French Club Hosts Three Upcoming Events

French Club is an Arrowhead language club that embraces and teaches students about French culture according to Armour. The club is ran by the French teacher Ramona Armour, known by her students as Mademoiselle who has, “been in charge of it for 19 years.” In an email interview with Armour, she shares information about upcoming events and possible new events in the upcoming year for French club.

Armour says about “40% of French students participate in French Club each year (a rough estimate).” According to Armour, “there is usually one activity per month.” According to O’connor, attendance depends on the event, “not many students come to the meetings, but a lot more show up to the big trips like the Melting Pot or Chicago.”

French Club students have the opportunity to participate in a variety of activities throughout the year including the annual scavenger hunt, dinner at The Melting Pot, and a trip to Chicago.

All student who take French have to opportunity to join French Club. Students can join at any time of the year, regardless previous involvement in the club. Activities are offered monthly along with service projects. Emails are sent out to all French students by Armour with information regarding the date and time of the meetings.  The meetings are held in Armour’s room (the french room) at south campus. According to O’connor, the meetings run for about 15 minutes.

O’connor says, she “was a south campus representative sophomore year, secretary junior year, and this year (is) the Vice President.”

O’connor said the next event, a scavenger hunt, is on September 20th. The scavenger hunt is an annual event where students go door to door asking households for an assortment of items. French club has created this opportunity to let kids speak in French to figure out how to ask for certain items, and practice their language speaking abilities.

“The scavenger hunt is really fun because you get a group of and get to go around asking people questions in French. Students have to talk in French the entire time which makes it fun,” O’connor said.

Jackson Ashby, a senior French club member said, “I went to the scavenger hunt last year and it was pretty fun. I made a team with some of my friends in French.”

Jackson says he  he has made friends during French class.

“I got really close with the people in my class because we have been together for four years,” Jackson says.

The Melting Pot is another activity French Club invites the members to for a night.

According to O’connor, The Melting Pot is a French restaurant that serves fondue for multiple courses. Students start off with a bread course then move onto vegetables served with cheese fondue. The meal finishes with a dessert course of an assortment of sweets served with chocolate fondue. French club likes to let students try French food to get a taste of their culture according to O’connor

Every year at The Melting Pot, Armour follows the tradition of welcoming in new students into French Honor Society.

French Honor Society is another club under the advisement of Armour.  Armour says, “Because they are such a small group we usually don’t do separate activities.”

According to Armour, the Chicago trip is a favorite among French students. Students get bundled up and pack on a bus down to Chicago in early December. Students visit L’alliance Français where they take a cooking class making croque Monsieurs, a french croissant with ham and cheese. Students then watch short films in French and continue onto the Chicago Art Institute where they study French paintings. The groups eats dinner at a French restaurant, and ends the trip at the Chris Kringle Christmas market, the largest European Christmas market outside of Europe.

O’connor says, “The Chicago trip is very fun and it brings us all together.”

The Chicago trip gives students the opportunity to speak in French, learn French culture, and take a day off of school.

Ashby likes the Chicago trip because he “get(s) to hang out with (his) friends, and Mademoiselle all day in Chicago.”

Part of French Club is student run. Armour says students are responsible for planning events such as “movie nights, Christmas ornament making, culture fair, international soccer game.”  She says students are “as involved as they are willing to be.”

Armour says her goal for the future of French Club is to “[empower] student leaders to plan and lead activities.”  She gives students the opportunity to do so by joining the leadership team and help coordinate future plan and events for the club.

For possible future activities, Armour says she would like the officers to plan “a service project and something to celebrate National French week.”

In regards to possible new activities in French Club, O’connor says, “I think that French Club thrives the most when its members are showing up and participating. It’s not really the matter of want new activities I want, it’s what the participants want to add.”