An Interview with Marie Gervais of Marygold Books on eBay

April 06, 2015 by Michele Cherie in French Resources, Learning Resources, Teaching French

If you've ever searched eBay for children's books in French, you have probably come across titles listed by Marygoldbooks. Marie Gervais is the seller behind that handle, and she's been selling children's books in French on eBay since 2002. She's sold over 6,000 items and yet she has virtually perfect feedback ratings from buyers. Want to know where she finds all those French books? Keep reading--here's my interview with Marie in English along with her French responses:

Catching Up: le premier avril

April 01, 2015 by Michele Cherie in French Culture, French Resources, Teaching French

Bonjour les amis! I've missed you! Je m'excuse--I'm sorry I didn't write more last month. I've been planning our summer séjour in France, with a 5-day stopover in another country on the way (any guesses as to which country? I'll give you a few hints as our departure approaches!).

Today is le premier avril (April 1st). In France and some francophone countries (as well as Italy), today is known as April fish day because children try to tape paper fish on the backs of unsuspecting people. When their prank is discovered, they cry, "Poisson d'avril!" (April fish!) If you'd like to know more about April Fool's Day in France, Geraldine from Comme Une Française has made a brief video in English about it:

A Favorite Cultural Film Documentary Series: Families of the World

February 26, 2015 by Michele Cherie in Cultural Reflections, Education, French Resources, Learning Resources, Teaching French

Media is a fantastic way to supplement language learning--my children and I love the French children's books we borrow from Les Petits Livres, and I often stream French children's music from Spotify radio, but I rarely turn to movies or film clips because they're such a passive way of learning. However, there are a few educational films that I've appreciated for what they've taught my children about the world's languages and cultures. Here's the first of the film resources that I'd like to share with you:

ACTFL 2014 Conference Summary: Language Learning Links

December 02, 2014 by Michele Cherie in French Language Learning, French Resources, Learning Resources, Teaching French

Les amis, I've been wanting to tell you about the ACTFL Conference that took place in San Antonio, Texas, just over a week ago. ACTFL is the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages; their annual conference is oriented towards K-12 teachers of French, Spanish, Mandarin, Arabic, Japanese, German, and Italian. This year's conference was the second largest--there were well over 6,000 teachers in attendance!

Here are my favorite aspects of the conference:

Our First Autumn Homeschooling: Rhythms & Realities

November 20, 2014 by Michele Cherie in Education, French Resources, Learning Resources, Reflections on Parenting

Winter doesn't officially arrive here in Oregon until next month, but strangely, we've already had our first light snowfall and an ice storm, so it feels as though autumn is already past. In addition, my daughter has started learning a Christmas song on violin, so I've been reflecting on how our first autumn of homeschooling went now that we're transitioning into winter.

Beginning French Lesson 4: Numbers & Calendars

November 13, 2014 by Michele Cherie in French Language Learning, French Resources, Teaching French

This beginning French lesson, the fourth in a series of seven, helps students review basic numbers and gain familiarity with vocabulary for the days and months. Allons-y! Let's go! (Here are links to previous lessons one, two, and three.)

Lesson 4 Goals:

Review French names of numbers 1-21; gain familiarity with numbers through 79
Learn a song featuring the days of the week in French; gain familiarity with the 12 months

Our French Language Journey: A Podcast at Bilingual Kids Rock

November 06, 2014 by Michele Cherie in French Resources, French Language Learning

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:

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

October 24, 2014 by Michele Cherie in French Language Learning, Teaching French, French Resources

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.)