Schools

Ankeny High School Students Experience French Culture, Life as Part of Exchange Program

Fourteen students participated in the 2013 Ankeny High School French Exchange trip from March 13-23.

From an Ankeny school district press release:

Fourteen Ankeny High School students participated in the 2013 AHS French Exchange trip on March 13-23. The trip was a cultural and linguistic exchange with the Lycée Européen in Villers-Cotterets, France, and is designed to improve and apply the students’ French language skills in the real world.  

The students who participated in the trip are learners who can earn a Fine Arts credit for their time and effort, which included seven months of planning and preparation.

This trip provided many historical and cultural opportunities to expand their global knowledge of Western European history. The class visited many sites that supported and enhanced learning in the areas of history, language, art and culinary arts.  

Find out what's happening in Ankenywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Students lived with a French family for several days and attended classes, as well as went on field trips in the region.  These same students will host the French students when they visit in April to complete the exchange experience.

The itinerary centered around the Picardy region of France and included a family stay, museum, cathedral, and castle visits, cultural presentations, and much more.  This area of France is known for its rich history and the childhood home of Alexandre Dumas, author of "The Three Musketeers", "The Count of Monte Cristo", and "The Man in the Iron Mask", among many other literary works.  

The first day of the trip, students toured the Caverne du dragon, a museum dedicated to World War I, and visited the town of Laon. Laon's beautiful gothic cathedral is the birthplace of French explorer Jacques Marquette, after whom Marquette, Iowa, is named.  Marquette is one of the French voyageurs to discover and settle the Mississippi area.

The weekend was spent individually with the host families visiting various historical sites in the area. Monday and Tuesday were spent in schools, presenting American cultural topics to students learning English.  In addition, the students had private tours of two different castles where Alexandre Dumas spent time as a child and watched a movie in French about the life of this famous author.

Find out what's happening in Ankenywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The final three days of the event were spent visiting “la Ville lumière”, Paris.  This segment of the trip started with a tour of the Louvre and then went on to climb the towers of Notre Dame.  Students ended the day in the Montmartre area, having their pictures drawn by local artists.  They visited Sacré Coeur and ate a traditional French meal of raclette.

The second day in Paris, the group spent the morning touring Versailles, then went to the top of the Arc-de-Triomphe and visited the musée de l’armée where Napoléon is buried. The evening ended on a high note (literally and figuratively), at the top of the tour Eiffel and students had the opportunity to eat a delicious three-course meal at 58 Tour Eiffel, a restaurant on the first level.

The last full day in Paris started at the Catacombes, followed by a boat ride on the Seine River, and the afternoon was spent shopping for souvenirs.
This is the sixth year for the exchange between Ankeny High School and the Lycée Européen.

Pamela Lund and Marie-France Camus developed and organize the exchange every other year. Kristen Chipps and Claude Goldstein were assistant chaperones for the exchange this year.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

More from Ankeny