As part of their classroom studies, students in Ms. Heather Marshak’s ninth and tenth grade French classes have reached out to a humanitarian organization that works to advance children’s rights and equality for girls.

Through sponsorship with Plan International, the students are sponsoring Aïcha, a 10-year old girl from Niger and their donation – which will help in her education, health and family life – also gives them the opportunity to communicate with each other in French, the official language of Niger.
In addition to the listening and speaking skills necessary for the language, this altruistic approach to learning French has a great emphasis on the students’ reading and writing skills. They have also embraced the communication aspect and in developing their writing skills they have shared their common teenage interests – music, favorite foods and more.

“In learning about the very real struggles that young women in Niger face, our hope is that we can use our experience to develop a cross-cultural perspective that reflects peace, empathy and awareness,” Ms. Marshak said.