On Wednesday 31 May, our Year 9-11 students took part in the Dante Alighieri Poetry Competition. The Melbourne Branch of the Dante Alighieri Society was established in 1896. Part of a global organisation committed to promoting Italian language and culture internationally, Dante Melbourne links Victoria to the heart of Rome. Students are required to memorise one poem from the list prescribed by Dante Melbourne and recite their poem in front of one judge – no cue cards or prompts are permitted. It was wonderful to finally go back to taking part in the competition at Melbourne University after a few years of COVID. After the excitement of reciting the poems to the judges, we walked to Lygon Street to enjoy an Italian lunch. The students were thankful for the opportunity to take part in the competition and also enjoy some of the food culture in Lygon St Carlton.

In the second last week of term, the Year 7s learned about Italian Food. They made Bruschetta and they discovered, it is not pronounced bru-sh-etta but with the hard k sound. They thoroughly enjoyed preparing for the event by translating the ingredients and procedure for making the recipe. I wish to thank Mrs Maria Ciavarella for giving up her free time to source the ingredients and set up the Food Tech room for us. Grazie Maria! Here are a few reflections.

I really enjoyed making the Bruschetta! It was a fun activity with a very delicious result. Making it was a great learning experience and we loved working out what the Italian words were for different ingredients and instructions in the recipe. Bruschetta is a classic Italian snack consisting of tomatoes, garlic, basil, bread and olive oil – with a pinch of oregano and salt! Food is a big part of Italian culture and following a recipe for a classic snack is a great snapshot into Italian life. Learning the Italian language has been very fun this semester and it was also interesting to learn about the culture.

William Wright B1

I really enjoyed making the bruschetta because it was a fun way to show that we understood what he had learnt. I also think that the other students enjoyed making the bruschetta because they got to choose their partners and have fun while still learning and speaking Italian.

Mike Bonacci C3

Mrs Paula Barca

Learning Leader – Italian