Le Français Avec Madame Harris: September 2014

Bienvenue! Welcome to Madame Harris's website!

I am so excited to return to Archway Arete and to continue developing our French program! I will be working with our youngest students in kindergarten and first grade. Each student will have French class twice per week, for forty minutes each class. Classes will be taught in the immersion method. Proven effective, children quickly become accustomed to French sounds and words, and will be engaged in fun activities that make the new language feel natural. These include songs, games, coloring, stories, skits, and TPR (Total Physical Response--physical imitation and response to verbal commands.) The goals of the French program at Archway Arete are that the students become comfortable with and enjoy learning another language; build a foundation of phrases, vocabulary, and simple grammar, which will help them in their future language studies; and appreciate the cultures of France and the French-speaking world. The topics we will cover this year include greetings and expressions of courtesy, school, colors, numbers, the family, animals, adjectives, the calendar, weather, the house, and verbal commands. I look forward to introducing your students to the world of French! Please feel free to contact me with any questions that might arise throughout the year.

NOTES ABOUT PRONUNCIATION:

I will often put the pronunciation of vocabulary words in parentheses after the word. Please follow these notes to help you:

* indicates a nasal sound--hold your nose while saying it to practice the sound.
^ indicates a tight U sound--say the letter E while puckering your lips to get the sound.
ZH indicates a soft J sound, as in Jacques or the S in measure.
The French R is in the throat, almost as if gargling, but softer.

FIRST GRADE FRENCH CURRICULUM
The following units are based on the new curriculum, Les Loustics

Unit 1: “Bonjour” (August-September)
Greetings and taking leave, Classroom commands, Saying one’s age, Numbers to 12 (+), Shapes, Colors, Days of the Week

Unit 2: “Vive l’École” (October-December)
Naming school objects, Numbers to 20 (+), the Possessive adjectives MY and YOUR, Months of the year, Indicating preferred activities, the Alphabet

Unit 3: “La Famille LeGrand” (January-March)
Introduce one’s family and pets, Say where one lives, Name objects of one’s bedroom

Unit 4: “In Shape?” (April-May)
Parts of the Body, Emotions, Facial Features, Say what hurts

KINDERGARTEN FRENCH CURRICULUM

August-September
Greetings, Expressions of Courtesy, Classroom Objects, Numbers to 7, Colors (Ongoing), Classroom Commands and Action Verbs (Ongoing)
Songs: “Bonjour Madame,” “Violette à Bicyclette”

September-October
Parts of the Body, Days of the Week, Numbers to 10
Songs:
“Jean Petit Qui Danse,” “Les Deux Pieds Font,” “Tête, Épaules, Genoux, et Pieds” (“Alouette”)

November-December
Months, Seasons, Weather, Numbers to 20
Songs: “Tu Chanteras,” “La Neige Tombe”

January-February
The Alphabet, the Family, the House
Songs: “A-B-C-D,” “Frère Jacques,”

March
Food, Preferences
Songs: “1-2-3, J’irai dans les Bois”

April-May
Animals, Simple Adjectives, (Prepositions)
Songs:
“Saute la Petite Grenouille,” “Sur le Pont d’Avignon,” “Bisous d’Esquimau”

Stories—These are repeated during the year, and include reinforcing activities.
Le Petit Chaperon Rouge (Little Red Riding Hood)
Les Trois Petits Cochons (The Three Little Pigs)

Monday, September 29, 2014

Students have been enjoying learning the parts of the body by playing Simon Says (Jacques a dit), by singing "Tête, épaules, genoux et pieds" (Head, shoulders, knees and toes), and by coloring a robot. This week they will enjoy making a face on the board with magnetic parts, draw the face and the body on individual white boards, and draw their own self-portrait.

Students are also learning the numbers 11 through 15 and the days of the week.

Vocabulary to practice:

See last post for parts of the body in "Head, shoulders, knees and toes" as well as the days of the week.

la main (hand), le bras (arm), la jambe (leg), le dos (back)

11 (onze), 12 (douze), 13 (treize), 14 (quatorze), 15 (quinze)

The French Words of the Day for this week are:

Mars	March
Avril	April
Mai	May
Juin	June
Juillet	July

Monday, September 22, 2014

The Words of the Day for this week:

9/22
Dimanche	Sunday
Un an	A year
Un mois	A month
Janvier	January
Février	February

The first graders have begun learning the days of the week and the parts of the body. Kindergarten will begin in 1-2 weeks. We will learn several songs to help them learn this new vocabulary. The first two are:

1--Quels sont les jours de la semaine? (What are the days of the week?) -- Sing 2 X

      lundi (Monday), mardi (Tuesday), mercredi (Wednesday), jeudi (Thursday), vendredi (Friday)
      samedi (Saturday) et dimanche (and Sunday)

Note: Days and months are NOT capitalized in French!

2--Tête, épaules, genoux, et pieds, genoux et pieds  (Head, shoulders, knees and toes) -- Sing 2 X

     J'ai deux yeux, un nez (I have two eyes, a nose)
     Une bouche, et deux oreilles (a mouth and two ears)

     Tête, épaules, genoux et pieds, genoux et pieds!

Monday, September 15, 2014

The French Words of the Day for this week are:

9/15
Mardi	Tuesday
Mercredi	Wednesday
Jeudi	Thursday
Vendredi	Friday
Samedi	Saturday

Students have added two new words/expressions to their responses to "Comment ça va? (How are you?)": merci, et toi? (thank you, and you?) and fatigué (tired). Many have surprised me by remembering the phrases "mal à la tête (headache), mal à la gorge (sore throat), and mal au ventre (tummy ache)." We have also added several more action verbs to our TPR movement: Dormez! (sleep), Réveillez-vous! (wake up), Volez! (fly), Pleurez! (cry), Riez! (laugh), Dessinez! (draw) For special Wednesday this week, students will enjoy Goldilocks and the Three Bears and play "Hot and Cold."

Monday, September 8, 2014

Les Mots du Jour (Words of the Day) through this week:

9/1
La science	Science
Le langage	Language
Les beaux arts	Fine Arts
La musique	Music
9/8
La gymnastique	Gym class / PE
Le déjeuner	Lunch
Une semaine	A week
Un jour	A day

Entering the fifth week of French class, students have achieved wonderful mastery of the classroom objects and can now count up to ten! They are improving in their comprehension of many colors and can demonstrate many action verbs as well. Have them teach you how to count and practice counting at home! They will have a test on the classroom objects this week and our next unit will be days of the week and parts of the body. Finally, ask students to sing "Bonjour Madame" and "Violette à bicyclette"for you!

BIO

My love of all things French began in the sixth grade when my teacher showed the classic film, The Red Balloon. The quaint French towns with their cobblestone streets and inviting corner shops, along with the beauty of the French language had me captivated. Thus began my ten-year study of French language, literature, and history, culminating with a B.A. in French from
UCLA.
I began my career at a private school in California, teaching grades kindergarten through high school. After a pause in teaching to raise my children, I held several tutoring and T.A. positions, including one in a French-immersion school in Minnesota, assisting children in reading and math, and at Dobson Academy in the Special Ed/Resource Department. Before coming to Archway Arete, I taught high school French at Arizona School for the Arts in Phoenix.
I am very excited to work with the youngest students once again, experiencing the joy of little ones speaking a new language
without inhibition!