’s fun having someone from a different hemisphere responding to you in a different language and getting you to talk about your country and your family,” he said. “I’ve learned a lot about their heritage and their culture and stuff they do differently compared to here. The things that they eat, the places they eat, the different religions there.”
Grade 7 student, Kim Lai, said she has learned a lot about her pen pal Em in Toulouse and how she enjoys sports, music, and is really well-spoken in English.
“She hasn’t asked me many questions, but I am going to try to ask as many questions as I can to get to know her,” Kim said.
Corresponding with French students has really helped Kim and Parker not only understand life in another country, but also their understanding of the language.
“You’re actually getting to interact with a person who speaks French fluently and can tell you this is how you say this instead of sitting in a classroom and reading or watching someone telling you how to do something,” Kim said. “We get experience talking to other people and learning how to communicate in French and having a back and forth conversation with someone.”
“It’s a lot easier learning it from a person rather than a lesson because maybe they have a different way of speaking French,” Parker added.
Robinson said the students are very excited about the program and area always asking her when the letters will arrive. But more important, students feel more confident about communicating in French after reading and writing the letters. In fact, the hardest part of the lesson isn’t even the French.
“The hardest part is the handwriting,” she said. “The handwriting is quite different so they have trouble just reading the handwriting. It has a few more loops in it. That is the most difficult part of it, not the actual language, but the handwriting.”
