The full 11 November, 2015 ceremony in Paris

Day of national remembrance and strong presence by school children 

for the commemoration in tribute to the soldiers who died for France.

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The Education Ministry was strongly represented :

Alongside the veterans associations, the Education Ministry was widely and variously represented.

Large numbers of students and teachers came from Paris and the provinces to honour the memory of the unknown soldier and celebrate republican values.

In the Friedland-Hoche stand were pupils from the Goya college in Bordeaux, the elementary schools Victor Hugo in Bobigny and Saint Jean in Paris (15th), the bilingual school in Haute-Corse, the Vauquelin, Henri IV and Janson de Sailly lycees in Paris and the agricultural lycees in Auvergne.

Commemoration for students:

One hour before the ceremony, pupils from Henri IV and Janson de Sailly had laid a wreath on the Champs Elysees in the presence of Najat Vallaud-Belkacem and

Jean-Marc Todeschini in memory of the students who died in November 1940.

The teaching team at Henri IV has always been very much involved in historical and commemorative issues and they are currently preparing a colloquium on this subject planned for February 2016.

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A ceremony experienced live:

After a brief presentation by Marie Larroumet, a DMPA citizen reservist, the official ceremony began: arrival of officials, laying of wreaths on the tomb of the unknown soldier, greetings from François Holland to associations, foundations and other official institutions, songs from the Republican Guard, tribute to the soldiers fallen in external ops, handshakes by the president of the Republic and the Secretary of State for Veterans and Remembrance who exchanged a few words with the pupils.

The CM2 class pupils from Victor Hugo school in Bobigny followed the ceremony very attentively and with great interest. "It must be said that we talked a lot about it in class," said their teacher Mrs. Roselyne Rangon "and that this day is a continuation of the educational work that I carry out with them and not only on the first world war; we also talked about contemporary conflicts and visited the former deportation station in Bobigny. 

Newcomers, the agricultural colleges of Auvergne:

The same attention from pupils from the agricultural lycées of Auvergne (Brioude-Bonnefont, Combreille, Yssengeaux), who all came to Paris just for this, just as the Agriculture Ministry

is about to join the interdepartmental protocol between the Education Ministry and the Agriculture Ministry.

This Protocol, to be signed very shortly, is part of the "broad mobilisation of schools for the values of the Republic". It reinforces the truly essential nature of defence and national security education for young people true to republican values.

Values which are more relevant now than ever.

Ministry of Defence - SGA/DMPA/SDMAE/BAPI - Report: Marie-Christine Caubet