Barnesville Welcomes Students from Peru

January is always an exciting time at Barnesville School of Arts & Sciences. We host middle school students from Leonardo Da Vinci School (LDVS) in Lima, Peru as part of our annual foreign exchange program. Marianne, Swami, Enzo, and Ariana are staying with Barnesville host families and attending classes at Barnesville. Welcomed by the entire Barnesville community, the exchange students are sharing their culture with students through presentations and daily interactions with students in all grades.
In addition to attending classes, the exchange students are visiting historic monuments, museums, and other notable sites in and around Washington D.C. They visited The National Cathedral and the National Aquarium in Baltimore. This past weekend students took a trip with host families to New York City where they stayed in Times Square, visited Chinatown and Battery Park, and went ice skating in Bryant Park. This week, they will be visiting the National Gallery, Natural History Museum, the Washington Monument, and the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. They will also go sightseeing in Georgetown and skiing.
Each summer Barnesville students in 7th or 8th grade have the opportunity to spend three weeks in Lima, Peru, staying with a Peruvian host, experiencing the Peruvian culture, and attending classes at LDVS. Barnesville students also enjoy field trips in and around the city and to Cuzco and Machu Picchu to explore the ancient Incan ruins and learn about the Incan culture.
Students from both schools form deep and lasting bonds with each other and continue to keep in touch long after returning to their respective homes.
Magdalena Veran, an English teacher at LDVS, is back at Barnesville for her sixth time as a chaperone. She has also experienced the program as a parent when her son Abraham came to Barnesville in 2014, and as a host to Emily K. (Barnesville Class of 2015) in the summer of 2014.
“This program offers so much to both school communities,” Veran said. “The students build friendships and share experiences with host families, classmates, and other students. Those connections have a lasting impact that just keeps building, year after year.”
Barnesville School of Arts & Sciences is an independent private school in Montgomery County, Maryland offering innovative preschool through 8th grade programs. Cross-curricular teaching encourages students to explore how subjects relate to one another, helping them to make connections that spark inquiry and deepen understanding. Small classes enable skilled teachers to engage each child in an academically challenging environment. Our campus is our extended classroom, and we integrate nature into everyday learning.