The 5^th Grade trip to Branféré this past weekend was a huge success. A lot of learning took place over the three days, both of life in a collective environment and the whole park experience. Students did an in-depth study of pond life and participated in scavenger hunts and a course d'orientation, learning about the many animals who live in the Branféré animal preserve. 

Digital child safety expert, Elizabeth Milovidov, spent the day in the American Section this past Tuesday. She had a chat with our Troisièmes and Cinquièmes on both campuses, and met most of the American Section faculty and staff over lunch. A lawyer and a mother of two teenage boys, she had a very personable approach to online safety that was easily accessible to the American Section public.

Our Silver Soirée was a truly magical evening that brought together well over 250 members of our community, including current and former  parents, students, faculty, and staff. Participants enjoyed an enchanting evening in a thoroughly transformed Atrium. Highlights of the event were the traditional live auction, as well as the spirited dance session that closed the evening.

The French had it right by referring to the lower grades as the ‘Jardin d’enfants.’ It truly was a garden for children in Lower School last week during Project Week. From PreK to 5^th, our students’ knowledge of all things related to gardens grew and flourished. Each teacher was responsible for a level and created an amazing experiences for the children The exposition on the Lycée campus of our garden projects will be at the end of May. 

The Première class enjoyed its first overnight trip since the start of COVID with a sunshine-filled visit to the D-Day beaches of Normandy. Our trip included a visit to the Memorial of Caen, the somber German cemetery at La Cambe, Arromanches, and the American cemetery and museum at Colleville-sur-Mer.

This past Monday team-building was in and acrophobia was out when our Cinquième classes spent a day at Indian Forest in Morainvilliers. The trip was to make up for this year's canceled trip to Amsterdam--as well as to offer our students the opportunity to solidify friendships and have some much-needed--and well-deserved--fun.

Saturday's Lycée en Fête was a huge success! More than three thousand people came out to support this remarkable event, which reunites all 14 sections. It was a great way to end the Lycée's 70th birthday week. 

The Lycée International celebrated is 70th birthday this week, accompanied by the customary excitement and exhilaration reserved for such landmark events. We enjoyed special exhibits, dress-up days, cultural workshops, concerts and symposia to mark the occasion. The Lycée's landmark birthday gives us in the American Section a reason to celebrate, too. As one of the fouding sections, we celebrated our 70th birthday as well! 

Every spring, we hold a special version of the 100 Days for American Section Terminales, designating the time left until graduation. To celebrate this milestone, we interrupted classes and assembled the entire class on Wednesday afternoon for a spectacular party, which included yummy treats, pep talks and an expression of gratitude.

The inauguration of our new Lycée buildings was an important part of the school's 70th birthday week. Having been put on hold for two years, the ribbon-cutting ceremony took place on March 29 before an impressive array of local politicians. Students from the school's fourteen sections participated by creating a haie d'honneur. 

The Seventies came back with a vengeance last Saturday night--and the world is a better place for it. American Section Sixièmes, Cinquièmes and Quatrièmes, several in blindingly flashy polyester jumpsuits, came together to show each other--and the rapturous parent organizers and chaperones--that they knew how to dance. The event was a fascinating look at post-pandemic adolescent joy and bonding. 

After two years of COVID restrictions on audiences, Upper School Theatre returned in triumph to the Agora for a high-spirited production of the play Clue: On Stage, based on the famous American board game. The rapid-fire repartee and escalating absurdity kept the audience of all ages laughing even as six murders take place in the rooms.

Last week, award-winning poet, children's author, TV writer, and publisher Kwame Alexander came to pay a visit to our middle grades, 5th through 8th. Kwame explained to a rapt audience how hard it was to get The Crossover  published back in 2012, as well as stories about his childhood and how he works. 

American Section students of all ages celebrated the holiday of love and friendship this week. Our Lower School students enjoyed a homemade Valentine card exchange, themed artwork; and other holiday activities, while the Student Council gave Middle and Upper School students beautiful treat bags. 

The L'Europe et la Paix symposium, held at the Lycée International this week, reunited captivating experts who knew how to address an international crowd. The evening encapsulated everything the Lycée is about. Smart kids, an international community, and a discourse that would make any scholar proud. 

Congratulations to all seventeen participants in Wednesday's Poetry by Heart middle school level competition at the Agora! Our three winners will travel to Paris and the Institut de La Tour on Wednesday, March 9, for the French national "inter-schools" competition.

After a lesson about the basic elements of design, our first graders were able to quickly understand that letters when taken out of context are merely lines and shapes. They created two pieces of art, one using black marker and one with pastels. Students were in awe that they had made their names disappear using the simple yet magical qualities of camouflage!

Cinquième students recently imagined that they were an  immigrant, conducting extensive research and creating a scrapbook telling of their journey and new life in the US. Each journal includes a diary entry, a letter to a loved one back home, and an op-ed article for a newspaper back in "the old country." The final component of the project was the in-class "showcase," which allowed students to visit each other's work as if they were on display in a museum and learn about immigrants from a wide variety of backgrounds.

With the hope of consolidating some valuable vocabulary and spreading a little Northwest North American pride at the same time, our Cinquièmes recently participated in what I affectionately call “The Bigfoot Challenge,”  a timed vocabulary exercise.