Parent Testimonials

EARLY SECOND LANGUAGE EDUCATION
FRENCH FOR FUN

Here is what some of the members of BABY CIRCLE have to say about the program.

Jenifer - Pleasant Hill

I spent years living several months per year in the South of France and it has been a struggle for me to learn French as an adult. Most of my foreign friends are able to speak 5, 6, 7 languages; their business and social worlds are completely opened globally because of this. I knew that no matter how cool I thought it was, it was impossible for me due to language barriers. I believe the early exposure to French will make it easier for my daughter to become a global citizen, which will be essential for her generation.

Amy - Lafayette

As a writer and musician, I have been obsessed with words, language and communication for my entire life, and I have always believed that being multilingual is one of the most valuable assets a human being can have. Learning another language doesn't just enable you to communicate with people in other countries; it opens your mind to other ways of perceiving and thinking. Introducing multiple languages while the brain's language center is at its most dynamic and flexible is a permanent investment in a child's intellectual growth and human potential. French For Fun is a wonderful, immersive language learning environment that teaches real, colloquial, age-appropriate language skills. After just a few weeks, my 13 months old is already saying identifiable French words, in context, and it is thrilling to see the comprehension and communication ability develop. Taking this class is one of the best decisions I have made, and I wish I had known about French For Fun when I was investigating preschool options for my older child.

Anji - Walnut Creek

French For Fun offers a unique and comprehensive introduction to the French language and culture, and its program is without peer in the Bay Area. I started my daughter at French For Fun when she was 8 months old and am now enjoying the same wonderful (and tremendously educational) experience with my one-year-old son. A true immersion program with fantastic instructors.

 

 

 

Suzanne Mangus
To All of French For Fun,

Let me add a letter of support and gratitude for your wonderful program. I cannot say enough about what it has done for my son in terms of language confidence, cultural currency, and preparation for a rigorous academic program. The comprehensive benefits of early childhood language exposure cannot be underestimated, and we found the after school language programs in our public school to be sorely lacking in virtually every respect in comparison to the superior experience at French For Fun. I only regret that we didn’t begin with you in the earliest years when language learning is so effortless! I still find it incomprehensible that our schools fail to introduce second language learning until middle school. Familiarity with French has allowed my son to begin easily with Spanish and Italian, and now, he wants to learn Japanese as well!

Lastly, I should mention that Alex always found his classes enjoyable and…FUN! All his instructors have made language learning accessible and enjoyable as well as productive. If only all pre-schoolers and school-age children had access to a program such as yours, we might begin to see an entire generation of multi-lingual, culturally literate and internationally oriented citizens.

We wish you the best of success in the future. Many thanks.

Sincerely,
Suzanne Mangus

 

Donna M. Comar

FOREIGN LANGUAGE IMMERSION PROGRAMS VS. TWO-DAY PROGRAMS

I am the mother of two boys, ages 8 and 11. Having spent eighteen years of my life as a foreign language teacher, I was determined that my children grow up speaking a second language. I was fortunate to have met Catherine Jolivet-Johnson while I was still a young, unmarried, Spanish, and French teacher. I made a trip to her French for Fun Center in order to buy materials. I came away with wonderful books but even more than that, I made a promise to myself that if I ever had children, they would be her students.

Years later, I was indeed married with two small children. I searched the entire Bay Area looking for pre-school foreign language programs. I found Mandarin Chinese Saturday classes, some distant Italian classes, Madame’s immersion classes and a Spanish Saturday program. We wanted FFF but I was teaching full-time and couldn’t manage to get him there. So we decided on the Saturday Spanish. It was deplorable. The inexperienced native speaker did not have a clue how to teach pre-schoolers. Pre-schoolers don’t need worksheet after worksheet. We decided to drop that class.

We tried other programs. We drove to Walnut Creek every Saturday morning to meet with a private French speaker. It was abysmal. Her own young son didn’t speak French and the tutor conducted the class mainly in English. We moved on.

Fortunately for me, Ms. Jolivet-Johnson started a Saturday class. At age five, Benjamin was finally able to begin French. What a huge difference. Catherine Jolivet-Johnson is one of the few teachers in the whole nation who truly knows how to teach a foreign language to young children. I tried teaching young children myself once and realized it was a world away from teaching middle school and high school. Madame Jolivet-Johnson completely devotes herself to the teaching of babies and beyond. Her knowledge of foreign language teaching as well as Montessori instruction makes her classes ideally suited to the young student.

It was clear that I needed to do better with my youngest. I finally managed to get my daycare provider to drive my three-year-old to Lafayette in the morning. She eventually decided not to make the drive. I ended up changing jobs and working three days a week in order to put him in a two-morning program. It was fantastic. I even went so far as to quit that job in order to put him in the morning kindergarten, five-day program the following year. It was beyond my expectations.

Meanwhile, my six-year-old began a two-day afternoon program and continued even during the summer months.

The difference is notable. The youngest is completely at ease with the French language. He comprehends and speaks effortlessly. He is not afraid to make mistakes and has a native accent. The oldest understands an enormous amount of French but is very hesitant to speak. He has a self-consciousness that the younger son does not have. He also, like me, has an American accent.

Therein lies the difference. You can devote your life to languages even earning advanced degrees in French or Spanish. You still have no chance of speaking at a native speaker level unless you begin young in an immersion program. Time is of the essence with foreign languages. The brain is wired and ready from ages zero to six to absorb languages like a sponge.

Admittedly we had other interests competing for our children’s time. We made French the priority. The other activities can wait. We have not regretted that decision.

Anyone having the time and means to put their child in an immersion program at a young age should definitely take advantage of that critical time period. To put a young child in a one or two day program is all well and good, but is essentially throwing away the most fertile period in a child’s life. I highly recommend exposing a young child to as much foreign language as possible. Immersion programs are the way to go.

I presently work as a bilingual reading teacher at Meadow Homes Elementary. Our school presently offers English-only classes, bilingual classes and immersion classes. The progress of the students in immersion and bilingual classes is incredible. Those parents choosing English-only are missing a great opportunity.

Good immersion programs are few and far between. I feel very fortunate to have found such a fantastic one so close to home.

 

Paige McCullough