Last Class

Today was our last day with the girls. It was pretty fun. Their homework from last week was to think of phrases that they wanted to say in french. They came up with quite a bit. We went over the body parts again so they were able to play twister. I think they had fun. We then sang a little. After, we ate french food which the girls seemed to enjoy. There was truffles, madeleines, cheeses, Nutella, a baguette, croissants and joseph brought a delicious african dish and cake. The girls were handed certificates and their cds that they got to take home. Today was very easy and laid back. It was a good way to end the program. The girls have been so wonderful throughout the weeks and I will miss them. I will also miss my group members: Hillary, Joseph, and Michael. We make a great team! This was a great experience for me. I hope to do it again in the fall.

Au Revoir!

March 16, 2010

For this class, we went over food vocabulary. Joseph started out with the meals of the day and then asking what time the girls usually ate breakfast, lunch, and dinner. They had to say what time they ate these meals in french which was a review of what they had learned before. Hillary and I covered the names of fruits, veggies, and other foods. The girls were writing everything down. We actually had to pause a few times because we were going to fast for them. I was going to also teach them how to say different utensils in french, but we ran out of time. I personally had a little trouble this week with pronouncing the words, but luckily, Joseph was able to help with that which I really appreciated.

Last week the girls were assigned homework in which they had to find something that had to do with french culture. Most of them were able to find something and bring it to class. This week their homework is to think of a phrase or something they would like to know how to say in french.

Next week is our last week. One of the girls said that they really liked this class and didn't want it to end. It was so nice to hear that. I really wanted the kids to enjoy our time with us and it was very reassuring to hear that from them. I look forward to next week. We will have french food for them, and they will receive certificates with their names on them. It will be like a little celebration. It will be fun and a nice way to end the program.

March 9, 2010

This week we went over different countries that speak french and some clothing vocabulary. Joseph started off showing the students a map of the different countries that speak french. The kids were able to see what parts of the world speak french. Joseph was able to show us what country he is from, and the girls seemed very interested. Mike also went over some countries names in french. The girls were able to say United States in french.

Hillary and I covered basic clothing vocab in french. We showed them pictures of clothes and said the french word for them. They were given a worksheet where they filled in blanks with the correct word. They actually did very well. We wanted to have some fun with this so Hillary and I brought in some clothes like hats, scarfs, etc. The girls choose what they wanted to wear and we had a fashion show. The girls, one by one, were able to say what they were wearing. Joseph was also part of the fashion show. He brought in some clothes from his country and showed them to the class.

I think this week went well. We were able to go over our topics without any hassle. I think the girls really enjoyed the fashion show and had fun with it.

March 2, 2010

This week we focused on numbers, time, and seasons. Hillary started us out with going over numbers 1-20. After that, the kids were taught how to tell time in french. They got the hang of it pretty quick, and they were able to say what time it was when Hillary asked them. We then went into the seasons. Each of us had to teach one season and incorporate activities and holidays. The students were able to say what activities they liked to do in each season.

I think this week went well. Once again, the students behaved very well. I was surprised how fast time went by. I think next week we should maybe come up with some activities for the kids.

February 23, 2010

This week we covered members of the family, activities, days of the week, and animals. Though it had been two weeks since our last meeting, the kids still remembered a bit of what they learned last time which was very good. Unfortunately, one of our students has moved. This leaves us with only four girls to teach.

Joseph started off with teaching members of the family. He did a good job of covering the vocab. After going over the words a few times, the girls were able to answer questions on how to say family members in french. He also pointed out the similarity of french and english words and assured them that french is easy. I think this makes the students more comfortable with the french language.

Mike then taught activities in french and introduced verbs such as aimer(to like) and jouer(to play). The students were able to say what they enjoyed doing in french like swiming or coloring. He also showed them how to say the days of the week.

Hillary and I taught animals together. We hid beenie babies throughout the classroom. The girls worked in pairs to try and find the animals on their lists. I think they had fun doing this. After they finished finding animals, they sat down, and we showed them pictures of animals and the the word for them in french. We quized them to see if they could name the animal in french, and surprisingly, despite how quickly we had covered the vocab(we were running out of time), they were able to say the names of the animals. I was very impressed.

I think this week was a success. I enjoyed teaching, and I really think the kids are learning from this.

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

For the first day of class, we started with the alphabet and went over it several times, so the students could hear how letters are pronounced in french. After that, we went over introductions such as "Bonjour", and "Je m'appelle ____". The students colored and wrote these phrases on the cover of their alphabet books. They also learned colors and were able to say their favorite one. We went over the words for hands and feet so the students could play a game of Twister using a bit of the french vocabulary they just learned.

The students were very well behaved. Several of them seemed like they were getting the hang of it. However, I felt there were times they started to get bored. I hope my group and I can come up with ways to keep them interested, because I want the students to enjoy our time together. I don't want them to feel that they're just stuck at school for another hour. For the next class, I would like to discuss with my fellow group members step by step how we will be teaching. I thought transitioning from the different topics we were teaching was somewhat unorganized.

Overall, I'd say we're off to a good start. I look forward to next week.

Test Post: 6 topics

6 Topics in French:
1. Numbers
2. Colors
3. Clothes
4. Face/Body Parts
5. Family Members
6. Food and Meals