October 12 was not the average day in Period 2 AP French. Instead of learning about French in the everyday fashion of discussion and notes, the students had the chance to talk to two genuine French speaking students.  

To share their knowledge of the French culture, Hillsborough graduate Alexa Wybraniec and friend Alessandro Tronconi visited French teacher Ellen Reiss and her students to discuss their experiences living in Europe at Lycée Fusel de Coulanges.

Lycée Fusel de Coulanges is where Wybraniec and Tronconi both studied and lived, specifically in a studio where the English teaching assistants resided. The school itself is extremely modern, not big, and is home to only about 1,000 students.

Le Lycée, french for ¨the college¨, is located in Massy, île-de-France. In general Tronconi and Wybraniec described French schools as categorized into three genres; general, techonological, and professional. The typical French academic year consists of six consecutive weeks of school followed by two weeks of vacation.

Similar to schools in the U.S., the students attend different classes each day, however what differs is that it is normal to not have class on Wednesdays but rather on Saturday mornings. They also typically follow block scheduling in which a student might go hours without class.

During this time, if the students live in close proximity of the school, they might walk or bike home and head back when they have their next class. After school, the students get involved in a variety of sports, however the investment is on their own time and purely for recreational purposes as the school does not offer team sports; the most common among the sports played, soccer.

All together Wybraniec and Tronconi shared their experiences with the class in a captivating manner that was both informative and entertaining. To listen to their fluent French was truly a treat and was sure to propel the seniors of AP French to continue studying the language in college.