Bienvenue à la classe de français 1!

About Me: After earning a B.A. from the University of Arizona and a MSW from ArizonaStateUniversity, I discovered that I love teaching. As a result, I hold secondary certificates to teach French, English, and Psychology. I studied French while living in Angers, France, in 1993-94, and continued advanced course work at the U of A in Francophone culture, grammar and structure, phonetics and second language acquisition skills. I simply adore the French language and am thrilled to be introducing you to this vibrant and fun language that is used daily by people living all over the globe. Allons-y!

Contacting Me:

2475 W. Naranja Drive

Room A216

Tucson, AZ 85742

Email:

Phone: (520) 407-4132

Students: I always have time to meet with you – you need only to ask! I am available before and after school, during conference periods and by appointment. I want you to have a fantastic year; my door is always open to you.

Parents: I am happy to speak with parents about any questions or concerns. Please feel free to contact me by email or phone as noted above at any time and I promise to contact you promptly.

Course Description:

The purpose of this class is to help students build useful and practical skills to confidently conduct a three to five minute impromptu conversation in French by the end of this school year. To ensure students’ satisfactory foundation in basic foreign language arts skills, this course is an introduction to basic French grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, verb study and culture. This course focuses on the specific performance objectives articulated by Arizona State Department of Education (available upon request or by visiting course material will be presented in scaffolded instructional sequences specifically designed to achieve mastery of the Arizona Foreign Language Arts Content Standards.

Further, in this course, students will focus upon speaking, listening comprehension, writing, reading and translation. This class constantly builds upon itself thus it is critically important that students attend class every day.

Course Overview:

SEMESTRE 1

Leçonspréliminaires: French greetings and introductions; numbers 1-30; telling time; dates; weather; the seasons

Chapitre 1: Description of self and friends; addressing friends, family members and others; asking or telling who someone is/where they are from; the verb ‘être’ (‘to be’)

Chapitre 2: Description of people; description of every day objects; discussion of school subjects and the expression of personal opinions relating to those topics; speaking to people formally and informally

Chapitre 3: Discussing your school day (-er verbs); activities in which you and your friends participate after school; identifying and shopping for school supplies; telling what you and others do NOT like to do; discussion of the French educational system

Culture Fair

Chapitre 4: (la première partie) Discussing your family; telling your age/asking other people their age; telling what belongs to you and others using the verb ‘avoir’ (‘to have’); discussion about families and homes in La Francophonie

SEMESTRE 2

Chapitre 4: (la deuxième partie) Describing your home and neighborhood

Chapitre 5: Ordering food and beverages at a cafe or restaurant; telling where you and others go and discussing what you will be doing there using the verb ‘aller’ (‘to go’); giving locations; comparing eating habits in the U.S. to those in La Francophonie

Mardi Gras

Chapitre 6: Identifying more foods; shopping for food; telling what you and others are doing; asking for food quantities; discussing what you and others do NOT have; telling what you and others are able to do using the verb ‘pouvoir’ (‘to be able/can’) and want to do using the verb ‘vouloir’ (‘to want’); discussion about French food shopping customs

Weather; Question Formulation; Animals

Chapitre 7: Identifying and describing articles of clothing; expressing color and size preferences; shopping for clothing; Fashion Show Performance Project; Six Magical Irregular Verbs (mettre, voir, croire, dire, lire, écrire)

Commands; -Re Verbs; -Ir Verbs

Assessment and Grading:

Percentage Letter Grade

90 – 100=A

80 – 89=B

70 – 79=C

60 – 69=D

59 and Below=F

**Rounding – Grades are calculated to a tenth of a percentage point (ex: 98.3%). Grades with 0.5% or higher are rounded to the next percentage point. This means that an 89.5% becomes a 90% and therefore an A grade, but an 89.4% remains a B.

Students with a current grade of 69% or below are required to come to tutoring during conference period for additional support.

Grades are based on a combination of:

►Daily and enthusiastic in-class participation

► Written classwork, completed daily, saved and ORGANIZED in a three ring binder and then turned in before each quiz

► Oral presentations and performances

► Written quizzes

► Special Projects as assigned

►A common final exam, given at the end of each semester to all French 1 students

It is my expectation that all students will spend at least 15 minutes every evening reviewing the material presented in that day’s class. Constant review of new material CEMENTS it into place in the mind and promotes fluency. Practice, Practice, Practice! Review, Review, Review! To that end, all students should develop and maintain a set of flashcards to which they are expected to add each new vocabulary word as covered in class. Students should bring their flashcards to class daily as well as review their flashcards nightly.

Required Course Materials:

1. A three-ring binder with distinctly tabbed sections to keep allwork. You are required to keep all of your work and must bring that binder to each class meeting. Student notebooks will be checked for completeness periodically throughout the quarterfor a grade.

2. Student Planner.All students will practice organizational skills that will be useful throughout their academic career. Students are required to use a planner/organizer on a daily basis to keep track of upcoming assignments. Students may not use cell phones (or any other electronic device) with a calendar feature during class meetings.Write it down!

3. Loose leaf paper, college rule. Please bring paper with you to EVERY class meeting; you will need it.

4. At least 800 3x5 index cards, which will be used to make flashcards. You may use a ring or spiral bound index card books, as you prefer, to keep your flashcards organized by chapter. You must bring your flashcards to ALL class meetings.

5. Pencils! In this class, you will make many mistakes as you learn and that is a GREAT and GLORIOUS thing. I expect that you will neatly correct your mistakes when you make them, which can really only be accomplished by using pencils. I check, for points, to make certain that you self-correct mistakes in your class work. Please write clearly and legibly, skipping spaces where appropriate. You will spend your time, energy and effort to create excellent work but all of that is for naught if I am unable to read it. If I cannot read your work, it will be returned to you without a grade.

5. Required course text available in the bookstore:Bon Voyage! Glencoe French 1

Optional Course Materials:

1. I STRONGLY suggest that all students enrolled in this class purchase a thorough French-English dictionary and bring it to class daily. At the very minimum, this book should be kept at home and used regularly. This is one of the very best investments a foreign language student can make.

Need help?

GENERAL CLASS PROCEDURES

Class Rules:

1. KINDNESS IS KING AND QUEEN!

2. BE PREPARED!

3. BE BOLD, BRAVE AND CURIOUS!

4. PARTICIPATE ACTIVELY EVERY DAY!(No zombies!)

5. YES, YOU CAN SAY THAT WORD! TRY AND TRY AGAIN!

6. NO IN CLASS CELL PHONE USE AT ANY TIME.

While in class, students are expected to:

  1. Bring a cheerful and enthusiastic attitude to class daily.
  2. Participate fully in each activity, always providing their best effort.
  3. Make note of any upcoming assignments by checking the calendar board at the front of the room daily and then completing work to meet deadlines in a timely way.
  4. Stay organized throughout the year.
  5. Be polite, cordial and courteous to their teacher and their classmates every day.

Class Policies:

  1. Absences –It is the student’s responsibility to see me, the class calendar, and other students for all assignments and information missed during an absence. Students will have two days after their return from their excused absence to make up any missed work. If you have an extended absence, you should call or e-mail me to have work picked up for you at the office. In the case of an extended absence, see me about deadlines. Please be aware of the official school attendance policy, which states that students will be placed on an attendance contract after five absences and note that this policy is followed in my class. Quiz and test make-ups will be held during the conference periodfollowing the absence only.All class work will be checked for completion, which means that even if you are absent, you are expected to add that information to your notes as you will be graded accordingly.
  2. Tardies – BE ON TIME or come with a pass.

Tardy 1 & 2 = Warning Tardy 3 = Phone Call homeand lunch detention with me

Tardy 4 = Office Referral

  • Note that daily bellwork will start the first five minutes of every class. We correct this work in class every day and it is used to help review concepts learned the previous day. Bell work also serves as your study guide, to be used as you prepare for each quiz and test in this class. Don’t miss out on this valuable tool; be on time.
  1. Late Work: I have a NO LATE WORK POLICY!!!!This is for your own good. 
  • COME TALK TO ME BEFOREHAND! (Clarification: BEFOREHAND DOES NOT MEAN on the due date, nor at the beginning, middle, or end of class on the due date, nor during lunch on the due date, nor after school on the due date, but, at minimum,the day before!!!) I am a flexible teacher who understands that life happens! IF YOU SPEAK TO ME ABOUT AN ASSIGNMENT BEFOREHAND, we may be able to work something out together and you can earn full credit! You must advocate for yourself in my class; this is a useful skill in high school and beyond. Otherwise, late assignments will be accepted the following day for half credit only.
  1. THE BELL DOES NOT DISMISS THE CLASS, I DISMISS THE CLASS. Kindly wait patiently in your seat until I have dismissed the class. Crucial things often occur in the last few moments of class, which you will miss if you are busy packing up your belongings. I promise that I will release the class in a timely way so that you will have more than enough time to arrive, punctually, to your next class.
  1. Cell Phones and I-Pods. I have an ABSOLUTE ZERO-TOLERANCE policy on Cell Phones and I-Pods. If I see it orhear it, I will keep it until AFTER 7th Period. Please, please, please turn off your phone and all other electronic devices and put them away before you enter the classroom. You will only receive one warning about this policy. If you choose to disregard that warning, I will confiscate your electronic device until the end of the school day and keep it in a locked cabinet until that time. Upon the third offense, you will bring your parent with you to retrieve your electronic device.
  1. Arrive prepared. This includes taking care of your needs beforeclass. My classroom is conveniently located quite close to the restroom; make sure that you use it before class. Our time together is valuable and you need to be in class to take advantage of it. One student at a time will be allowed to sign out to leave the room to use the restroom pass on an as needed basis.
  1. Plagiarism / Cheating
  1. Your original thoughts are always more creative, intelligent, and interesting than someone else’s! I want to know what *YOU* think!
  2. If you’re having trouble with an assignment, come and talk with me. Please do not wait until the absolute last minute to have that conversation. I am here to help but, unfortunately, I have not yet developed any mind reading abilities.
  3. Plagiarism is theft, plain and simple. If you do it, you’ll get a phone call home, and a non-negotiable zero for the assignment. If you do it again, we will repeat the above procedure and you will receive an administrative referral. Cooperative work is fine, copying is not. Copying from someone else IS plagiarism.
  4. While we will often work together in class to discuss ideas and upcoming projects/assignments, you may not split any assignment amongst your classmates. Collaboration is wonderful and encouraged. Direct copying of information is absolutely forbidden and constitutes cheating. While it may seem like an efficient thing to do, it is still considered cheating. Don’t be a sheep; think for yourself! Do your own work!
  5. Unless SPECIFICALLY instructed to do so, do NOT use an online translator to complete your work. They do not work in the way that you imagine and you only end up creating strange sounding nonsense. Do your own work; it is the ONLY way to learn the material. Use of an online translator without permission constitutes cheating and, when discovered, will result in the grade of ZERO and a phone call home.

A Bit of Strategic Advice:Communication is critical to your success in this class. This syllabus thus begins the ongoing conversations that we (students, parents and me) will have as this year unfolds. You are required to take this document home and review it with your parent or guardian by the date specified. Please, then, detach it, sign it, and return it to me. Be sure to file the rest of it in your required notebook, as we will be referring to it throughout the year.

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