Holy Trinity pupils hit Spain to say 'hola' to their pen pals

Date published: 22 June 2023

Most children learning a foreign language will do so by practising to speak it in the comfort of their own classroom. However, 52 lucky Year Five and Six pupils at Holy Trinity Primary School in Littleborough went on a trip to Spain with their teachers, to test out their language skills with their pen pals at Holy Trinity’s sister school in Barcelona.

The action-packed trip to Tossa de Mar saw children enjoy two excursions to the Catalan capital to see sights including La Rambla, Sagrada Familia and the Citadel at Montjuic, plus a tour of the world-famous Camp Nou. They also spent a day at Port Aventura, southern Europe’s largest theme park, while getting to explore the beaches, old town and coastline at Tossa too.

The highlight of the six-day trip, however, was the children being able to spend a morning with their pen pals at Escola Escaladei. While, for the past year, the Holy Trinity pupils have been using their Spanish to write letters and video-call their continental friends, this was the first time they’d met them in person. The visit began with children completing some ice-breaker activities with their pen pals, before enjoying tours of the school and a singing session, plus some free play time.

Mark Kenyon, head teacher at Holy Trinity, said: “Watching the children interact with their Spanish counterparts was really quite magical. Not only was it lovely to see how quickly they bonded and started laughing together, but it was so rewarding to see the years of Spanish tuition that our children receive come to fruition as they conversed with their friends.

He continues: “We are particularly grateful to our Spanish teacher Senorita Andrea who set up the connection between the schools and to our parents for supporting the trip. As a school, we are firm believers in trying to give our pupils memories that will last a lifetime and think we have certainly achieved that with this holiday, which has been thoroughly enjoyed by the children and our dedicated staff alike.

“We also give a huge amount of credit to our children themselves, of whom we are very proud. If it were not for their excellent behaviour and levels of independence, we wouldn’t be able to contemplate a residential trip on this scale.”