Hub Staff

Francophones can rejoice as École Port Elgin Saugeen Central School (EPESCS) celebrates all things French for French Week, March 22 to 24.

A week of fun French activities has already begun at the school, with hot chocolate donated by Tim Hortons on March 22, and a special visit from the ambassador of the Quebec Winter Carnival, snowman Bonhomme, who visited with the Saugeen Shores students and helped celebrate the cultural week.

Canadian Parents for French (CPF) member, Nadine Morris helped organize French Week to coincide with International Francophonie Day, March 20. “We thought it be nice to piggyback off the Francaphonie Day, and have a week of being proud of our two languages,” said Morris during the French Bingo night at the school, March 23. “We were able to get a donation from Tim Hortons, and we served 600 plus students hot chocolate with our team of six volunteers. We had le Bonhomme come around to the classrooms and it was a lot of fun and today (March 23) we’re having Bingo night.

École Port Elgin Saugeen Central School has had its grade 1/2 and 2/3 classes sing the French version of O Canada, during the morning announcements all week, and will show age appropriate French-language movies on March 24.

Morris said that the finale of French Week on Thursday, March 24, will be delicious. “There will be French cuisine at second recess. We’ll be serving baguettes, croissants, and cheese and fruits for the students, before they go off for their Easter weekend. So this has all been very exciting.”

French Week was supported with grants from the CPF office in Toronto, through CPF membership rebates. The CPF team at EPESCS hopes that memberships will grow so they can plan more French activities in the future.