Monday 26th September was European Day of Languages where all of the countries across Europe celebrate the 6000+ languages spoken worldwide.

We like to mark the occasion at Abbey Gate College by offering a variety of language based activities throughout the week.  This year, Years 7 and 8 had part of their MFL (Modern Foreign Languages) lessons taken over by flag quizzes, guess the language games, and the sharing of cultural facts and figures.

Year 7 also took part in a Why Study Languages poster competition, with prizes going to Daphne, Tahlia and Zoe.

Form groups also did a variety of activities ranging from singing Let It Go (from the film Frozen) in 25 different languages, to a ‘Cake and Countries quiz kindly organised by our librarian Mrs Littler.

We also offered some lunch time activities, including listening to classical fairy tales such as ‘Le Petit Chaperon Rouge’ in different languages, and the opportunity to have your photo taken as a French/Spanish caricature.

Thursday was our biggest and best event; the MFL department hosted a European Bake Off where pupils across all year groups were invited to bake a European inspired cake.  As ever, our pupils lived up to the technical challenge and set their inner ‘Paul Hollywood’ to work producing some wonderful cakes and biscuits, from Sicilian lemon cupcakes to Swedish chocolate torte, to Serbian lazy apple cakes and Austrian biscuits.

This year’s Star Baker was awarded to Joe in Year 7 who managed to recreate a lemon cake version of the Leaning Tower of Pisa.  It was ‘molto bene’!

Cakes were then sold at break, and we managed to raise an amazing £75 for our house charity.  Huge thanks go to all of our entrants and their parents!

We hope that these activities have helped to inspire a love of languages and an appreciation of the wealth and diversity of the world in which we live.