Ellen Weirich Brings the World Back to the Classroom

This summer, Middle School French and Spanish Teacher Ellen Weirich spent two weeks studying in Nice, France, immersing herself in the language while learning the latest approaches to language instruction alongside French-language educators from around the world. 

Now, she is bringing that learning back to her St. Mary’s students. Ms. Weirich is already incorporating what she learned about language, culture, and teaching into her French and Spanish classes, giving students not only new ways to engage with the language but also firsthand perspectives on the cultures they are studying.

“It was an exhilarating experience to spend five hours in class each day speaking French while learning the latest language teaching techniques for French classrooms,” Ms. Weirich said.

Ms. Weirich says she particularly enjoyed learning alongside and exchanging ideas with French educators from around the world, including Canada, Italy, Spain, Greece, Morocco, Argentina, China, Sweden, and France. Those conversations introduced her to new ideas she can use in her classroom.

Weirich also explored the language, history, art, and culture of southern France. She celebrated Bastille Day on the Promenade des Anglais, visited museums featuring works by Matisse, Picasso, and Chagall, explored Provençal markets, learned about the art and science of French perfume-making, and traveled throughout the region with her new French-speaking colleagues. 

Those experiences gave Ms. Weirich new connections and firsthand cultural knowledge that she can now share with her St. Mary’s students.

“Every time I hear the ‘Francophonia’ group chat ‘ding’ on my phone, I am reminded of those special two weeks when we, as educators, came together to celebrate other languages and cultures, to learn about and share the latest teaching techniques for world languages, and to experience the wonders of the Francophone world,” she said.

This fall, the connection between Ms. Weirich’s professional development and student learning will extend beyond the classroom when she returns to Europe, this time leading St. Mary’s Middle School students on a fall break trip from Barcelona, Spain, to Nice, France.

Ms. Weirich was one of 15 French teachers from across the United States to receive a Francophonia Nice Scholarship from the American Association of Teachers of French, which covered her tuition in the program. Her travel, lodging, and expenses were supported by St. Mary’s Fund for Faculty Growth and Development, an endowed fund established by a generous St. Mary’s family in 2005 to provide ongoing opportunities for faculty professional development.

“This experience reminded me how fortunate I am to teach at a school that values the continued growth of its faculty,” Ms. Weirich said. “I'm incredibly grateful to the donors whose generosity made this possible, and I am excited to share what I learned with my students.”