Our French Language Journey: A Podcast at Bilingual Kids Rock

in ,

Bonjour encore, mes amis! Just two weeks ago I shared with you my podcast with Marianna Du Bosq at Bilingual Avenue. (If you missed it, you can find it here on iTunes.) I enjoyed speaking with Marianna about what the journey has been like as I raise my children in non-native French, and I'm glad to hear that the podcast has been popular. 

Likewise, I was just as thrilled to record a podcast with Olena Centeno at Bilingual Kids Rock--and it's just been released this past week! My talk with Olena focuses more on the details and background of how I came to speak French with my children, how my family (and strangers) react to my French, and my journey as a language learner, parent, and teacher. I'm thrilled to link to my podcast with Olena for the first time here:

Read More

Beginning French Lesson Plan 2: Greetings, Geography, & Alphabet

in , ,

Last month I began teaching a beginning French class to a small group of upper elementary students. If you'd like to follow along on their language journey (or borrow lesson ideas!), here's the basic outline of what we did during our second and third classes. Keep in mind that this is only a once-per-week, 50 minute class, so we spend about twenty minutes or so reviewing and practicing what we've previously learned. (You can find lesson 1 here.)

Read More

Beginning French: First Lesson Plan for Ages 8-12

in , , ,

Last month I started teaching a beginning French class to a small group of upper elementary students in our homeschool co-op. (Most of my current students are around age 10.) Over the next two months I'll post my weekly lesson outlines here for teachers, parents, and those of you who'd like to learn or brush up on basic French skills. I lean heavily towards immersion and emphasize speech over writing, at least in beginning classes. Each class is 55 minutes and meets once per week for six weeks.

These lessons are designed for a small group of students with limited materials--we have no textbooks, workbooks, computer access, or video player in the classroom. We do use a CD player and mini-whiteboards. (You can learn how to make your own set of mini-whiteboards here.)

Read More

Upcoming Blog Topics & Free, Printable French Educational Worksheets

in ,

Bonjour, les amis! For me, blogging is a joy, enabling me to be more intentional as a parent and allowing me to promote French learning, but I'll admit that blogging often and consistently is becoming more of a struggle. Now that I'm in my third trimester of pregnancy, I just can't give up as much sleep as I used to in order to write. These days, I aim to write twice per week, but it may not happen as I'm hoping it will. Merci pour votre patience--I appreciate your staying with me through my less frequent times of writing.

Nonetheless, I have several upcoming posts I look forward to sharing over time: my reflections on Pamela Druckerman's Bringing Up Bébé (as I mentioned in this post), thoughts on spanking (so controversial!), my daughter's experience since starting violin lessons at age four, and a review of CNED, the French distance education subscription service (assuming I sign up for it soon).

Read More

Reusable French Chore Chart for Preschool & Early Childhood

in , , ,

Last June I made my children a simple reusable chore chart in French. With a baby on the way (due in January), I wanted my older two children to develop a habit of following morning and evening routines somewhat independently. I also planned to use the chart as the basis for a small monetary allowance. Here's how I created the chart and how it's worked in our family.

Read More

Kindergarten Homeschool in French: Beginning Writing & Reading

in , ,

We officially started homeschooling last week, though in a sense we've been homeschooling in a low-key way for years. My homeschooling style leans towards the philosophies of Charlotte Mason (emphasizing the outdoors & quality books), unschooling (seizing opportunities for learning from daily life & pursuing current interests), and Montessori (using natural materials and independent play for learning), but the Type A parent in me also needs a basic morning schedule and some simple learning goals each day.

My five-year-old daughter is active and social, yet she also loves workbooks and writing. When looking for handwriting curriculum for her, I was happy to find that the company Handwriting Without Tears publishes French versions of their handwriting workbooks (Spanish ones too!). The Kindergarten level book starts with capital letters, moves to digits (1-10), and ends with lowercase letters, with some simple French words to copy towards the end.

Read More

Daily Audio Bible: French, Spanish, & Other Languages

in , , ,

Mes amis, I'm excited to tell you about the Daily Audio Bible and how you can hear the Bible read aloud in French (or Spanish, English, Japanese, Arabic, Portuguese, or Mandarin). I've tried French audio Bible apps in the past, but the apps themselves weren't very user-friendly. Here's what's different about the Daily Audio Bible and five reasons why I appreciate it:

Read More

Summer Children's Activities for Practicing French at Home

in , ,

Does it feel like summer to you yet? It's so close here--we have friends visiting from out-of-state, and this is my husband's last week of teaching before his summer break. I've been thinking of simple summer activities that we can do to keep French integral to our days since my family will be spending more time together and we will be conversing more in English (my husband doesn't speak French). Here are my suggestions for simple children's activities for summer fun in French (and most of them can be used to practice another language as well):

Read More