Next year, students enrolled in French or German will have the opportunity to spend the week of spring break in France and Germany! The itinerary is packed, with classic stops such as the Eiffel Tower and The Louvre in Paris, France, as well as less conventional visits to places like the Strasbourg Cathedral in Strasbourg, France, and the wine barrels of Heidelberg Castle in Heidelberg, Germany. This opportunity is open to students of all grades.
Madame Zumbaum, Old Saybrook High School’s French and German teacher, is the creator of this wonderful opportunity. She stated that she was inspired by the educational benefits of such an immersive language experience, as well as the amazing memories students will be able to take away. She said, “I have been traveling to Quebec for 16 years, and I know that it has a great impact on students and has been one of the favorite memories leaving Old Saybrook High School, so I knew that I wanted to be able to offer another such experience and that it should be [a trip to] Europe.” After much consideration, Zumbaum knew that the time was right to bring this back for her students.
While the opportunity to spend a week in Europe almost seems too good to be true, there is one major setback affecting the decisions of many students and families: the price. The seven days packed full of immersive activities come at a total cost of $4,547. Zumbaum has partnered with Mrs. Scherber, OSHS’s biology and anatomy teacher, to plan several fundraising events throughout the next year to make the trip as accessible as possible to students. Zumbaum is also looking for student involvement to develop an effective plan. “Mrs. Scherber and I are working hard together, and we’ll be sitting down with students to formulate plans to raise as much money as possible and to get the community involved. We’ll have our final count of travelers by March 14, and from there we’ll be able to get right into planning,” she said. Stay tuned for how you can get involved with fundraising opportunities!
While planning such a large trip has its challenges, Zumbaum said she is incredibly excited to head overseas and enjoy an immersive educational experience that they’ll never forget!