Written by Natasha Lawman 8C:  I am going to tell you what I loved about the MFL festival hosted a couple of days ago. I enjoyed the music and food we had there. I only got a crêpe but there was paella as well and I asked a friend who had it and they said it was very delicious. An attendee said "I enjoyed the music that was playing and it was nice to spend time with my friends". Another attendee said "I liked spending time with my friends and making bracelets. I also liked the musical entertainment". I got my face painted with blue sparkles and I loved how it turned out. Some of my friends got their faces painted too. We all looked so good. The people were really nice and talkative. I had a crêpe with Biscoff sauce and it was excellent! The people performing were really good and you can tell that they had put a lot of effort into it. I didn’t get a picture in the photo booth but I’ve seen some other people's and they look really good and they looked like they were having fun! I’m really glad I got to experience an event like this and I’m really looking forward to any MFL events in the future.  Thank you!
Written by Laurie Wells 8H: Spending time with friends, listening to music, trying Spanish dishes, doesn't that sound great? Well those were just a few examples of what made our Spanish festival brilliant!  At St Edmund Arrowsmith, as you may already know, teachers try to give pupils the best learning experiences and what can really bring this to life, is taking a deeper dive into different cultures. We are so glad that the Spanish department were able to organise this for us as I, and everyone that participated, had the best time! One of the things I enjoyed most was trying the paella and crêpes that were available at the small pop-up food stations. The paella was very tasty and allowed me to experience different flavours that I had never tried before. The crêpes were also delicious as it was nice to have a sweet treat after the paella. Drinks were also up for grabs, which I found refreshing and was just what I needed after the food I had eaten. 
 
To ensure the atmosphere was even more enjoyable and entertaining, there was music and face painting. I really liked the idea of being able to sit and eat food with friends, whilst listening to the amazing music and vocals by some of the talented pupils in the choir and music department. You could even get a Spanish culture themed face paint, done by a professional, which again, was another lovely way to showcase Spain's exciting culture! Overall, I had a fantastic time at the Spanish festival and I'm sure everybody else did too, as it was a brilliant way of celebrating and learning about Spanish culture, whilst having a great time with friends!
Written by Harriet Eckersley 8G:  Last week, the MFL department hosted Saint Edmund Arrowsmith’s very own languages festival. This introduced students to different aspects of French and Spanish culture, such as delicious cuisine and thrilling live music performed by the school’s very own students. It also gave pupils the opportunity to spend time with friends through exciting activities, year 8 pupil Miley Rushe said, “I liked spending time with my friends and making bracelets. I also liked the musical entertainment.”
Tents were set up outside of the school dining hall while appetising Spanish paella and French crêpes were prepared by professionals. It gave the students a chance to try new things and develop new tastes. “I really liked tasting the paella because I have never tried it before and it was very tasty,” said one pupil.  As well as the food, music was performed by our school’s very own musicians. The performers gave pupils an outstanding insight into music from other countries as they ate their food. They delighted everyone with their music and brilliant voices. Jessica Rosbottom, 8S, stated, “I liked the crêpe I had; it was very nice. I also enjoyed getting my face painted and listening to the singers and the people playing instruments. It was very fun.”
This was a wonderful experience to be had, and I hope that they do something next year that is equally as amazing.