During the summer of 2023, I was high on signing up my now-oldest, then-only son for activities. As it was an especially hot summer, I was conscientious about keeping him inside during peak sun hours. It was and still is important to keep him busy sans screens, so structured activities were key. While I don’t believe we will find him to be gifted in all areas – music, athletics, academics – I believe it is my responsibility as a mom to put as many options in front of him and pay attention to what he is drawn to and enjoys, and allow him to lean into those options.
While he was not one hundred percent jazzed with French that first summer, we signed him up for a second and due to his enthusiasm this time around, kept him enrolled into the school year. We chalk up his enjoyment this second time around to the fact that between the summer of 2023 and 2024, he has made the biggest developmental strides in verbal communication. Now not only is he chatty in his native tongue, but also French.
We practice French with him on the car rides to and from preschool, so much so that my husband had picked it up and employed it, most recently on a work trip to Chad. What started as an enrichment for my oldest, has turned into an activity for the entire family.
classes
My son takes classes at Alliance Française, an international organization that promotes the French culture and language. There are chapters all around the world, in every continent except for Antartica. Chapters in the United States tend to be in larger cities.
Alliance Française provides French language lessons for a variety of ages and abilities. In the small classrooms, there are always a few children with both no foreign language experience and with family members who speak the language at home. The class addresses a variety of abilities.
Petite Garçon took these French classes last summer; it did not particularly take. I think, while I personally loved the teacher and she even babysat for our family during my last pregnancy, the combination of the teacher and the lack of requirement of parents in the classroom did not make the class the most engaging experience. Since then, a new teacher started (the previously one moved back to France) and requested that parents not only sit in but participate along with their little one. I am happy to do so and absorb the lessons. I see it as a two-for-one and another way to get some quality time with Petite Garçon.
flash cards
These are the flash cards that Petite Garçon’s French teacher uses. I bought a set to use at home and in the car on the way to school in the mornings. He was thrilled to break open set when it arrived on our doorstop. We immediately split the stack up into words he knows and words he does not yet know.
It is just a matter of time until all the cards are in the former.
apps
Gus on the Go was the first app I procured for Petit Garçon. My son was initially obsessed with it; however, I found that the app (which is also available for Spanish, Greek, and Hebrew learners) was fairly limited in terms of subject matter. Petit Garçon ran through the app and grew bored.
Study Cat is, hands down, Petit Garçon’s favorite French study app. It features several groups of games, each group focusing on a different vocabulary element of language. For example: numbers, colors, animals, parts of the body, etc. Each set of games are available in easy, medium, and difficult settings. There are three different levels to Study Cat, so as language skills progress, the app can provide a challenge. In addition to French, Study Cat also offers English, Spanish, Chinese, and German options.
youtube
Petite Garçon recently requested a book to help him learn his French alphabet. He had recognized that as the only student who does not hear French at home, he was a bit behind and needed a resource to help him catch up. My husband and I decided that rather than a book, YouTube might be the best resource as neither of us speak French.
We like these two YouTube resources:
