Day 2640 (Friday) 30th August 2024
The parade for liberation day yesterday was so much better than we expected and as usual I took way too many photos. First there’s a short video…
This was taken from our balcony before we got down there
and these were taken on the seafront
There were about 20 jeeps, a few trucks and a tank.
They drove up to the citadel where they were on display to the public and lots of people, mostly kids, were standing on the vehicles getting their photos taken – the atmosphere was great.
August breaks a historical temperature record: it has never been so hot in Nice.
August has just broken a record in Nice: it has never been so hot, with an average minimum temperature of 24.3°C, beating the previous record set during the heatwave of 2003.
Do you think it was hot this August? That's normal, we have just broken a historical record and equalled another one. And more precisely that of the heatwave of 2003.
As reported by NiceMeteo06 on Twitter, the average minimum temperature was 24.3°C this month, compared to 23.7°C during the deadly heatwave of 2003.
And other records could still fall by the end of this stifling month of August: it was an average of 27.4°C on average, days and nights combined, equaling the record of August 2003.
The average maximum temperature is currently 30.3°C, compared to 31.2°C for that of August 2003.
La Rentrée: All the stationery items schoolchildren in France should have
Ever wondered why French schoolkids have huge backpacks or wheeled cases? It's because of all the stationery. Photo by XAVIER LEOTY / AFP
Every summer, French supermarkets fill up with stationery to cater to the incredibly detailed list of items that schools send out to parents ahead of the new school year.
You are probably well aware that French children head back to school after the long summer holiday on Monday, September 2nd, and even if it is not a wheelhouse subject for you, you cannot have failed to notice the huge amounts of stationery on sale in French supermarkets right now.
This is because of a list that parents get from their kids' schools each year.
The official list used to run to 29 items for primary school children, with additional items for pupils going to collège or lycée.
The good news, however, is that the latest lists - which is put together by parents and teachers working together and takes into account budget constraints and the weight of the child's schoolbag - are much shorter.
Here is the government's model stationery list for primary school pupils:
Image: service-public.fr
one large workbook (21cm by 29cm)
one small workbook (17cm by 22cm)
a music / poetry workbook (17cm by 22cm)
a non-rigid folder (A4 size)
one pencil case
one 30cm plastic ruler
a plastic set square
one pair of compasses (metal or plastic)
one pair of scissors with rounded ends
a pencil sharpener
an HB pencil
12 colouring pencils
12 felt tipped pens
four biros (blue, black, red and green)
an eraser
one tube of glue
It additionally recommends having a separate pair of training shoes to do sports activities. And it points out that several items, such as the pencil case, may be used for more than one school year.
Be aware that this is the government's model list of basic stationery requirements. Individual schools can - and do - add their own items to the list.
Unsurprisingly, the list is different - and a little longer - for children heading to collège or lycée. Here it is:
Image: service-public.fr
a small notebook
transparent file pockets
loose sheets of A4 size paper, both single and double
a diary
one pencil case
one pair of compasses (metal or plastic)
a plastic protractor
a plastic set square
one 30cm plastic ruler
12 colouring pencils
a correcter pen
one tube of glue
one pair of scissors with rounded ends
a pencil sharpener
an eraser
Two pencils (usually HB)
four biros (blue, black, red and green)
a scientific calculator
The government-recommended list includes a recommendation for paintbrushes of differing sizes (numbers 6,10 and 14 or 4,10 and 16 are recommended), five small tubes of gouache paint, and suitable clothes for sports lessons, including shoes.
Again, beware that this is the government's model list of basic requirements. Individual collèges and lycées can - and do - add to the list.
In all cases, lower-income families should by now have received a means-tested grant to cover return to school costs, including buying all that stationery.
Importantly, parents shouldn't be too concerned about being arrested by the stationery police if they don't have all the items on the list - which is described as a guideline rather than a rule.
Parents who have their second or third child starting school and have therefore been through this before will frequently tell you that they largely ignore 'the list'.
I loved stationary as a child (well, I still do) so I would have loved this list. Before going back to school in September I used to line up my pencils and coloured pencils and sharpen them to the same length!
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