An ANZAC adventure

A GROUP OF lucky Queanbeyan High School students will travel to Villers Bretonneux next month to attend the Anzac Memorial Service.

A GROUP OF lucky Queanbeyan High School students will travel to Villers Bretonneux next month to attend the Anzac Memorial Service.

The local contingent will take part in the dawn service and lay a wreath in memory of fallen soldiers.

Students have prepared a commemorative cross with a personal message to leave on the grave of a family member or Queanbeyan soldier who died on the Western Front.

Teachers Margie Elliott and Tamara Malcolm will chaperone the group and said it will be a great experience for the students and compliment their modern history studies.

"Reading about a battle and then actually being there and seeing where the battle took place [is amazing]," Ms Elliott said.

"Instead of conceptualising, they can actually feel, empathise and see so when they're writing about it, they have it there in their heart. I think it will be quite moving and brings it home to our community."

The memorial service is just one of the stops on the group's extensive 22-day itinerary which also encompasses Spain and Belgium. They will leave on April 6.

Students will travel to visit the medieval castles of Madrid, climb the Eiffel Tower in Paris and visit the battlefields around Fromelles, Bullecourt and Arras.

It's the second time Ms Elliott and Mrs Malcolm have organised such an ambitious excursion. They previously took a group of students to Greece and Italy in 2009.

Students have been taking introductory Spanish and French classes to prepare for excursion as well as viewing films Beneath Hill 60 and The Monuments Men which features locations they will visit.

The overseas excursion is not just a learning experience but a chance for personal growth, the teachers said. Both teachers were impressed by the transformation of students in their previous cohort from novice to experienced travellers.

"From the last one, I saw a lot of confidence grow in the students," Mrs Malcolm said.

"Some students haven't even been on a plane before and so to take them overseas and be immersed in another country's culture is just mind-blowing for them."

Year 10 student Hayley Phelps is looking forward to the trip as it will be her first one overseas.

"Travel fascinates me but I'm also fascinated by World War One and history," she said.

"I'm just looking forward to the experience. It's such a different place compared to anywhere in Australia. The people are so different, the culture so different and that just excites me."

The teachers said although the planning was extensive, it was ultimately very rewarding. Ms Elliott and Mrs Malcolm are already preparing for their next excursion, they hope to take the students to Turkey.