We were very excited to host a group of pupils from Valognes in France yesterday, giving them the chance to meet their pen pals face-to-face.

In total, 47 pupils from Collège Félix Buhot in Valognes, Normandy, spent the morning in school, getting a taste of school life in England.

We welcomed the French visitors with a special assembly and then paired them up with their English pen pals so that they could spend the morning together as they attended lessons.

Allenbourn has had a relationship with the French school for five years now, giving Year 8s the chance to exchange two or three letters a year, sharing ideas and opinions on school life, the school day, subjects and sports.

Last year pupils discussed the Olympics in Paris in their letters.

This partnership with Collège Félix Buhot was one of the curriculum-based initiatives that saw the Allenbourn awarded the International School Award Intermediate Certificate by The British Council last year.

The French children are visiting the area as part of Wimborne’s official twinning with Valognes in northern Normandy and the Town Mayor, Cllr Jeff Hart was also at Allenbourn to welcome the French party. 

Speaking about the visit on BBC Radio Solent’s breakfast show with Steve Harris ahead of the visit, pupils said they were very excited about the day.

“The idea is for them to experience a normal typical English school day,” said Madeleine, adding that she hoped the visit would encourage more peers to take French at GCSE.

Indi said that they correspond with their pen pals by traditional letter rather than digitally: “We write in French to them and they write in English to us and we send the letters back and forth.” Joy added: “We share things about our lives, our hobbies and what things we enjoy.”

Carmen Diment, Modern Foreign Languages lead, said: “We had a great time hosting our French friends and it was a pleasure to meet them in person for the first time.

“This partnership has helped to unlock our pupils’ passion for languages and is encouraging them to want to know more about learning languages.

Mr Legge said: “We were delighted to welcome the French party to our school, helping to cement our reputation as a school with a strong international approach.

“We were also honoured that the town Mayor, Cllr Jeff Hart and members of the Wimborne Twinning Association came along to help make our visitors feel at home.

 “The school was buzzing with excitement and we hope this incredible opportunity has helped to enrich our pupils’ understanding of different cultures, languages and perspectives.”