Spanish Language Students Visit with Exchange School

Spanish Exchange students from ESJ traveled to Zaragoza, Spain to live with host families from Colegio Inglés, ESJ’s sister school, in late June. While in Zaragoza, students toured La Basílica del Pilar, El Casco Antiguo, and La Seo, and participated in activities with their host student such as hiking, regional excursions, soccer matches, tapas, and shopping. Additional activities included heading down the Ebro River on a kayaking adventure, seeing Roman ruins, visiting the medieval town of Alquézar, hiking the Vero River Canyon in the foothills of the Pyrenees, and seeing La Aljaferia, a former Moorish castle which houses the legislature of Aragón. ESJ students visited the Colegio Inglés lower school students and read to them and donated children’s books to the school library. On one of the final excursions, students enjoyed a day trip to Barcelona to see sights such as Montjuic, La Rambla, Casa Battló, Sagrada Familia, and FC Barcelona. Throughout the trip, students took high speed trains, trams, and buses, and were able to visit three major Spanish cities: Madrid, Zaragoza, and Barcelona.

“The purpose of an exchange program such as the one ESJ has with Colegio Inglés is to immerse the students of all language levels in the culture and language in a way that cannot be replicated in a classroom setting or on a tour,” said trip chaperone Nitza Plaski, Middle and Upper School Spanish teacher. “Everything is unscripted and unrehearsed.  It is a truly interdisciplinary experience where students tap into everything they have learned in school and apply it to what they are experiencing in real time. Many of the historical areas we visited gave students insight into the pivotal role that the Aragón and Catalunya played in world history, architecture, language and fine arts. While with their host families in Zaragoza, students experienced day to day living, negotiated new ways of doing things, and challenged themselves to use what they know. They sampled regional delicacies and learned new customs. Many students discovered new interests and further advanced their language and interpersonal skills. By surrounding themselves with the language and culture, students leave the laboratory that is the classroom and get in the field; they get to live for two weeks the life of a typical teenager in Zaragoza and make lifelong friendships.”

Next spring 2025, ESJ will host twenty three Colegio Inglés exchange students and show them the warmth and hospitality of the First Coast.  We hope you will be a part of the Spanish Exchange experience too!