Languages Faculty

From the Co-ordinator of Languages

A Taste of Language and Culture

The Modern Languages K–10 Syllabus recognises that language and culture are deeply interconnected. Throughout Term 2, our French and Chinese students have brought their language learning to life through a range of immersive culinary experiences, exploring how food reflects the traditions, values and everyday lives of different communities around the world.

Year 10 French students participated in a French immersion workshop at a Belgian chocolate café, where they discovered the history of chocolate before creating their own handmade chocolates. Students in Years 7 and 8 enjoyed a Le Petit Déjeuner incursion, learning about French breakfast traditions while sampling pain au chocolat. Meanwhile, Year 9 students put their grammar knowledge into practice by making crêpes, combining language learning with a delicious cultural experience.

Chinese students also explored culture through cuisine. Year 9 students prepared fried rice as part of their studies of Chinese-speaking communities, while Years 7 and 8 participated in a bubble tea incursion, tasting Taiwanese pastries and learning about the cultural significance of these popular foods.

Thank you to Ms Conway, Ms Marion, Ms Denis and Ms Yu who organised these authentic experiences to provide our students with meaningful opportunities to connect language and culture.

Year 10 French Belgian Café

At Choc et Moi, we learned about how chocolate is made, from the harvesting of cacao beans to the final chocolate product. We also explored the different types of chocolate and what ingredients are used to make them, using some to make designs of our own to take home. We learned where cacao beans are grown around the world and where they get theirs's from specifically. The entire presentation was conducted in French, creating an immersive experience that helped us improve our listening and comprehension while learning about chocolate.

Carly (C10)

Year 9 Crêpes and Fried Rice

The crepe-making session was a really fun experience. We learnt how to make crepes from scratch, including preparing the batter, cooking them and adding toppings. It was interesting to learn some basic cooking skills and work together with our friends. My personal favourite part was getting to eat the finished crepes after making them and watching my friends try to flip them successfully. Overall, it was a great activity, and I really enjoyed participating.

Annjeet (C9)

During the crêpe making session, we learnt how to make French crêpes and practised cooking them. I learnt that making crêpes takes patience and skill. I enjoyed doing it because it was fun and the crêpes were delicious!

Archie (G9)

In Chinese, we made fried rice. We learnt about the recipe, and we learnt how to say the ingredients in Chinese. We cooked fried rice, with a few steps including cutting up shallots, scrambling eggs, cooking chicken mince, and mixing the rice with vegetables and the chicken. The experience was very fun and taught me how to make fried rice, along with some tips for buying seasoning and ingredients.

Rita (C9)

Years 7 and 8 Le Petit-Déjeuner and Bubble Tea

The French incursion taught me not only the French language but also everyday life experiences that take place in France and other French-speaking countries. I also learned that the articles before nouns can indicate whether a word is masculine, feminine, or plural. Finally, the incursion taught me how to combine individual words into useful phrases, allowing me to communicate more effectively when I travel to France. Eating the ‘Pain au Chocolat’ in class was one of the biggest experiences I have had in high school, combining learning and fun creating one of the best lessons I will get to enjoy in high school.

Braden (G7)

Our French incursion, Le Petit-Déjeuner, was a wonderful- hands-on way, to learn about France, and its various everyday customs. We learnt lots, about all the different breakfast foods- how to order at a café, and even got to eat some pains au chocolat (chocolate croissants) as a treat. Overall it was a très bien and enriching experience, communicating French in a language everybody can understand…. Food! 

Joshua (G7)

I thought the incursion was loads of fun, and the pain au chocolat was delicious. I learnt how to say many French breakfast words, including de la confiture, which means some jam, and du jus d’orange, which means some orange juice. The incursion was great preparation for our test and really enjoyable. We played lots of fun learning games, such as Pictionary, where we had to guess the breakfast food someone was drawing, but we had to guess in French. Overall, I learnt a lot, had fun, and even got to eat a pain au chocolat.

Violet (C7)

I really loved our bubble tea incursion. It was a great experience to practice speaking Chinese in a real-world situation and the bubble tea tasted really good. I learnt that when ordering bubble tea in Chinese you don't use much manners, for example in English you might say: "May I please have pearl milk tea" but in Chinese you just say: "Wo yao yi bei" which means "I want a cup of".

Tomasi (G8)

I really enjoyed this incursion as we learnt about the history of bubble tea and how to say and pronounce all the options. I also enjoyed how we got to experience bubble tea by getting the chance to drink it too. The balance between education, history and being able to try bubble tea was really good! I felt more interconnected to the culture from the experience. Xie Xie Ms Yu !

Scarlett (C8)

The bubble tea incursion taught me a lot about Chinese food and the rich culture. I learned how bubble tea is made, like measuring ingredients, mixing them properly, and following each step so it turns out right. Overall, it was really fun, especially drinking cha-time in the process. The balance between learning and fun was perfect, and I really enjoyed all of it! Xie xie Yu laoshi! 

Rhani (C8)