In the last week of October, St Mary’s Catholic Primary School, Ellerslie had the privilege to welcome 49 children and 15 adults from the Immaculée Primary Catholic School from New Caledonia.
Ther visitors – some of whom were leaving New Caledonia for the first time in their lives – wanted to spend time with children their own age immersed in a school environment with opportunities to engage in “English” conversations.
The children engaged in prayer time, classroom activities, shared mealtimes. and engaged in outdoor sports. Our school principal Sue Kubala very kindly organised a sausage sizzle for our visitors, and our children brought in food for a shared lunch.
The school reverberated with the sound of English and French being spoken. Google Translate was used to its maximum, and people remarked that it was interesting to see how communication was no barrier for the children. From both sides, there was manaakitanga, love, respect and acceptance. A great life experience and learning opportunity for both schools.
Reader Interactions