August 6-10: immersion camp in Quebec City & region

5 day Summer French camp, departing from Toronto, for 10 to 14yr olds

English brochure Quebec 2012
Brochure en Francais Quebec 2012
Registration Form Quebec 2012

Registration Form for canyoning
For parents to know about canyoning
Lettre parents en francais sur le canyoning

Vision for the camp

Experience rich group activities, in FRENCH, designed for youth, exploring Quebec city and its region with a home base at local host families. The novelty of this camp is to be immersed, as part of a small peer group, into the family life of local hosts who care about sharing their culture and engaging with out-of-the-province visitors. During the day, join the full group to discover the rich history of Quebec City, and its proximity to wonderful nature. Find out about the ancestral and contemporary ways of living of the Huron-Wendat, retrace the footsteps of the Nouvelle France inhabitants, appreciate the military stakes on the Plains of Abraham and savour the artistic spirit of the city. Make time for adventurous sports nearby, beautiful natural sights and visit an hydro-electrical plant. Definitely not another school trip where limited time/budget and large groups of students only allow for a superficial touch of the place. Instead, go for a meaningful French immersion and human experience. Engage and interact in small groups with francophones from diverse backgrounds through various workshops and the sharing of daily routines, while being physically active. Have fun within the comfort of a small peer group. Feel safe under the caring supervision of counselors as you expand your own cultural world. Immerse yourself in this unique francophone culture and city like a Québécois child would!

What is it?

A 5-day Monday to Friday overnight camp experience in Quebec city & region. Departs & returns from Toronto’s Union Station.
The campers travel to Quebec City by VIA Rail from Toronto and back, under the supervision of the senior camp counselors. Departure: Monday, August 6, at 8.30AM (train leaves at 9.30)- Return: Friday, August 10, at 9.40 PM . Private buses or host family vehicles are used for on-site transportation.
Organized by Expérience Authentique’s founder, Evelyne Dufau, camp director for Camp Baby Point en Français day camp, which has run for 9 years in the west-end of Toronto and also organizer of Montreal overnight camps for the past 3 years.
Multiple local hosts, with expertise on the theme of the trip, further reinforce the counselor to camper ratio and of course the home stay further anchors the immersion aspect.

Host families, accommodation & meals

Organized in groups of 3 or 4, campers stay at a host family for the 4 nights. Accommodation are in double, triple or quadruple rooms ( 2 or 3 double or single beds/room, same gender share a given room), with a shared bathroom reserved for the campers and possibly a counselor. The youngest campers will be placed with one of the 3 families where the senior counselors reside.
Francophone host families belong to a network of guest houses managed by village d’accueil de l’Ange Gardien (French site only). Become familiar with the philosophy and mode of operation of those accommodation networks; they are gathered under an umbrella association and regulated by the Quebec government as an official player in the tourism industry of the province. In short, this form of lodging is geared to out-of-province guests travelling as a group, and wanting closer interactions with locals than the mainstream tourist experiences would allow. To date they primarily cater to European visitors, most of them being French. Every year each host family goes through a police reference check and needs to requalify to be part of the network. Homes are classified as offering a four star level of comfort and in this case are within 20 minutes north east of Quebec city. A host family can consist of only one individual acting as host and does not necessarily have children. This specific ‘village d’accueil’ has welcomed groups of French immersion students in the past from English-speaking parts of Canada.
Meals: 4 breakfasts and 2 dinners, traditional Quebec style, served and shared with the host families; 2 lunch bags prepared by a caterer, 3 meals at restaurants, 1 lunch bag brought from home on day 1, 2 suppers in the train served by VIA. Food allergies are accommodated but need to be pre-identified on the registration form.

Our campers

Thirty-three 10 to 14 year old campers (G5 to G8) schooled in French (Immersion or Francophone) or with strong fluency gained in the home. Priority is given to alumni as well as to older campers. Keep in mind that Camp Baby Point En Français is also offered as a Toronto day camp for 5 to 10 year olds for two weeks in late August.
Campers need to:
a) be mature enough to happily spend 5 days away from their family.
b) be willing to live by the camp code of conduct that will be communicated to families prior to departure .
c) demonstrate a good sense of responsibility to ensure a quality camp experience for the group and each one of its members.
d) be physically active and in good health in order to take full advantage of a content-filled week and to fit in well within the group.
6 children per counselor (Junior or Senior) during the day with one senior counselor per 12 children. Around the clock supervision provided by host families or camp counselors.

Our conselors

Bilingual francophone senior counselors speak French at all times (unless a health or safety concern needs to be best addressed in English with the camper). Assuming the camp operates at full capacity, i.e. 33 campers, the camp will be staffed by 3 senior counselors (adults) and 4 junior counselors recruited locally from a local high school. Evelyne Dufau, as Camp Director, is one of the senior counselors and is on call 24h a day for host families. Numerous local hosts will join us to lead our group through the various activities, all in French of course!

The program

DAY 1: Train travel supervised by senior counselors with an 1h40min stop in Montreal (train travel delivers the best value and comfort vs bus/air travel for our size of group). Welcome at the station by host families upon our 7.30PM train arrival . Everyone settle in their respective homes ( 3 or 4 campers per home) for the evening and the night.
DAY2: takes us to the traditional Huron-Wendat village of Wendake for various workshops on their ancient way of life, wrapped up by a traditional Wendat Lunch. PM: the group walks to the new village of Wendake where guides from the Huron-Wendat museum host us and lead us through more interactive activities and tours that will showcase the history, the cultural assets, and the current way of living of the Wendat People. Our group is organized into two sub-groups for most activities throughout the week to better respond to the interests and knowledge areas of the diverse age groups. Mid afternoon, campers head back to their host families and share dinner with them. Post-dinner get together with all host families and campers at the nearby Montmorency waterfalls for a welcome cocktail hosted by Evelyne. Time to mingle and socialize in French while enjoying the beauty of the falls overlooking the St Lawrence river. Return to the host families’ homes for the night.
DAY 3: is a day packed with content in the center of Quebec City. AM: guided visit of the upper and lower parts of the old town with a youth-focused curriculum. This is not your regular touristic fare, but rather what Quebec students get exposed to. Learn about the unique character of the city, the key timelines and main players ; make our youth value and like this city by bringing stories alive ( particularly from the times of Nouvelle France ) and make them feel comfortable with their surroundings. Lunch at a very popular boulangerie/café. PM: Hop on a bike for a 2 hour long loop along the banks of the St Charles River, on a dedicated biking path, and under the guidance of local cycling guides. Proceed to a military workshop on strategies, living conditions and weapons of soldiers during the 1759 & 1760 battles at the Plains of Abraham. Dinner at a local restaurant. Attend a Cirque du Soleil outdoor night show to wrap up the day. Head home to your host family for the night.
DAY 4: takes us to experience the region around the city with nature, adventure sports, and hydroelectricity on our menu. We alternate between an introduction to canyoning on the Jean Larose waterfalls in Mont St Anne and an educational guided tour of the attractive Sept Chutes park and its hydro-electrical plant. Prior to supper, all families host our entire group for an evening of Quebec folk music and festive traditions at the local community center. Last supper and night at the host families’ homes.
DAY 5: Farewell to our hosts. Get together in Quebec city to solve, in small teams, a “DaVinci Code” like mystery entitled L’héritier du Lys, a script carefully crafted by archaeologists and historians. Has the son of the last French King moved to Quebec City instead of dying in a Paris jail? Would there be a secret society who protected the child back then and that protects its descendants until the secret can be revealed? One has to solve a few enigmas throughout the lower part of the old town to bring out the truth. Answers are required before the 1.10PM train departure. Meals on the train. Arrival in Toronto at 9.40PM after a brief stop in Montréal.

Fees

$1045 + 5% GST= $1097.25 (no HST since services are purchased in Quebec) based on 33 campers for the 5 days. This fee includes all accommodations and meals from Monday evening until Friday night (campers bring a lunch on Monday for the train ride), entrance fees to all site visits, fees for all guided/hosted activities, local transportation, and care by our counselors. The fee does not include additional medical insurance or personal expenses.
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VIA RAIL train group transportation cost: $137.86 (13% HST included) for children up to 11 years old and $214.70(13% HST included) for 12 year olds & up, based on 33 campers traveling together

Payment Schedule

Upon registration a non-refundable deposit cheque of $400 is required dated March 30 and is to be mailed with the Registration Form and other post-dated cheques.
May 15: $697.25 balance of the fee (includes 5% GST on the full tuition amount) + cost of VIA Rail ticket . Please enclose all of those payments with your registration form using May 15 post-dated cheques.
Registration forms will be available for download on this page ( see top of the page) prior to March 30. Do not forget to fill in the extra form for the canyoning activity.

Q&A – Booking

Contact Evelyne Dufau, the Camp Director, at 416-760-9849 or at evelyne@experienceauthentique.com. You can express an interest and pre-reserve a spot in the camp via e-mail as the camp might fill up quickly. Note that the Registration Form is required by March 30 to secure a confirmed spot. A full Parent Information Package, including details of transportation, packing list, day-by-day outline of activities and Code of Conduct, is sent by July 15 to all confirmed campers.

Our goal in organizing this camp

Our campers come back motivated to pursue their commitment to both the French language and culture as they experience the full wealth of being bilingual and are comfortable in a French- speaking environment. They also gain an appreciation of Quebec culture and how it enriches life in Canada.

FYI: other linguistic experiences

For the entire family in southwest France
For 6 to 10 yr olds schooled in French immersion or francophone schools
For 14 yr olds and up in southwest France