French Immersion students from Howe Sound Secondary were excited as they gathered in the school library for an event six weeks in the making.
For the past month and a half, Grade 12 students of Madame St. Pierre’s Français class have been hard at work on humanitarian projects.
Small groups of students chose subjects that they are passionate about and want to bring awareness to. The groups then did thorough research.
For some this meant paying a visit to the Squamish Food Bank, while others travelled to Vancouver to find out more about homelessness.
This lit a flame in Grade 12 student Harpreet Dhaliwal.
“I wish I had volunteered [at the food bank] a bit more. I plan on going back in the future,” she said.
While the goal of the project was to spread awareness about social issues, many students were inspired along the way.
The next step was to share their knowledge. A few groups presented what they had learned to students from Don Ross Middle School, and many presented to Howe Sound Secondary classes.
Then, after seeing the reactions of their peers and getting feedback, the groups were ready to share the fruits of their work with parents and friends.
Café Croissant, an event held on the evening of Dec. 7, showcased everything that the students have been working on and the impacts they have made.
One group, made up of Kiana Catarino, Emma Gilchrist, Alex Jevons and Beth Reimer, chose to shed light on the value of the French Immersion program itself and focused on encouraging younger students to stick with it.
“French Immersion is a gift and shouldn’t be taken for granted,” said Reimer.
Catarino said she hopes that parents with young children gained valuable information from the event.
The Grade 11 students were tasked with organizing and executing the event.
The night featured Howe Sound’s very own Aidan Devlin and Connor Lum singing the classic French tune “Aline.”
With the help of the students, Madame St-Pierre spearheads the project each year.
It has become a favourite way among parents and former teachers to support Howe Sound’s French Immersion students.
- Linnea Burke is a Grade 11 student at Howe Sound Secondary.
