World Tour at the Language Villages

Today was International Day (i-day) at the Concordia Language Villages. We got to spend most of the day visiting two of the fifteen different languages offered at these camps. We started out at Lac du Bois, the French camp, where we got to be part of a ceremony that honored their 50th year as a language camp. They now have three different sites just for French!



I was blown away the minute we walked into the camp, from a remake of the Eiffel tour to the replica French building where the dining hall was housed. I would have thought I was in Paris if I didn't know any better. The whole idea was captivating, the idea and vision that these founders had was unbelievable. They were truly ahead of their time and still go above and beyond any other language program. During the ceremony, different people shared their personal experiences of Lac du Bois and how it had changed their entire life, whether they came as a three year old camper or weren't introduced to the program until they were already in a foreign language teaching position. The emotion that was conveyed though their messages, and the way it affected me, reaffirms that I couldn't be in a better position. It is so awesome to see that so many people share my passion for language as well as teaching.

So we enjoyed some wonderful French cuisine, oh I should mention that the campers are submersed in the food culture as well. They are introduced to all sorts of foods that the cultures of their language have to offer. Delicious!



After that we headed to Waldsee, the German site, to celebrate and explore all that International Day had to offer! Going to the German site was a special treat for me because I could get a grasp on just how accurate these camps are. I felt like I had flown back to Germany. From the street signs, to the building structures, to the recycling bins, they have thought out every single aspect of the camp to make it as real as possible.


We were greeted by 10 different sites, including Spanish, French, German, Norwegian, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, and more! Each group entered with their own chant in their corresponding language with motions and dance moves too. It was such an amazing experience to see all of these kids speaking different languages, yet coming together to celebrate each and every culture represented. Such an amazing day! So inspirational and exciting to see full emersion at its best!





Each language site was able to come up their own presentation of how they wanted to demonstrate culture found in their language. Pictures above show a Chinese interpretive dance with oriental fans as well as a Chinese dragon, and a Spanish Flamenco group wearing the authentic polkadot outfits! Amazing how they can transform these kids in just two to four weeks!

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Location:Bemidji, Minnesota