Prospect students share passion for French culture with community
Intrigued by the French culture, Chloe Hensler began learning the French language in middle school.
Now a sophomore at Prospect High School, Hensler is passionate about French and proud of her decision to study the foreign language. She and other students at Prospect are working to raise awareness of the school's French program and encourage children to pursue the language.
"Speaking another language is an advantage," said Hensler. "Being bilingual is a really important thing in life."
Hensler and more than a dozen students in Prospect's French Club recently participated in "Marché Français - A Farmers Market with a French Twist" in Mount Prospect. The Sept. 9 French-themed farmers market also featured French linens, jewelry, photography and children's books.
Marché Français, which is part of the Mount Prospect Farmers Market, celebrates the village's sister city - Sèvres, France.
In October, a group of students and their teachers from Sèvres, France, will take part in an annual exchange program with Prospect High School for 10 days. The program began 14 years ago and has turned into a friendship between Prospect and Sèvres students.
Next spring, Prospect students and their teachers will travel to France to stay to complete the exchange cycle and immerse in French culture.
At the Marché Français, students from all levels in the school's French program ran a booth where they taught children basic words in French, such as red, white and blue.
Prospect students also coordinated arts and crafts for children, ran a selfie photo booth that had a backdrop of the Eiffel Tower and passed out books to adults aspiring to learn the French language.
The students will continue their outreach in October when the school turns into a family-friendly Haunted House. As part of the Thursday, Oct. 25, event, activities for children will be hosted in various classrooms. Students in the French program will turn one of the French classrooms into a "Croissanted House" and serve croissants and Nutella.
The Oct. 25 event is open to families in the community and runs from 4 to 6 p.m.
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