Français
Sitting with her nose pressed against the page, Lilou is absorbed in silent reading. In a few minutes, she’ll have to read aloud an excerpt from Marie-Aude Murail’s book titled *Le hollandais sans peine*. For fun, no doubt, but also—and above all—because she is participating, along with ten other schoolchildren from Saint-Barth, in the Micheline Jacques reading contest (named after the current senator and former school principal). The competition is being held at the regional library. On Thursday, June 18, the 9-year-old schoolgirl from Gustavia faces four judges: Fanny Giausseran, acting vice-rector; Angèle Peter, library director; Francius Matignon, territorial councilor in charge of educational affairs; and Tom Toussaint, assistant to the vice-rector.
Of the ten students, four are from the Gustavia school district, three from Saint-Joseph in Lorient, and three from Sainte-Marie in Colombier. In the reading room, the three school principals—Agnès Combin (Gustavia), Géraldine Cointre (Lorient), and Laurence Rebatel (Colombier)—wait with the contestants. A book in hand, of course.
One after another, the students step up before the judges. The judges evaluate the fluency of their reading, their comprehension of the text, their articulation and diction, their stage presence, and their intonation. Luana, Salomé, and Lilou—all three third-grade students at Gustavia—had the same take on the text. “Even if we don’t understand each other’s languages, we can still understand what someone is saying,” explains Salomé. “And become friends with them,” adds Luana. Lilou nods in agreement: “Yes, we can become friends through gestures, smiles, and so on.” And while each girl admitted to feeling a little “stress” before stepping in front of the jury, that slight anxiety quickly faded once they began reading the text.
The winners will be announced in a few days.
The student contestants
For Saint-Joseph: Elise BICHOT, Mia MAËS-GREAUX, Margot GARDETTE.
For Sainte-Marie: Matilde DA SILVA NACIMENTO, Gaspard COPPOLA, Mahé ANASTHASE.
For Gustavia: Charlotte SOULA DE GUIGNE, Salomé BASSET, Lilou LAGARRIGUE, Luana QUESTEL MARQUES.
