Click here to find the lyrics to the French Intro song. I will eventually post a video, so you can practice the hand gestures and tune as well!
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An interesting read about the possible growth of the French language. Check out the article below... The French are a proud bunch, especially when it comes to their mother tongue. So it must have been hard for them to take a backseat and watch English become the lingua franca of the 21st century. But revenge could be on the horizon: The language beloved by Parisian poets, Russian aristocrats and pretentious grad students is set to reclaim its title when it becomes the world’s most commonly spoken language by the year 2050, according to a study by Natixis, an investment bank. French is currently ranked sixth among world languages, after Mandarin Chinese, English, Spanish, Hindi and Arabic. But it is gaining speakers quickly and, the study reports, will be spoken by 750 million in 2050, up from 220 million today. A boom in these African states could bump the percentage of global French speakers from 3 percent to 8 percent by 2050. C’est possible? English enjoys an indisputable global popularity, and Mandarin has long been touted as the language of the future, given the size of China’s population and its growing economic power, but French has a demographic ace up its sleeve: French-speaking populations are growing faster than English- and Mandarin-speaking ones. Besides France and its best-known former colonies, Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria, the language of Molière and Manet is spoken in 28 other states — which happen to be some of world’s fastest-growing nations. In Africa, French is the official schooling language of countries with increasingly high fertility rates like Mali in the north, and Guinea, Chad and Democratic Republic of Congo in the sub-Saharan region.* A demographic boom in these African states could bump the world’s percentage of French speakers from 3 percent today to 8 percent by 2050. Meanwhile, China and many English-speaking countries are likely to experience a demographic slowdown, which could lead to an expected decline in the number of English speakers — from 8 percent to 3 percent of the world’s population. For Mandarin, a drop from 10 percent to 8 percent is anticipated. While this sounds like cause for celebration for Francophiles who might cringe at the notion of studying Mandarin, it’s not time to pop open the Dom Perignon quite yet. Some skeptics think the predictions are overstated. The study labels all the citizens of the states where French is the official language as “French speakers,” which is not strictly true. Countries like Belgium, for example, have more than one official language and, in some African nations, the tongue of the former colonial power is losing ground. Even in Algeria, only a third of the population can write in French. “The number of people who speak French continues to increase, and the projections are indeed impressive, but they do not take into account the coexistence of languages, which is the reality in many countries,” says Alexandre Wolff from the Observatory of the French Language. So while French is on the rise, it may be a while before it can challenge the hegemony of English or the growing appeal of Mandarin Chinese. Which makes it a good time to dust off your old French phrasebook — but don’t bid adieu to those Mandarin lessons just yet. *Correction: An earlier edition of this story incorrectly spelled the name of a former French colony, and listed a country that is not in Africa. Source If your parents are interested in meeting me, please let me know ahead of time so I can make arrangements between 6:30-7. I will be at Bear Creek Elementary from 6-6:30 or the whole hour if no arrangements are made at William Watson.
Please notify me as as soon as possible or e-mail me before Parent-Teacher Night on Thursday, Sept. 24th. Merci! I hope I don't have any Joeys in my French classes this year! Today celebrates the 22nd anniversary of the official recognition of French traditional bread...particularly, the infamous baguette. French food is a pretty big deal!
I would just like to say merci to all of you at Hillcrest because of your enthusiasm and love for learning, I re-ignited my own passion for learning and teaching French. I will be going to Quebec in the summer to study French and become a better teacher (follow my Instagram account for pictures) My time at Hillcrest was incroyable, fantastique, intéressant, drôle, et épique! There were great teaching moments, learning moments, a-ha moments, and even some questionable moments, but they were all unforgettable moments. Merci beaucoup tout le monde et I hope to see you all next year!
As for the Gr. 7s, it was a pleasure teaching you this year and I wish you the best of luck in high school and any future endeavours...I expect big things from all of you. Never lose your love of learning, including French =) Thank you Gr. 6/7s for working so hard to complete these music videos. It was a pleasure watching your groups brainstorm, organize, practice, and lip sync to the song. I know some groups weren't able to finish, but I appreciate the work and effort you put into your videos. I also know this was a stressful experience for some, but remember that this is a learning experience!
If you would like to watch your video or other divisions' videos, click below! Dans ce petit restaurant lip-dub music videos ****If you would like to add your music video to the collection Division 5-9 have been reviewing school objects and locations in French by playing the "Whisper Game." In this game, one student puts on headphones with loud music playing so they are unable to hear anything. Another student will say a sentence in French while standing in front of the first student. Then the student with headphones must try to read the other students' lips to figure out the sentence. For example, the second student might say un crayon est dans le corridor. This game is a great opportunity for the students to practice saying their vocab clearly and with proper pronunciation (otherwise the other student will not figure out the answer). On the other hand, it also gives the student, who is trying to guess the sentence, an opportunity to recall their vocab. By popular demand, I have posted the song that I used to "distract" the students while they are trying to read the other students' lips and recall the vocab. Click here to access my Google Drive with the songs for downloading.
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Welcome to Bear Creek's and William Watson's website for French with Madame Dy. This website is a resource to help you practice speaking French, a forum to ask questions, a reminder for new vocabulary and assignment due dates, and a place to encourage you to love the language.
Follow my instagram account to see the influence of French in all parts of life and to get daily inspiration en Français!