I Liceum Ogólnokształcące has organized celebrations of European Foreign Languages Day since 2003. This school holiday is intended both to educate and entertain. Each year, individual classes from I LO and I Gimnazjum prepare booths representing countries drawn in advance. Last year, these were less familiar and less popular countries. This year, the corridors of the high school featured booths representing European Union countries. – We have returned to our roots – says Bogna Łasica, one of the coordinators of this year's celebrations.
On Friday, December 4, the school was filled with a veritable kaleidoscope of colorful characters: Alfred Nobel, Stefan Batory, members of the group Abba, Obelix, death metal musicians from In Flames, Finnish monsters from the band Lordi, Sherlock Holmes, Robin Hood, Pippi Longstocking, the Beatles, fiery Spanish women, and a priestess in combat boots marrying two women.
At the Swedish booth, live pencils wandered around, while at the Dutch one there were... sex workers and their pimps. – Foreign Languages Day is great fun – says Sophie „La Bouche” Forrester, that is, Mateusz from III b. – This celebration makes it possible to break away from the usual course of lessons.
The booth contest was won by class III a (Sweden) and III b (the Netherlands).
At the initiative of class I d, pupils from Powiatowy Zespół Szkół i Placówek Specjalnych took part in the celebrations. – Recently, students from I LO had fun at our Andrzejki party, and now we have been invited to Foreign Languages Day – explains Mariusz Stefan, the common-room supervisor at PZSiPS. – It was incredible fun for our students. They were very impressed by the presentations prepared by the high school students.
There were also language-related contests that day. Sebastian Mincel won the contest on English-speaking countries, while Adamo Chitruk proved best in the contest on Italy.
The celebration culminated in the foreign-language song contest “Lingua et musica,” organized by teacher Agata Kozicka. Everyone gathered in the I LO assembly hall had the opportunity to hear 10 performers. The audience reacted very enthusiastically. A choir of dozens of voices sang “My Heart Will Go On” together with Martyna Prabucka.
After the contest section ended, the star took the stage: teacher Sławomir Zimniak, this time with the band Pyrczok. The audience heard, among other things, the theme from the film “Desperado,” “Jozina z Bazin,” “My Cyganie,” Perfect's “Nie płacz Ewka,” and the group Boys' “Jesteś szalona.”
The jury (comprising Aleksandra Sozańska-Kut, Agata Pińczuk-Burdzy, Leszek Idzikowski, Monika Warężak and Agata Kozicka) awarded third prize ex aequo to: Wiktor Złotnicki and Pola Kołaczkowska (for the song “Belle”), Martyna Prabucka (for “My Heart Will Go On” by Celine Dion), and Alicja Kołacz and Piotr Celmer (for “Kiss Me” from the repertoire of Sixpence None The Richer). Second place was awarded ex aequo to: Magdalena Szymula (for the song “La Camisa Negra” by Juanes) and Katarzyna Selwent (for “Rehab” from the repertoire of Amy Winehouse).
First prize went to the band Zbysiu and the Niesforni (consisting of: Michał Żak, Filip Pająk and Michał Uziej), which performed “Tró Estonian Metal Song”.