National French Honor Society (NFHS) held a language learning workshop on Friday, Jan. 25 for members to practice conversing in French about current events and cultural activities. The workshop began at 4:20 p.m. and ended at 6:00 p.m. in Madame Macharia’s room.

“We just want to give [the members] a chance to speak in French in a natural [setting],” Madame Macharia said. “Today we’re talking about the end of the shutdown because Trump just announced it just a couple of hours ago.”

At the meeting, the members chose an event from the news to discuss. They researched the event, and as they found out more about their topic, they conversed about it in French with their partner. The workshop was made up of French 4 and French 5 students.

“On the IB exams there are a lot of different cultural aspects and comparisons between French culture and English culture,” Anna Bown ‘20 said. “Having discussions is helpful because there is a conversation portion on the exam and we get to be exposed to thinking and conversing about current events in French.”

However, the workshop wasn’t solely for students who were taking French at school. Some students came just to practice their French, even if they’ve stopped taking the course.

“This year I’m not [in French] but that’s why I come here to keep practicing and get involved with francophone culture,” Natasha Skergan ‘19 said. “It’s really fun to keep practicing the language and to be able to see the community.”

NFHS will be holding a salon de conversation during lunch on Tuesday, Feb. 8, where members have the opportunity to invite their teachers to learn french.