Rick Stiebel /Special to the Gazette
Bon chance! Seven students from School District 62 will compete in the provincial level Concours d’art oratoire, a national French speaking competition that takes place May 6 at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby. Success at that level will earn students a trip to the nationals and a shot at winning bursaries up to $25,000.
Fiona Black earned a spot in the provincials in the late French immersion qualifier Grade 6 category and Mataya Dorland-Meagher did the same for Grade 5. Linnea Sly made the cut in the French immersion qualifier for Grade 5 students, while Shaan Brar won the honour among Grade 8 students. Emily Priebe is the Grade 7 early French immersion qualifier.
The Sooke School District has two levels for French immersion. Students that begin in kindergarten are in the early French stream, while students that begin in Grade 6 are fast-tracked in the late program. Both groups come together in Grade 8.
The competition is organized by parents and volunteers with the Sooke District Chapter of Canadian Parents for French, B.C. and Yukon.
Chapter president Cendra Beaton noted that all of the students did an amazing job preparing their speeches.
“They leave me filled with hope for our future with the depth of topics they chose to present,” she said.
“It’s an honour for them to be able to move on to the provincials, and we wish them every success. We hope to see more students participate in the years to come.”
reporter@goldstreamgazette.com