Albert D. Lawton

During National French week in early November, ADL and EMS teachers Melanie Tupaj and Heather Covillon set aside class time each day for two weeks to participate in the 2nd annual Francomanie song tournament hosted by Roxxem; a language learning program that uses popular music to engage students in language acquisition.

Students listened to eight French songs and had fun learning about the artists and the lyrics, playing games, singing along, and voting for their favorites in an elimination bracket.  Ego by Willy Willem was a favorite as most of the students were already familiar with it from TikTok.  It beat the other semifinalist, Hymne à l'amour, sung by Céline Dion at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics in July. 

This year more than twice the number of students and classes participated compared to last year, and the students did just as well.  Out of 737 classes participating in the tournament,  Mme Covillon's 8th grade classes placed 12th, the 7th grade placed 20th, and the 6th placed 99th.  Mme Tupaj's 7th grade classes placed 15th and 18th, her 8th graders placed 21st and 155th, and her 6th graders placed 29th and 76th.  

Out of 14,487 participants, here is how the top scorers ranked:

Jessica (ADL 7th) - 10th 
Orion (EMS 8th)  - 15th
Tenzin (ADL 7th) - 16th
Gareth (ADL 7th) - 18th
Jenny (ADL 7th) - 20th
Ava (EMS 7th) - 39th
Celia (ADL 8th) - 44th
Claire (ADL 8th) - 50th
Griffin (ADL 6th) - 52nd