Sophie In Italia

If you would like to follow Sophie's Italian Adventure visit her blog at www.sophieinitalia.blogspot.com

Auguroni Sophie, le foto sono bellissime ! Divertiti che il tempo vola ! Buone feste e buon anno !

Ciao everyone,
I'm having heaps of fun here in Rome. We went and saw Il Colloseo e La Fontana di Trevi plus lots of piazzas, churches, fountains and beautiful old buildings on Saturday. It was really cool seeing the Colloseum, because we caught the Subway in, and we walked out of the station and it was just right there infront of me! I haven't actually been in yet, but we will go soon. Rome is just amazing, and it's so different from Australia. There are so many fountains and statues and everything has been so carefully made and decorated. We saw the Trevi Fountain too, which, like the rest of Rome, is absolutely magnificent. It's huge! But there were HEAPS of people there, as it's a popular tourist attraction.
We went out again yesterday with Ele's friend Francesca. We visited Piazza di Spagna and Piazza del Popolo (which I loved), and just walked around the centre. It was heaps of fun.

Il cibo e molto buono, specialmente la pizza! It's all 100 times better than any Italian food you get in Australia.
I'm finding that the amount of Italian I can understand is increasing too. I can't actually say much yet, but sometimes I can get the general idea of what someone's talking about. Other times I can only catch words and short phrases.

Fabrizo and Federico returned from Brazil yesterday. They're both really nice, and Federico is really funny. He speaks virtually no English so it's lots of fun trying to communicate with him!

Ciao,
Sophie

Un Mondo Di Nougat !

MONDO NOUGAT ITALIAN EXCURSION

On Friday the 4^th of December 2009, year 9 and 10 Italian students were lucky enough to experience a taste, quite literally, of Italian culture by visiting the Mondo Nougat factory in Herne Hill.

Everyone met near the school bus bay in the morning to have number checks and so on. We nearly left without Rubèn, who thought the excursion was next week! After all the drama of nearly leaving without Rubèn, and playing musical chairs on the bus because we didn’t all fit on the first bus, we were finally on our way!

The bus ride was very comfortable, and we had our great bus driver Andrew the Chaplain. We passed through Bassendean, Guildford and finally reached Mondo’s. Everyone was excited and hopped off the bus and headed into the store. Mr Millimaci got a bit distracted by the yellow fiat parked out the front! 

So finally we made our way in and were greeted with the delicious smell of Nougat, and another red fiat 500 with pictures of Nougat on the sides and the Mondo’s Nougat sign on the front. Mr Millimaci couldn’t keep his camera away! We all had a bit of a wander and looked at all the different nougat.

We were introduced to Marco and Andrè who work at the factory and Marco told us all about the factory and the history behind it, which helped very much with our worksheets! After that, we split into two groups and Andrè showed us the process of making the nougat through the viewing window. People aren’t allowed to go through there any more because of health and safety reasons. After that, we got to order (in Italian of course) a cake/slice and a drink to have for morning tea.

 The food was delicious and everyone was very happy! Before we left we had a few more photos and got to pick a bar of nougat to take with us. We said our goodbyes and thanked the people at Mondos’s for a wonderful morning, and went back on the bus and drove to a nearby park.

The park was beautiful! We had lunch and just relaxed for a bit. Others decided to play in the playground, and let’s just say there were a few sandy people after that great idea! The park was great fun, despite the heat, and everyone had a laugh! Then, to our dismay, we boarded the bus and made our way back to school. The bus ride back was filled with talk and laughter, and really reflected the mood of the day. Everyone had such a good time!

The Italian excursion to Mondo’s Nougat factory was fantastic, and wouldn’t have been made possible if it weren’t for our fantastic Italian teachers Mr Millimaci, Mrs Petale, Miss Candaten and of course Andrew for driving us there and back.


By Emma G.

Claire Harding, an inspirational language role model !

As a Languages School it is important that we take inspiration from students of language to remind us of the doors that learning a new language can open, enriching our life and creating new and wonderful opportunities. This blog as well as providing us with a window to the activities that MLSHS students participate in, is also a forum for sharing news and information about successful language student stories. I am happy to share the first of these by directing you to visit the following site:

http://www.acicis.murdoch.edu.au/hi/claire_harding2.html

Read about the wonderful things Claire Harding is doing with regard to her knowledge and understanding of Indonesian. Congratulations Claire, you are a role model for our students !

Congratulations Mrs Chong !

Our sincere congratulations to the President of the Chinese Language Teachers' Association, Mrs Anita Chong who was presented with an Outstanding Professional Service Award by the Professional Teaching Council of Western Australia at the Award Presentation Ceremony. Mrs Chong was unable to attend to receive her award as she was in China accompanying our secondary students representing Australia in a Mandarin Speaking Competition, proving that she is indeed a very worthy recipient for such a prestigious award.

Malaysian Tour 2009

On the 25th of September a group of 17 students from our school departed on a long awaited trip to Malaysia. After arriving cold and tired at the Perth International Airport at four o’clock in the morning we assembled behind our teachers and the long line to the check-in desks. Finally, once checked-in, we made our way upstairs and left our families behind us as we took ourselves through the even longer Customs line.

After a short wait we were escorted to our flight, leaving only 20 minutes after we boarded. Many of us didn’t sleep on the five and a half hour flight over, but once we landed in Kuala Lumpur we were even more hyped up than before. For many of us it did not seem that we had landed in a different country and apart from the heat, it was nearly like we were still home.

Once checked out, we checked back in to our Penang flight and boarded not long after that. After the less than half hour flight we landed again for the second time that day and collected our bags from the bag area. We met our tour guide, Pak Eddie, outside the airport and he showed us to our tour coach for the day; the interior was amazing, and everyone seemed to love the purple and gold trimmed curtains that lined the windows.

We arrived at the hotel, The Golden Sands Resort, and were given our room keys. Running up to our rooms, we settled in and unpacked. That night we met for dinner at the food court and shopped at the markets that were set up across the side walks. Many of us bought DVDs and small toys that night, later on we watched a movie together and settled into our beds, excitedly waiting for the day ahead.

Our first day was full of visits to many different venues, such as the Batik factory, Butterfly Farm and the Tropical Fruit Farm. Also that day we boarded a Pulley Train that took us to the top of Penang Hill, from there we gasped at the wonderful landscape ahead of us, and saw just how beautiful Penang is.That night we dined at a smaller food court just down the road from the hotel and walked around the night markets.

On our second day, not as busy as our first, we rode a ferry and crossed Penang Bridge, also stopping to view an old Chinese mansion, Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion, and the Little India part of Georgetown. For our last night in Penang, many of us decided to try a local feet cleaning process, a process that involved fish nibbling on your feet. Some of us left before the session was over and quickly finished our shopping before arriving at the hotel for the last night in Penang.

Monday was full of packing and cleaning. By twelve o’clock we were packed and ready for some lunch. Pak Eddie drove us to the airport and after checking-in to the airport again, we had a lunch of McDonald’s before boarding our flight to Kuala Lumpur.

As our flight was delayed we weren’t able to visit Chinatown that night, but had a very nice dinner at The Pavillion shopping centre down the road from the hotel. That night everyone, tired from the full days in Penang, went to sleep as early as possible.

On Tuesday the 29th, we visited the K.L. tower and Twin Towers with our new tour guide, Jet. After looking over K.L. we went for a walk in the ‘Nanas Forest’ (Pineapple Forest), some of us getting lost on the way and having to trace our steps back. At Mid Valley Mall later, we were let loose in the shopping centre to spend to our hearts' content. It was a great shop, but after meeting up again, we were told that we still had time for another round. Many of the boys, already tired from the previous two hours groaned, but the girls, now even more excited, raced everyone to the bus.

That night we were treated to a lovely evening at Pak Cheah’s sister’s home for dinner. After the delicious meal of satay sticks and salads a group of the students began singing Hallelujah to Jack Morris’s great piano playing. To treat us even more we were exposed to the delicacy of Durian, a smelly yellow fruit grown throughout Malaysia and Indonesia, and Pak’s sister and brother also singing a family song.

The next day we visited the Batu Cave and Gandah Elephant Sanctuary. After watching a short presentation on the elephants we had a short ride on the back of some of the biggest animals in the world. An hour long drive back to the hotel was then taken and we went for dinner and shopping once more.

Our last day was as exciting as the others. In the morning we visited Seafield High School, meeting many of the students and playing a local game in which marbles and a wooden board with holes was needed.

We then went back to the hotel to change and make sure our bags were packed before heading off to the shopping centers near the hotel. After walking to Times Square we had an hour of shopping and another hour to either shop more or ride on the many rollercoasters that were situated inside the plaza. By that time we were all very tired but still shopped around some more. At about six o’clock we arrived back at The Pavillion and were told to do a last minute shop before collecting our bags from the hotel and leaving for the airport at nine o’clock.

On the bus everyone was excited, taking pictures before we left and recounting many of the eventful things that happened. Our flight was at midnight that night, and the five and a half hour ride we had been dreading was now with us. We arrived home at about five o’clock in the morning and after seeing our way through Customs, we met our parents in the Arrivals area. A massive thank you goes to Pak Cheah for organizing the amazing trip and we would also like to thank those who helped us get to Malaysia. The trip was one that will stay with us for the rest of our lives.

Arrivederci Amiche Italiane

Well, our Intercultura / WAATI Italian cultural and linguistic exchange has come to an end. This year Mount Lawley SHS was blessed with the presence of cinque wonderful cultural ambassadors from Italy for two months. Amanda, Elisabetta, Federica, Libera and Noel brought a fresh taste of Italia to our school. Their willingness to collaborate with our teachers and students on a variety of learning opportunities including excursions, class activities, resource creation and one on one peer mentoring means that they will be greatly missed. Every staff member that interacted with these students has told me that they were a pleasure to work with and my Year 12 Italian students particularly told me, "ci mancheranno tanto". Auguri e complimenti ragazze, in bocca al lupo per il futuro e speriamo che ci rivediamo al piu` presto. Speriamo che avete bellissimi ricordi della nostra scuola, la nostra citta` e le famiglie con cui abitavate per due mesi. E` stato un vero piacere, grazie.

Enjoy reading Elisabetta`s thoughts below about what the exchange meant to her.

Non so da dove cominciare... due minuti sono pochi per poter ringraziare tutte le persone che mi hanno aiutato e raccontare di questi due mesi cosi’ intensi...

Questa esperienza e’ stata a dir poco fantastica!!!!! Non solo e’ stata una grande occasione per migliorare il mio inglese ma mi e’ servita soprattutto a saper controllare le mie paure, ansie ed emozioni: mi e’ servita a crescere.

Due mesi sono davvero pochi per sfruttare a pieno le occasioni che questo tipo di esperienza ti puo’ dare, ma credo di avere fatto del mio meglio per trarne vantaggio.

Ricordo ancora la paura iniziale quando appena arrivata all’areoporto non volevo superare quelle porte blu scorrevoli che mi dividevano dalla mia famiglia ospitante e dal suolo australiano... ero terrorizzata!

Credo che averle varcate sia stata una delle migliori scelte della mia vita!

Non potevo immaginare quello che mi stava aspettando... una realta’ cosi’ diversa, gli enormi spazi in mezzo alla natura, le immense spiagge deserte, la bush popolata da canguri e koala, i party, la scuola, cosi’ diversa dalla nostra, le serate in famiglia, che mi hanno fatto cosi tanto sentire a casa, le risate e i pettegolezzi con mia sorella, Danielle, le partite a monopoli, lo shopping e la splendida vacanza a Sydney!

E’ per tutto questo che voglio ringraziare la mia famiglia ospitante, helen, danielle e ian, per non avermi mai fatto annoiare, per avermi fatto conoscrere questo continente e questa cultura cosi’ diversi dai miei, per avermi sostenuta quando ho sentito la mancanza della mia famiglia... insomma per avermi fatto trascorrere un’estate indimenticabile!!!

Un grazie speciale va anche ai miei due insegnanti J. Millimaci e B. Petale, i due prof piu’ simpatici e disponibili che si potessi desiderare, che mi hanno portato con loro durante le escursioni, che mi hanno fatto scoprire quanto sia bello interagire e confrontarsi, con ragazzi di un altra cultura, riguardo anche le cose piu’ scontate, quotidiane.

Cos’altro dire???

Non voglio partire!!! Mi spaventa il fatto di lasciare cosi’ lontane le persone con cui ho vissuto per due mesi a cui mi sono davvero affezionata, con cui ho condiviso esperienze indimenticabili che ricordero’ per tutta la vita; e’ per questo che spero di rivederle presto, magari in Italia, con la speranza di riuscire a far loro apprezzare la mia terra nello stesso modo in cui sono riusciti a fare loro con me!!!!

Mi mancherete davvero!

Grazie mille

I don’t know where to start… two minutes are a very little time to thank all the people who helped me and to talk about these intense two months…

This experience has been fantastic to say the least!!!!! It has been not only a great chance to improve my English but, above all, it’s been useful to learn to control my fears, my worries, emotions and feelings: it helped me to grow up.

Two months are not enough to make the most of the chances that this kind of experience gives to you, but I think that I did my best to take advantage of them.

I still remember my fears when I first arrived at the airport, I didn’t want to go through those blue sliding doors that divided me from my host family and from the Australian land… I was scared stiff!

I think that going through them has been one of the best choices of my life!

I couldn’t imagine what was waiting for me… such a different reality, the huge spaces in the wild nature, the parties, the school, so different from ours, the evenings with my family, that made me feel at home, the laughs and the gossips with my sister, Danielle, the monopoly matches, the shopping and the wonderful holiday in Sydney!

I want to thank my host family, Helen, Danielle and Ian, for all this, for never allowing me to feel bored, for helping me get to know this continent and this culture, so different from mine, for supporting me when I was home sick… well for giving me a really unforgettable summer!!!

A special thank you to my two teachers J. Millimaci and B. Petale too, the two nicest and most available teachers that I could wish for, who brought me on the excursions with them, who made me discover how beautiful it is to interact and to compare myself to people who have a different culture, also to appreciate the simple things in life that we sometimes take for granted.

What else can I say???

I don’t want to go back home!!! I’m scared to leave the people I’ve lived with for two months; I’ve become fond of them, with them, I’ve share unforgettable experiences that I will remember for ever: for that reason I hope to meet them again soon, maybe in Italy! I hope to let them enjoy my country in the same way I enjoyed theirs!!!!

I will really miss you!

Thank you so much

Below is the students' farewell speech presented at our whole school assembly.

Hi everyone, we’re the Italian Exchange students and we just would like to say something about our experience before we leave. We’ve been here for seven weeks, only a short time but long enough to meet fantastic people including students and teachers who contributed to making our experience unforgettable. We found kind people here who were always willing to help us and we want to say thanks to them and also to the Principal and his staff. You all welcomed us and made us feel special and an important part of the school community. Thanks to our host sisters and brothers and families because they understood our difficulties, above all at the beginning and helped us to immerse ourselves in their lifestyle. And last but not least, our biggest thank you goes without doubt to Mrs Petale and Mr Millimaci who made our dream to come to Australia real and the reality was much better than our dreams ! They welcomed us almost like we were the perfect students in the world and continued to appreciate our work here and shared with us lots of adventures from herding kangaroos to the radio program. Our words will never be enough. We’ll always carry Mount Lawley Senior High School in our hearts and we’ll really miss your ozzie laid back attitude. Thank you, thank you everybody.

Noel, Elisabetta, Amanda, Libera e Federica.

Inaugural Lawley Language Lunch

On Sunday the Inaugural Lawley Language Lunch was held in our Middle School buildings. This was an initiative first proposed at our Languages Parent Support Group Meeting as a way to build stronger links between our Language students, teachers, parents and the wider community. Families were invited to bring a dish that characterised their culture and meet and share their backgrounds, traditions and aspirations with each other. Traditional recipes were exchanged, international music filled the room and parents, students and teachers interacted through Italian card games, French boule, Chinese cooking and dancing the Tarantella. The aim was to bring diverse cultural groups together and build social networks with Languages as a common bond. Over thirteen diverse cultural groups were represented including German, Austrian, French, Italian, Chinese and Vietnamese. The Italian exchange students and their host families enjoyed the opportunity to come together to celebrate the exchange experience which has been incredibly rewarding for all concerned. Our 6EBA community radio host also attended and thoroughly enjoyed meeting members of our school community, strengthening the links between our Language students and the living language world. This is the first of many that will take place as high schools start to reconnect with the families of our students maintaining the partnerships that are so vital to successful learning. Thank you to all those who attended especially the members of the Languages Parent Support Group for their tireless efforts in preparation, setting up and clearing. They make our school a truly special place to be.

Our French Connection !

Vive ‘ l’Entente Cordiale’ franco-australienne !

Eight fortunate Year 11 students, having recently returned from their séjour in the francophone island of la Réunion, are now even more enthusiastic about pursuing their French studies to TEE level. In 2010, thanks to our dedicated Middle School teachers Mrs.Theodosiadis, Mr. Stotzer and Mrs. O’Connor, another seven keen applicants will embark on this excellent scheme organised by the long-established W.A.-La Réunion Exchange which caters annually for a large number of students from both private and state schools in Western Australia.

The great advantage of this exchange is that students are exposed to a whole month of immersion in the French language through living with a French-speaking family. In addition, they enjoy a wonderful holiday in a totally different culture and environment. They then have a return visit from their exchange partner and offer similar hospitality in Perth. We encourage the parents of current Year 9 students of French to consider financing this relatively low-cost opportunity when their children reach Year 11. (Much less expensive than a trip to France and plenty of time for the students to save up their pocket-money!)

This year Mt. Lawley has also hosted eight Upper School students from different areas of France on stays of between 3 to 8 weeks. (Visits were arranged by several reputable international and local organisations.) Students have attended classes in all subjects for either full or half-days. In French classes they have been integrated into lessons via structured conversation groups with our own Year 11 and 12 students of French, leading to formal oral and written presentations by all students in their target language. There has been much meaningful, and mutually beneficial, bi-lingual interaction in our classes recently ……not to mention a huge amount of fun!

Mrs. P. Stewart


Australian dream for visiting French students

We had a really great time here, even if it was cold and a bit rainy. Australian school is very different from French school: here you can choose the subjects you want to learn. In France you can’t and you have to learn more than 10 subjects. Moreover this is a really colourful school so when you come here, even if the weather is bad, this place is always luminous. We love the fact that you can learn music, cooking, drama and art…
When we first arrived here it was so strange for us because in France you never wear uniforms. However, we were very happy to see that Aussie students were open-minded and came to talk to us. We enjoyed meeting new people, discovering new cultures and ways of life. We went to some “tourist” places to see koalas, kangaroos, aboriginal galleries and we went for two days to Rottnest Island (where we saw a lot of quokkas). The trip to go there was very rough and some French people were seasick. We went surfing three times during sunny days. And as good French girls we did a lot of shopping (the boys did too). We leave Australia just after the Boat Cruise with wonderful pictures of Perth by night in our minds. To put it in a nutshell, we enjoyed our trip very much and we wish we could come back here in summer.
Thank you so much for hosting us.
Magali, Orlane, Melissa, Benjamin et Nicolas.

Lawley Languages on the Airwaves at Radio Station 6EBA

Life is about connecting with people. A chance encounter and then a follow up conversation with Connie Di Perna led to one of the most fulfilling experiences in my teaching career; the opportunity to have the Mount Lawley Senior High School Italian exchange students and some of the hosts participate in the last program of Un' Ora Con Voi on Monday 17th August. From the moment I mentioned the radio excursion, the students were excited and overwhelmed and there was some trepidation involved "Prof. io mi vergogno". Since one of the messages I try to pass on to my students is face your fears, this seemed like a great chance to put the theory into practice. From the moment the students met Connie, our presenter, in the studio foyer, they were put at ease and amazed at her memory and preparation. Connie knew each student from their short biography on the school blog.

We were given a tour of the station, an explanation of how everything works and the process for creating a successful show. During the show Connie spoke with each student and was able to connect to such a degree that the depth of emotion was quite extraordinary. The students were honoured that they were part of Connie's final Monday show and congratulated her and wished her every success for the future. The magical component of this experience was the connection with music and how certain songs contain magical memories for people. Connie's research and willingness to allow the girls to select their special songs created an atmosphere of personal reflection on how important friends and family truly are and brought together families in Italy and Perth that have been linked by the exchange experience. I thank Connie and 6EBA for this unique experience which will stay with the people involved for a lifetime. Evviva la musica, evviva la vita !

CRONACA DI UNA MESSA IN ONDA: LIVE!!!

È lunedì 17 Agosto e per l’allegra combriccola formata da Amanda, Elisabetta, me: Federica, Libera e Noel, con l’aggiunte di Ellie, Isabella e il prof. Millimaci inizia una nuova avventura. Alle 12.30 l’appuntamento è alla ˝campana˝ della Mount Lawley SHS per prendere l’autobus per il 386, Fitzgerald Street, North Perth: 6EBA Radio Station. Dopo qualche minuto di trepidante attesa, dietro la proposta del professor Millimaci decidiamo di prendere un australianissimo long black coffee al bar, ma appena varcata la soglia della porta ecco in lontananza un puntino rosso carico di buste e borse che avvicinandosi grida:”Joe!!” (il prof.). Ecco Connie!! Finalmente la conosciamo. Si rientra nella stazione radio e, incredibile ma vero, la simpaticissima Connie identifica ognuna di noi senza mai averci conosciute. Woow . Dopo aver distribuito a noi ragazze un CD contenente le canzoni da noi scelte , col tocco di grazia finale della canzone “La vita è bella”, cantata dalla stessa (pensiero davvero gentile – grazie mille), Connie inizia una breve visita guidata dello studio con le mille attrezzature e I mille pulsanti, e gli immancabili microfoni con le cuffie! Sembra proprio di stare in un film. Il mini-tour finisce nello studio più spazioso dove sarebbe andato in onda il programma “Un’ora con voi”. L’orologio bene in vista ci inform ache sono passate le due e che in meno di mezzora le nostre voci sarebbero state ascoltate in tutta Perth, in tutta l’ Australia e, perchè no, in tutto il mondo, persino in Italia!! Con la sua risata contagiosa Connie ci fa subito sentire a nostro agio…I minuti passano veloci…un respiro profondo…inizia la sigla…e poi 3,2,1: SIAMO IN ONDA! La prima a parlare è Libera che piccolo piccolo prende il coraggio in mano e rompe il ghiaccio per tutte noi, dopo la sua voce ascoltiamo “Parlami d’amore” dei Negroamaro…e sulla falsariga di ciò che e accaduto a Libera si succedono le alter mini-interviste: Elisabetta con “A te” di Jovanotti, Noel con “Brava” di Vasco Rossi, Amanda seguita da “E fuori è buio” di Tiziano Ferro, Ellie e il signor Millimaci con “Siciliano” di Lucio Dalla ed infine me, Federica, con “Libero” di Fabrizio Moro. E così tra domande e risposte, lacrime e sorrisi, riassumiamo e tiriamo un po’ le somme di questa nostra esperienza di studentesse di scambio in Australia. Il tempo corre veloce e le tre e mezza sono già arrivate e con un po’ di commozione sentiamo scorrere in sottofondola magnifica voce di Connie che intonando “Life is beautiful” dice addio al suo programma del lunedì. È stato un onore per noi essere con te in questo giorno così speciale, grazie Connie!!!!!

To listen to the program visit the following link:

http://www.6eba.com.au/1/amici.php

Chinese Day

A variety of delicious Chinese dumplings were on sale and the air was full of the sweet smell of dumplings cooking outside the Cafe. Xie xie to the cafe management for their assistance and cooperation and of course to our tireless parent helpers who make our school community a vibrant place to learn. The Jianzi competition was fierce but Brandon, the winner collected over 30 taps to be crowned Jianzi King of 2009. It was a special treat to have Lucy Dean present the prize. Lucy is a wonderful ambassador for our school's Language students and is living proof that you can achieve your goals and dreams if you are willing to apply yourself. Xie xie Lucy !

French Day

Delicious French Pastries were on sale during lunch. Once again, merci beaucoup to our fantastic parent helpers ! The French students travelled to Cinema Paradiso to watch a wonderful French movie which they all enjoyed.

Italian Day

Wednesday was Italian Day and it was characterised by such memorable Italian music as That's Amore, Volare and of course a Tarantella or two. It was a pleasure to see the students dancing in our very own Piazza, we are truly lucky to have such pleasurable surroundings at our school. The parents sold gelati (my personal favourite was al cioccolato, although the lemon sorbet was also very refreshing). Thank you (sorry I should say grazie) to everyone who participated and assisted with preparation, selling, cleaning up, and flag waving. Una bellissima giornata italiana al liceo Mount Lawley !

Languages Week - Parent Support

Today was Indonesian Day and there were tasty Spring rolls to enjoy. Our Sumatran visitors enjoyed seeing a familiar cuisine which made them feel at home. Once again, thank you to our fantastic parent helpers, we are a wonderful school because of people like Sondra and the other parent volunteers who make their children's educational experience richer through their willingness to be involved !

MattoPancetta

Il ventiquattro luglio, students from Coolbinia Primary School walked to Mount Lawley Senior High School (il tempo era favoloso) and joined the Italian and SVAPA students in the Tricycle Theatre to watch the Crazy Bacon dudes from Melbourne perform in a Commedia Dell'Arte inspired production that saw an amalgamation of music, improvisational theatre and Italian language. The students were engaged by the clever antics of the zany Scaramouche (che ladro !) and Arlechino (his rendition of Poker Face and Don't Cha was hilarious!). We thank Dr Irving and Natalie Diggins for their collaboration and cooperation and Carmelina for her enthusiasm and organisation of the primary students. We would like to commend the Coolbinia students for their excellent behaviour and acknowledge that the MLSHS students were also wonderful role models in the way they welcomed our guests and made them feel comfortable in our "home". Grazie must also go to Signora Petale for her tireless efforts in planning and organising the event. We look forward to many more collaborative efforts, including possible future visits to the primary schools. It's pleasing to think that many of these events were merely ideas at our meetings earlier in the year which were run with assistance from Robin Hunt, Pina Zingales and Wendy Hewitt as well as a variety of primary language teachers, Language support staff and members of the administration. I must express my gratitude to the excellent Languages Team at our school which continues to inspire and motivate students to benefit from their Language Studies. Excursions, incursions and the like are the memories that will stay with our students long after they have completed their studies with us.

Fantastic Film Festival Italian Excursion

I professori di italiano hanno organizzato una splendida mattinata in cui abbiamo avuto l’opportunita’ di conoscere i cibi piu’ diffuse in Italia e vedere dei tradizionali negozi italiani. Siamo partiti da scuola alle 9 in direzione di Northbridge e, una volta arrivati siamo entrati in un grande magazzino che produce cibo europeo. Una gentile signora ci ha illustrato differenti tipi di cibo italiano: formaggio, pasta, dolci, liquori, cioccolata, caffe’ e abbiamo anche potuto assaggiare qualcosa!
Il giro e’ stato interessante e divertente, appena finito abbiamo fatto una bella passeggiata tra negozi tipicamente italiani.
Per il pranzo abbiamo comprato dei mega panini o della pizza.. io e altri ragazzi ci siamo sdragliati al sole in uno splendido parco!qualche dolcetto e poi tutti al cinema! Un film stupendo, “Sleale concorrenza” che mette in luce l’Italia nel periodo della dittatura fascista, evidenziando la triste e ingiusta situazione degli ebrei del tempo. Terminato il cinema siamo tornati a scuola per le tre. Splendida giornata!!


The Italian teachers organized a wonderful morning in witch we have had the opportunity to know the food most popular in Italy and to see the traditional Italian shops.
We left school at 9 to Northbridge and after we arrived we entered to a big shop that produces European food. A kind woman showed us different kinds of Italian food: cheese, pasta, sweets, liquors, chocolate, coffee and we tasted a range of goodies!
The tour was interesting and funny and as soon as it finished we went for a walk around typical Italian shops. For lunch we bought enormous rolls or pizza. Me and other friends lied in the sun in a fantastic park to eat them!
After some sweets everybody left for the cinema. A fantastic movie “Sleale concorrenza” that shows Italy during the fascist period, marking the sad and unjust situation of Jews of that time. After the movie finished, we came back to school at about 3 pm. Such a wonderful day! (Written by Noel, grazie !)

It was at 9.00am that “una gita a Northbridge" (a trip to Northbridge) began, as 40 Italian students from years 10, 11, and 12 clambered off a bus and into the inner city suburb of Northbridge. We all stood around at what was to be our destination…European Foods, an enormous warehouse overflowing with foreign foods. It would have seemed, from the outside, a boring idea for an excursion, that was until we stepped through the door and met the most ecstatic, enjoyable woman Oriana Parri who was to be our tour guide through the maze of foreign cuisine. At once the mood of the group changed to that of curiosity and excitement as we walked along aisles of foreign food as well as getting a sneak peek at roasting coffee beans. Every so often Oriana would pass down a box of Italian goodies for us to try, including Baci chocolate, coffee, tiramisu, nougat and grissini, they were absolutely delicious!!!

The next stop was a walking tour of Northbridge, where we explored more Italian shops, buildings and restaurants that funnily enough, most of us had never noticed before. By this time people were complaining of ‘starvation’ even with the stop off at Corica Pastries…so we split up, some of us wandering off to get pizza, while others to get a roll with the option of Italian meats at the Re Store.

After a nice relaxing lie in the sun and bellies bursting at the seams, we happily danced off to the Cinema Paradiso to watch “Sleale Concorrenza’, an Italian movie set about 1938, during the time that Hitler visited Italy, enforcing his rules upon the Jewish people. It was a story of two families, one Catholic and one Jewish and how the friendship between the two children, and the hatred between their fathers, grows into comradeship and love. The movie was enjoyed by most in the group, and was a topic of conversation as we read the love notes from our Baci chocolates on the bus ride back to school. We had a fantastic time in viaggio (travelling) Northbridge as though it really was Italy. It was a wonderful experience, something that wouldn’t have been possible without our fabulous Italian teachers Mr Millimaci and Mrs Petale.(Written by Alana - grazie !)

Today 43 students explored the Italian cultural and historical influence in Northbridge and had a fantastic time on our Giornata Italiana. All our students were a credit to our school with their outstanding behaviour. Enjoy the photos and congratulations on such a successful excursion. Thank you Andrew for driving our beautiful new bus (it was his first time today and he did a superb job), Signora Petale for all her preparation and organisation, Oriana Parri and European Foods for their warm welcome and tasty treats and of course our wonderful Language students for being such amazing ambassadors for our school ! Enjoy the pictorial memories.

Languages Week

This week it's Languages Week and our fantastic Languages Parent Support Group have planned a fabulous feast for each day of the week which corresponds to a different language and culture each day. Today was German Day and there were tasty German cakes to savour, (my personal favourite was the choc chip !). Language students will be visiting the Cinema Paradiso in Northbridge to watch Foreign Language Films. Explore the wide variety of cultures we have in the school and endeavour to learn and taste something new every day !

Amanda

Ciao a tutti, mi chiamo Amanda, ho quindici anni e vivo a Colleferro vicino Roma in Italia.

Per iniziare vorrei ringraziare il preside Signor Butcher, il professore Millimaci , la professoressa Petale e tutte le persone che mi hanno aiutato ad accedere a questa fantastica scuola, ma sopratutto vorrei ringraziare la mia famiglia ospitante che mi ha fatto sentire benvenuta in questo bellissimo angolo del mondo.

La scuola italiana e` molto diversa da questa, da noi ogni scuola ha un’indirizzo preciso, poi ogni alunno ha un gruppo classe e non cambia compagni ogni lezione, io infatti sono molto legata ai miei amici di classe e adoro la mia scuola, l’istituto d’arte di Anagni [http://www.menteantica.it/isa_anagni.htm] e fortunatamente ho dei bravi professori.

La scelta di questa scuola e` dovuta al fatto che vorrei diventare una stilista di moda, fin da piccola disegnavo e creavo dei vestitini per le mie barbie e la mia famiglia mi ha sempre appoggiato in questo mio desiderio, e mi aiuta giorno dopo giorno ad avere un futuro solido ed e` anche per questo che i miei genitori mi hanno voluto far venire qui, per apprendere l’inglese che e` la lingua fondamentale, che spero proprio di imparare quanto piu` mi e` possibile .

La mia famiglia e` formata da mia madre Lucia, mio padre Massimo, mio fratello Francesco e non meno importante dalla mia sorella australiana Ellie che e` venuta in Italia quest’inverno in scambio nella mia famiglia e che frequenta questa scuola, inoltre considero componenti della mia famiglia anche il mio cane, Lord e il mio gatto, Paco .

L’italia e` un bellissimo paese dal quale sono orgogliosa di appartenere. La vita li’ e` molto diversa dalla vita in Australia, e vorrei invitare tutti a visitarla perche’ e’ veramente un posto stupendo ….

Tutti dovrebbero vedere Roma, Milano, Venezia, Firenze, Napoli….insomma dal nord al sud anche solo per assaggiare la pasta all’Amatriciana ,la carne alla fiorentina o la pizza napoletana , o solo per fare shopping o per vedere per esempio il colosseo o il duomo di Milano , perche’ in Italia ce veramente di tutto.

L’Italia a volte mi manca ma poi quando esco di casa e vedo le incredibili spiagge e gli incredibili paesaggi australiani mi passa tutto , le mie impressioni riguardo all’australia sono tutte positive adoro le persone le citta’….ma sopratutto la mia famiglia la mia mamma australiana Diane , il mio padre australiano John , Zuzi , baba e dide (i miei nonni australiani) e luka e sasha i miei cani , e mia sorella Ellie .

Qui mi trovo veramente bene e da poco sono tornata da Sydney una citta’ unica , dove mi sono divertita molto con i miei amici australiani e italiani.

Penso proprio che questa sia l’estate piu’ bella di tutta la mia vita , perche’ nulla e’ comparabile all’esperianza che sto vivendo.

Grazie a tutti Amanda

Hi!

My name is Amanda Marozza I’m 15 years old , and I come from Colleferro near Rome in Italy. To start I would like to thank Mr. Butcher, Mr. Millimaci, Ms. Petale and all of the people who have helped me join this fantastic school, but especially I would like to thank my host family who have made me feel welcome in this beautiful part of the world.

Italian school is very different from Australian school, in Italy there are many different types of high schools, each is different and is for particular subjects.

Everybody has a precise class and nobody changes that class for the rest of high school. In fact I love my school friends , I attend the istituto d’arte di Anagni, and fortunately I have good teachers.

I chose my school because I want to become a fashion designer, since I was a child i designed and made little dresses for my barbies and my family always supported me and help me everyday for a good future. They have also helped me to come here , to learn English because English is the fundamental language and I hope to learn it well, my family is composed of my mum Lucia , my dad Massimo , my brother Francesco and no less important, my Australian sister Ellie, that came to italy with my family in December for 2 months I also have 2 animals, Lord my dog and Paco my cat, who I love very much.

Italy is a beautiful country where we are all proud to be Italian, life there is very different to Australian life, and I would like to invite everyone to come and visit Italy, because it is really a beautiful place.

Everyone should see Rome, Milan, Venice, Florence and Naples , also everyone should come to taste the pasta all’Amatriciana, the Florentine meat or Neapolitan pizza. But most of all for the shopping and to see the famous monuments like the coliseum, the dome of Milan and the Trevi fountain and much more because in Italy there really is everything.

I miss Italy a little bit, but when I go out and see the incredible beaches, and the fantastic landscapes i feel much better. My impressions of Australia are all great, I adore the people, I love the cities…but especially my host family, my australian mum Diane, my australian dad John, Zuzi, Baba and Dide (my Australian grandparents) and Luka and Sasha my australian dogs and my sister Ellie.

I like it here in Perth, and I just got back from Sydney, a very unique city where I had lots of fun with my Australian and Italian friends. I think that this is the best summer of my life because nothing can compare to this experience I am living.

Thanks to everyone Amanda