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by Tom Boyle [email protected] Sounds familiar to anyone who has ever been to New Orleans filled the second floor hallways of Titusville Middle School on Tuesday as French I students of Shannon Sanders celebrated the Mardi Gras. Sanders said her class had a traditional lesson about the world-famous event on the preceding Friday and Monday prior to Fat Tuesday, also known as Shrove Tuesday. This is the day before Ash Wednesday, which begins the Christian Lenten season. As part of their studies, students cooked up their own New Orleans cuisine, which is rich in both flavor and history. The room in which the class was held carried the scent of king�s cake, French bread, two different kids of cheeses and French soda, along with a treat called cremebrulee, which is comprised of whipping cream and egg yolks and is brought to boil with a heat gun. Sanders said the students made the food themselves at home and brought it into class. �It was a good experience for them, learning to make simple French things,� Sanders said. Following in a time-honored New Orleans tradition, a gold coin was hidden in the king�s cake for someone to find. The lucky student this year was Arin Berryman, known to the French as Xavier, who thus became the King of the Mardi Gras. �The students all have French names, along with their English names,� Sanders said. �They love having another ID.� The students were adorned with celebratory masks, some of which Sanders purchased from party shops and others which were loaned to the class by people who had brought them back from New Orleans. To complete the Crescent City ambiance, Cajun and jazz music wafted through the classroom while everyone chowed down on the rich Louisiana food. According to Sanders, the Mardi Gras ends what is known in many parts of the world as the Carnival Season, which begins each year on Jan. 6. The Mardi Gras came to America when a group of U.S. students saw the celebration in Paris and brought it back to Louisiana with them. �The students learn that Mardi Gras existed not only in New Orleans,� Sanders said. While students at the eighth-grade level study French culture and tradition, those who continue the course during high school learn how France influenced such places as Africa, Quebec, Haiti and the Ivory Coast, Sanders said. Reader Comments Alyssa (2/9/2026) Mardi Gras is awesome to learn about..french is the best language ever! Mrs.Sanders is the best teach ever! Add a comment |
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