MILLICENT High School students are preparing to embark on a trip of a lifetime to one of Europe’s most enticing countries.
Year 8 and 9 students are planning to travel to Italy for a unique study program to practice their romance language skills and fully experience the world’s cultural superpower.
Students will put their language skills to the test while wandering the canals of Venice, discovering the treasures of the city of the medici in Florence and seeing the world-renowned sights of Rome.
Millicent High School Italian teacher Gabi Castello said the month-long trip aimed to strengthen students’ conversational abilities while bringing history and culture to life.
“It is important for students to experience the culture of Italy as well as the language, because you can’t learn one without the other,” she said.
“All the students have to speak Italian during the trip, which will be a great experience for them to fully immerse themselves in the language.”
Students recently attended the two-day Italian festival Carnevale in Adelaide to see Italian culture firsthand ahead of their December 2018 international departure.
“Adelaide has a huge Italian migrant population and it was good for the students to see the Carnevale,” Ms Castello said.
“It was a great way to explore the importance of food in Italian culture and to see and talk about the Italian migration to Australia.”
Year 9 students Madi Bowering and Christine Farana said they were excited to put their language skills to the test while exploring the world’s greatest works of architecture and art.
“I’m a bit nervous about speaking Italian the whole trip, but I’m confident we’ll get there,” Madi said.
“We’ve been doing a lot of writing and oral presentations where we can practice speaking out loud.
“It is exciting because we will get to have a full conversation with Italians.”
The pair were unanimous in their eagerness to eat some of Italy’s most delicious foods.
“I reckon the food will taste a lot better than what it does here,” Madi said.
“The Italians will probably know how to make it properly.”
Christine said she was excited about experiencing another culture on her first international experience.
“I am looking forward to seeing the way they live and how it is different,” Christine said.
“I’m most excited about Venice because it seems so much different than all the other cities.
“It just stands out more for me.”
With each student needing to raise $3800 to attend, fundraising for the trip is well under way with a dog and car wash already held and a movie night planned on November 30.
