— 19 Jun 2025, 14:23 by Alex Hardy
Dear families,
Greetings from France where pupils are having a fantastic time.
To begin with, the journey went extremely well. Even the drivers who are used to coming to
MCF said it was one of the best journeys they had. We arrived at MCF and were welcomed
by Alex and Mark, the owners of Maison Claire Fontaine, and the MCF team. Pupils were
able to then have a bit of free time to stretch their legs and play football and table tennis.
The MCF team then explained the rules to our pupils which allowed them to show a bit their
knowledge of French. We then went to the dorms and pupils started unpacking.
After the fire drill, which is compulsory on arrival, pupils had their first dinner at MCF.
During meals, pupils have to practise their speaking skills by asking in French anything that
they might need. So far, our pupils have all tried very hard and they are getting more and
more confident which is fantastic. The MCF team have all been impressed by how polite
your children are which makes us very happy and proud.
After dinner, pupils had again a bit of free time to get more fresh air and play and chat with
their friends. We then all went back to the dorms. Pupils showered, finished unpacking and
by 9.30pm, everyone was fast asleep.
Tuesday morning, pupils woke up refreshed and ready for a fantastic day of activities.
At 8.15, we all went to the canteen for breakfast. Pupils had a variety of choices: cereals with
milk, hot chocolate, orange juice, bread with butter and jam. A lot of pupils particularly
enjoyed having bread with strawberry jam (une tartine in French).
This morning, there were 2 activities: French lesson and cooking.
During the French lesson, pupils practised introducing themselves in French. They learned
about the different regions of France and the specialties of Burgundy. Pupils were even lucky
to try 3 specialties during the lesson: Pain d’épices which is a type of sweet bread with
different types of spices like ginger and cinnamon, and honey. They also tried some
nonnettes which is a type of pain d’épices but filled with jam. Finally, they tried the Anis de
Flavigny which is a sweet filled with anise seeds. Most of them really enjoyed the pain
d’épices!
For the second activity, in teams, pupils had to bake a cake made with apples, le tartouillat,
which is a specialty of the region of Burgundy. Pupils first learned all the ingredients in
French. They then had to ask for all the ingredients and equipment in French which was
really great to watch. Parents, you would have been very impressed!
The RAHP team judged the cakes tonight during dinner and the winners will receive their
prize on Friday during the Rewards Assembly. The cakes didn’t last long... :-)
This afternoon, pupils went on a hike and were delighted to see for the first time a menhir. If
you have heard of Asterix and Obelix, a menhir is the rock that Obelix (the biggest character)
always carries on his back! Pupils then had a reading session with Lily which went extremely
well. Many merits were given. We ended this fantastic day with a short rehearsal of Shrek.
This was the first time that pupils performed in front of all the Y7. It took a lot of courage and
everyone really enjoyed the songs.
Tomorrow is again going to be a fun day of activities.
In the morning, they will have a French lesson and they will make a mosaic. We are looking forward to their creation. In the
afternoon, half of the group will go to Avallon and the other half to Vézelay. We will tell you
all about their adventures tomorrow.
Bonne soirée!
Fadila
