Ashlyns School Year 10 French Language Trip to Normandy February 2015
Bienvenue Welcome to the 2015 French language trip to Chateau de la Baudonniere. This is an exciting opportunity for each of you to improve your French speaking, listening, comprehension and communication skills. At the Chateau you will be spoken to only in French by native French speakers (many of whom don t really even speak English at all). The aim of the holiday is to have fun and try out your French - you could seriously improve your GCSE French grade with this motto in mind! How to get the most out of the trip Take every opportunity to speak in French when you can. Listen to all your instructions and do your best to understand and really make the most of being immersed in French for the week. Get stuck in with the activities and try something new Have fun with your friends, be inclusive and enjoy each other s company whatever group or room you end up in. Use every opportunity to learn about the culture as well as the language. Get enough sleep at night to make the most of the action packed days. Don t worry if you are corrected- if someone corrects you then learn from if don t take offence. It may be a good idea to take a little note book with you to jot down new vocabulary. I love learning new words and just speaking French and I hope that you will too by the end of the week. For me, it is so great to see the progress you have made in French and to think how far you have come since the start of the year. This is your opportunity to try to make sentences, to try to say what you want to say in French, and to apply your skills to real life situations. Above all enjoy creating the memories that make school trips so much fun and remember what happens in Normandy stays in will end up on facebook! So be good, be wise and be kind. Miss Milton
Itinerary Sunday 22 February Meet at School at 4.10am (Sorry!) Depart from Ashlyns at 4.30am Travel by coach to Portsmouth (packed lunch required) Transfer from coach to ferry as foot passengers Depart Portsmouth - ferry 8.15am Arrive Caen 3pm - collected by Chateau coach. Arrive at Chateau 4.30pm in time for evening meal. During the week we will be participating in a variety of activities at the centre for example aeroball, orienteering, bread making, climbing, and the famous assault course. Further to that we will also visit a French market, have a half day trip to Mont St Michel, and enjoy a visit to a goat farm (better than it sounds). In terms of evening activities there will be an evening at a crêperie, and varied activities/entertainment too, including one free night where students are welcome to play their own music and enjoy time together in the main meeting hall. Saturday 28 February Depart Chateau 5.30am Travel by coach and ferry from Caen 8.30am Arrive Portsmouth 1.15pm Arrive back at school around 15.45pm For ease of travelling and counting quickly we will have four travel groups so that we can check easily that we have everyone, these will be different from your activity and room groups.
Staffing There will be four members of staff leading the trip Miss Milton - Party Leader, French Teacher Mr C Rowland Assistant Party Leader, Deputy Head Plus two parent helpers who have visited the Chateau before: Mr Pete Huke Mr John Rollit Accommodation The accommodation at the Chateau is in dormitories. Each dormitory has en-suite bathrooms and the blocks have security codes for access issued to the students on arrival. All bedding is supplied but you will need to bring towels for showering and cleaning up after a muddy/freezing day. Lights out may differ daily but we do expect you to stay in your rooms after lights out. It is important that we feel we can trust you and that you do as you are asked. Certainly after a 3.30am wake up on day 1 we will be insisting on an early night ready for activities the next day.
Travel Seat belts must be worn at all times on the coaches. Failure to do so in France can result in a fine of 750 euros which you will be expected to pay. You will be reminded regularly so please follow instructions on this matter for your own sake and for the safety of others. If you suffer from travel sickness please make sure that you have informed us and that you have appropriate medication to take. The boat is a six hour crossing and really could be quite turbulent at this time of year! I would advise eating something before we get on the boat, even though it is early, to settle your stomach before we travel on the boat. During the ferry crossing there will be a cinema with a choice of films, if you would like to watch a film to pass the time please include this cost in the money you bring. Passports and European Health Insurance Cards To ensure that everyone has an up to date passport we have asked that you bring a photocopy of the passport with you tonight. We will collect passports in and store them in a safe in Normandy for security. We will also need to know that you have an up to date European Health card (previously called an E111 card) If you do not then you can apply for one on line. They are free but do take a couple of weeks to arrive- so please make sure you have one. Passport valid Photo copy European Health Card Packed Lunch and food A packed lunch is required for the outward journey; as we don t arrive until 11.30pm they may need extra in their packed lunch or money to buy food on the ferry. You may wish to bring sweets but we do not expect to find sweet wrappers littering the floor or chewing gum stuck on the seats. Chewing gum is banned as at school so please don t bring it with you. It will be confiscated if you do.
The food at the Chateau is good. We eat breakfast in the canteen and then have a packed lunch with a hot evening meal freshly cooked everyday. You will be busy so make sure you eat something (boys I m sure that won t be a problem!!) Spending Money The amount is at the discretion of the parents/carers. However we would recommend 10-15 Euros per day. There is not much to spend on at the Chateau so it will only be when we go out for an excursion that we will be able to spend. I know how much you love to spend but you won t need loads! Medical You should all have completed a medical form to be handed in this evening. All medicine will be self-administered. Please have any suspected problems seen to before we set off. On- going medication should be clearly labelled and the staff should be made aware. Contact Phones and i-pods are allowed but at your own risk. We will not be held responsible and if you lose them then that will be your responsibility. There is no wi-fi on the site and signal may be weak or non existent so parents don t worry if you do not hear from your child. We will inform school that we have arrived safely. In case you need to contact your child in an emergency please ring the school in the first instance, the details will then be passed on to the group leader as soon as possible and a response organised. If our ETA changes then we will text to keep everyone informed.
Student Behaviour For me this is a very big concern. As I have already said it is a huge responsibility taking forty Year 10 students abroad. I know most of you well and you know me. I chose to do this because I believe in you having the opportunity to speak French and try out what you learn in the classroom but I need to know that I can trust you and that what I/we as teachers say is understood, listened to and taken on board. If we ask you not to do something then it is for a reason. If we ask you not to buy certain items then it is for a reason. We need to feel that we can trust you. If you do as you are asked then we will have a really great week. We have asked you and your parents to sign a contract of behaviour to promise that you will behave appropriately. If you do not behave as we wish then your parents will be rung and asked to come to Normandy to collect you. We do not want you with us if we cannot trust you. It is not fair on all those students who are enjoying themselves and doing everything they are asked. Clothing/Equipment List As I have already explained - many of the activities will be outside- in February in whatever weather may be happening then! So it could be extremely cold or extremely wet. You need to be dressed accordingly and there is nothing worse than being freezing cold or soaking wet. You will all, be expected to do all the activities. They are not optional so be prepared. Remember we are walking on to the coach carrying our luggage so you need to be able to carry it easily. A medium sized bag should be adequate. Essentials: Rain coat/cagoule Wellie boots/old trainers. Track suit bottoms (several pairs for activities, no jeans for climbing and other activities) Old clothes for orienteering/climbing. Long sleeved t-shirts and sweatshirts (layers are good) Warm jumpers/hoodies.
Warm coat Trainers- waterproof not vans or converse. Lots of socks- dry ones to change into. A watch for orienteering. An adaptor plug Pens/pencils/pencil case. Bath towel one old and one for showers. Small back pack/day bag. Plastic bags for wet clothing. Maybe: a torch/head torch/books/pack of cards/plastic water bottle Conclusion I hope that after the meeting you are feeling really positive and really excited! I am looking forward to spending time with you all and seeing you really improve in your French. You will be expected to do some work each day of course. The Chateau provides excellent study books which reinforce the words you have learnt and the phrases you have used. If you have any questions or any worries then come and see me or e-mail on emilton@ashlyns.herts.sch.uk. The school mobile phone number is 07538 228556 in case of emergency. Merci et good luck with the packing!!! Miss Milton
Friends Who are you friends with on this trip? X 4 people Choose one person that you would like to share a room with Anything else you d like to tell me?