Le lycée français international Marguerite Duras a accueilli hier, lundi 14 mai 2018, Piers Birtwistle, représentant de la fondation Christina Noble Children’s Foundation. A cette occasion les élèves de la section internationale britannique ont pu découvrir le travail considérable accompli par cette association dont l’objectif est de venir en aide aux familles les plus défavorisées d’Ho Chi Minh. A l’origine de cette fondation, une irlandaise Christina Noble, qui lorsqu’elle est arrivée au Vietnam a souhaité aider les enfants de la rue.

Aujourd’hui, la Fondation Christina Noble est une fondation internationale qui se consacre aux enfants ayant besoin de soins médicaux d’urgence, d’aide nutritionnelle, d’éducation, de formations professionnelles et d’emplois. Les enfants aidés sont souvent des enfants qui risquent, à terme, d’être exploités sur le plan sexuel ou économique.

Depuis sa création en 1991, de nombreux projets ont vu le jour, fournissant chaque année à des milliers d’enfants vulnérables et leur famille, des services sanitaires vitaux, des aides dans l’éducation et des programmes d’aide à la communauté.

Lors de la conférence, nos élèves se sont montrés réceptifs et ont posé de nombreuses questions à Piers Birtwistle. L’ensemble des professeurs de la section ainsi que les élèves ont été touchés par le travail effectué par Christina Noble et le personnel de la fondation. Ils ont à cœur de participer à leur tour. Nous allons d’ici la fin de l’année scolaire réfléchir aux différentes actions qui peuvent être menées telle la collecte de matériel scolaire, la levée de fonds par l’intermédiaire de vente de gâteaux, de galas de charité, marathon ou autres.

Ce projet de partenariat est l’occasion pour nous tous, enseignants et parents de participer et contribuer à l’acquisition par l’élève d’une culture de l’engagement.
Nous ne doutons pas qu’à cette occasion, c’est l’ensemble de la communauté de l’école Marguerite Duras qui se joindra à ce joli projet solidaire.

The idea behind Black Out Poetry is to use a text/poem/speech to form a new poem by hiding/highlighting some words or lines.

It is an interesting exercise to help the students:

• Shift their attention
• Interact with the text differently
• Focus on language and word choice
• Connect visual arts to literature

From Steinbeck’s Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech, the students were asked to scan for anchor words (words standing out for them).

Then, they highlighted or circled them with a pencil and by doing so, they naturally created the direction of their blackout poem.

Around the selected words/sentences, the students designed an appropriate artistic representation of their poem, and used it to black out the unused words or parts.

Here are their incredible Black Out Poems!

John Steinbeck Nobel Prize for Literature acceptance speech

Shakespeare’s plays are known for their soliloquies, and one of the most famous is Mercutio’s speech about Queen Mab in Act I scene 4 of Romeo and Juliet.

After studying the speech in detail, the students of 3eme International Section were asked to illustrate the speech by selecting 6 visually compelling elements of their choice, from the speech.

Here is their amazing art work!

Mercutios speech about Queen Mab

As we started to study our Term 2 play, Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare, we first focused on various visual representations of the play, in Art.

As a final project, the 3eme International Section students had to choose their favourite painting of Romeo and Juliet, use what we had studied in class about the painting, the analysis of the Prologue, as well as the various movie adaptations, and write a script for an ART podcast.

Once their script written and their podcast recorded, they also had to add background noise or music to their podcast.

Museum audio guide project

HOROSCOPE WRITING

One of the funniest final tasks we did this year, was taking the role of a fortune teller, and writing a horoscope for a character from the play Macbeth (Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, Duncan, Banquo and the Witches)
The students had to use details from the scenes they had studied to make logical inferences about the characters and their fate.
They had to write a horoscope for each of the characters, describing what they think would happen to them.

Here is what they came up with, it is quite fun to read!

Before plunging into the depths and complexities of our play (Macbeth by William Shakespeare) this year in 5eme International Section, we decided to build a 3D model of the Globe Theatre, for the students to better visualise how Shakespeare’s plays would have been performed at the time.

Here are the pictures of our work in process, and of the fantastic final results!

What is MUN?

MUN or Model United Nations conferences are educational simulations and academic activities in which students can learn about diplomacy, international relations, and the United Nations.

Participants in the MUN conferences, known as delegates, are placed in committees and assigned countries to represent. They are presented with their assignments in advance, along with  topics that their committee will discuss. Delegates conduct research before conferences and formulate positions that they will then debate with their fellow delegates in the committee, staying true to the actual position of the country they represent.

For the fourth year in a row, our students went to Singapore for the 14th Annual SIMUN conference hosted by the French School.

We were a group of 14 delegates and 2 directors, representing the UK, Paraguay and the Seychelles. Our students were as young as 4eme, and going all the way up to Terminale.

With topics as various as:

• The Rohingya Crisis,
• Measures to ensure universal and sustainable access to adequate food supplies,
• Strategies to implement disaster relief in countries devastated by natural disasters,
• Strategies for reducing small arms related deaths worldwide,
• Promoting development, anti-corruption and good governance in LEDCs,
• The impact of climate change on global security,
• North Korea’s missile launchings,
• and many more,

our delegates had to work hard on their issues in order to ensure quality debates.

They also prepared draft resolutions on their favorite topics, and arrived at the conference well-prepared.

This year for the first time, we had the great opportunity to send two delegates in the Security Council Committee, the most challenging of all and both their resolutions passed! Great work Maria and Angel, in representing the UK!

At the same time, our two 4ème newbies, Coralie and Sohyeon, didn’t hesitate to get on stage, take the floor and defend their positions, as delegates of the Paraguay and the Seychelles in the Human Rights Committee and the Environment Committee.

After many POI’s by Tu Linh, Ugium, Jan, Simon, Nicolas, Quoc Thanh, Hieu, Kenny, Méline and Andrea in the EcoSoc, Environment, Human Rights and Political committees, challenging follow-ups and many lively and enriching exchanges, most of our resolutions were adopted!

We can’t wait to continue this project next year, with new students maybe, as we will have to say goodbye to our Terminale delegates unfortunately.
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Well-done LFIDURAS Delegation!

3^EME INTERNATIONAL SECTION: DRAMA
ROMEO AND JULIET, by William Shakespeare
MANNEQUIN CHALLENGE WORKSHOP: Perform to understand

Our drama unit this year started with a short study of the plot of Romeo and Juliet, in order to become familiar with the key moments of the story. First, the key moments of the plot were identified through the study of a short comic representation of the play. Each moment was then organized into the performance of a ‘frozen-in-time’ scene. In the meantime, a host was chosen to write an introduction sentence for each scene. Finally, our director filmed the scenes and put them together into a movie. Here is their amazing work, we hope you enjoy watching it!

Scene 1: Within the old walls of Verona, two households, Montague and Capulet only share their hatred and loathing for each other since the dawn of time.

Scene 2: As Montague and Capulet beginneth to scuffle, Cometh the Prince berating the people. For he only speaks of truce not trouble.

Scene 3: In the dwelling of Capulet kindred, music ripples as masked men sway along, thither stands Juliet, the hidden gem that heals the broken heart of our hero.

Scene 4: For no limits, whether it be walls or families shall impede their love. These two souls gaze upon each other under the bright stars of heaven.

Scene 5: In secret they wed, in the face of God. But not even Him, knows what truth fate holds.

Scene 6: Angered by Romeo’s presence at the party, Tybalt attacks him, and Mercutio takes over, only to trigger a deadly duel.

Scene 7: To avenge Mercutio’s death, Romeo slains Tybalt. Following the tidings of the Prince’s doom, from Verona, Romeo shall be banished.

Scene 8: To escape the woe of her marriage to Paris, Juliet hatches a plan with Friar Lawrence to fake her death and postpone her wedding to Paris

Scene 9: Hither lies Juliet’s lifeless body as Romeo takes his last breath, Death ready to carry him away.

Scene 10: At which hour the lovers ceased to liveth, both clan and kin mourneth in unity.

The 5eme International Section students worked around the theme of Childhood in Literature this year and completed their sequence with a written production to compare the poems studied in class. Happy reading!

Workshop access