The
Immersion Process
The immersion process for FRENCH
FOR FUN begins in the Moms n' Tots classes. Even
though the classes meet for only a half an hour, two days
a week, this is a good place for the very young ones to
begin. Their attention span is short so the time spent
on any one activity is also short, but with proper direction
this time can be very important to the child's development
and acquisition of the basic learning skills.
In these three photos you can see Madame working with
the very young and helping them focus on listening as
well as manual dexterity, fine motor skills, colors, objects
and hand eye coordination, all in the target language.
Children learn to respond quickly and without any inhibitions
(or accent).
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Reading and number skills
are very important at this age. This is when the child
can benefit from pre-reading exercises which will strengthen
their ability to absorb these critical skills now and
in the future.
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Of course the most important aspect of a good
immersion program is that it is fun. In order
to facilitate the acquisition of language and all the
other skills presented at this age the manner in which
these subjects are presented are of utmost importance.
This requires an incredible amount of preparation and
work on the part of these teachers in designing and
implementing the curriculum. It is no coincidence that
it takes a special kind of person to work so diligently
and with so much patience with children of such a young
age.
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The immersion process will work right into
the elementary age with the same patterns of
fun and interesting subjects being the foundation of
good work and successful relationships. For children
brought through this process the rewards are many. The
chief result is a bilingual child who has a better understanding
of the world and it's people. Another benefit is a prolonged
exposure to skills development that he/she wouldn't
otherwise have.
We at FRENCH FOR FUN believe that the
Immersion process is a gift that parents can give to
their children that will help them see the world and
experience its wonders more clearly and to greater effect
...thank you for giving us the opportunity to work with
your children.
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This is the game that the children
are playing above. It is a traditional French
game played by all children in France and one of many
that is used by FRENCH FOR FUN in its
classes for older children. Once again when the subjects
become the object of fun the lessons are so much more
easily learned.
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Attachment
Philosophy
Many of you may have heard of the Reggio
Emilia's model, where children grow up together,
learning for years with the same teachers, in the same programs,with
many of the same children. Various topics and projects can
last weeks, or months or can be revisited years later at
a different level.
Similar to the Reggio community, the education
and the curriculum a French For Fun are
carefully planned for involving both parents and children,
connecting not only with the French culture but with the
local community in which our families live.
To the left are two photos of Janie
and Marina. Above, in kindergarten,they are participating
in the "Tour de Lafayette", a
parade sponsored by the city. Now in fourth grade (below),
the girls and their classmates began the school year by
studying the geography of France, pretending to be cyclists
in "Le Tour de France". Through
out the year they will stop in various reions.
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Show and Tell always de rigeur
at French For Fun children from 3 t0 5 years old become
"écureuil" (squirrel) "arbre"(tree)
and act out a famous song "Dans la forêt lointaine".
Not a word of English is ever spoken. |
Montgolfier Brothers
and
The Hiller Aviation Museum
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 Integrating
other disciplines into our curriculum has always been a
requirement at French For Fun. Here are some examples of
the content based units we shared with our students this
Fall:
On September 19th 1783, for the first
time in the world, three passengers take off in a hot air
balloon. The scene takes place in Versailles and the lucky
travelers are a rooster, a duck and a lamb.
Students age 7 to 9 studied about the Montgolfier brothers,
read stories like "un ballon dans le ciel", and
experimented with hot and cold air.
The highlight of the unit was the family field trip to
the Hiller Aviation Museum of San Carlos.
There the students learned that most terms used in aviation
are French...one more reason to learn French! |
Marina s'envole!
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Robert and Phillip sont pilotes
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Living
Degas  |
What do you get when awesome kids
become models for Edgar Degas?
A masterpiece of course! Props and costumes were made
by the children. The entire unit was conducted in French.
We hope many families will enjoy the exhibit of Degas sculptures
held at the Palace of the Legion d' Honneur in San Francisco,
for more information call (415) 863-3330 or visit their
website legionofhonor.org. The program will run thru January
4th 2004. |
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Above Moms n Tots are going
to the farm on Michel's tractor to meet the animals
Coccinelles and
Papillons painted a pot for "la fête
des mamans" and grew wheat grass, "du soleil
et de l'eau" is all we needed... Les mamans étaient
contentes!
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Grande Maternelle students
studied about Claude Monet and visited his jardin
in Giverny.
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Grande Maternelle students
also learned a very famous children's song "Dansons
la Capucine" and planted seeds. |
Above, the First Grade PM Immersion
students are learning how to read in French and
worked on various sounds. Here are examples of activities
which are very successful and fun!
Second grade Immersion students excel in
the National French Contest and receive
awards at Stanford University.
Melle Caroline's class of new students
is learning as much vocabulary as they can in two
hours a week. It works and it is fun!
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5th Graders
travel to West Africa, researched a country and will
present a short tale from L'Afrique Centrale
"Le Soleil et la Lune" |
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First Day of Spring
Each year, on the premier jour du Printemps
les enfants de la grande maternelle go on a hike around
the Lafayette Reservoir avec Madame Jolivet Johnson. |
It was great and beau et
chaud. |
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In the Grande Maternelle we also
love shopping. With their very own porte-monnaie
full of Euros, the children went to the "Boutique de
chapeaux."
Ava achéte un chapeau de cowboy et Audrey un chapeau
de Paille avec un ruban blanc. Très chic! |
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The First Graders went around the world singing
"J'ai dans mon pays..." realizing that even though
we are all different we are so similar. |
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All afternoon students are learning a welcome
song "Bienvenue" which some will perform
on stage at Stanford University for the
Distribution des Prix. It is a beautiful
song which we call "La chansons de la Paix" to
reassure the children during these troubled times. |
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