Pupils demonstrate their language skills for European Day of Languages

On Tuesday 25th September, MFL students gathered in Hodgson Hall for a Modern Foreign Language Speaking Competition.  

The competition was the centrepiece of the European Day of Languages celebrations at school, with a themed lunch and European themed language lessons providing students with the opportunity to further the wide range of languages and dialects spoken in Europe. 

During the competition 40 students competed across 3 languages, with students reciting a poem, a piece of prose or singing in either French, Spanish or German. The competition was a great opportunity for students to demonstrate their language skills and confidence in a public speaking setting.  

Judging the competition were the French Language Assistant Brian Degalet, Spanish Language Assistant Iván Lopez Iglesias and German Teacher Mascha von Kuk. The judges found choosing a winner in each category extremely difficult given the high standard of the competition, with many students choosing to present their pieces without notes, successfully managing to coherently convey the message of their poem/prose with aplomb. 

The winners and those highly commended were as follows:   

Spanish  

Lower School  

1. Addilyn L (MSH, IV)  

2. Jamie B (O, IV)  

3. Jeremy C (R, V) (highly commended)  

Sixth Form  

1. Grace S (G, LVI) 

2. Joe P (Rt, LVI) and Catty C (MSH, LVI)  

3. Anna S (M, UVI) (highly commended)  

French  

Lower School  

1. Jared G (R, IV)  

2. Charlotte K (M, V)  

3. Violet H (M, IV) (highly commended)  

Sixth Form  

1. Clara H (QE, LVI)  

2. Hedda G (QE, LVI)  

3. = Elisabeth A (QE, LVI) (highly commended)  

             = Andrea L (G, LVI)(highly commended)  

German  

Lower School:  

1. Violet H (M, IV)  

2. Helena T (MSH, III)   

3. Jared G (R, IV) (highly commended)  

Sixth Form  

1. Hamish G (R, UVI)  

2. Giles H (I, UVI)  

3. Ben P (RAJC, UVI)/ Reuben P (I, UVI) (highly commended) 

Thanks goes to Mrs Moreno for her role in organising the competition, Mr Degalet, Mr Lopez and Miss von Kuk for judging the competition, the MFL faculty for their support and all the students who performed and supported. 

Adam Morris 

MFL Teacher