French Immersion Charcuterie Board

I didn’t ask for this. But other members of my cohort did, and gosh golly I am sure glad they did! What I thought was going to be a casual conversation around our curiosities of the french immersion program, turned into a delightful discussion around our experiences and inquiries, complemented with a delicious spread of cheese, crackers, fruit and chocolate. (I was sad I did not have any picture evidence, but its probably best for you readers)

I had forgotten paper, I had my pens. I felt like a dingus at the table, quickly jotting down notes on the notes app on my phone, oh the dread! Therefore, what I present to you in this blog, is a compilation of the resources and little nuggets Danica shared with us curious, french immersion folks.











How can we enable students to feel this burst of excitement when learning in a french-immersion context?!

One main consideration we all had was that French has to be lived, it cannot only be taught. This means that culture has to be present in the classroom, it has to be represented in the content that one is teaching. I recognize my privilege in coming from a francophone family as I grew up in a predominantly french environment, even if we are a linguistic minority living in an anglophone environment. The language comes naturally to me, and I acknowledge that this is not the case for everyone. Danica proposed teacher candidates (TC) a few methods of immersing themselves in the language. My favourite, and a tip from her father, is to read to yourself aloud, in french. Heck yes, I concur.

  • Daily five in french from TPT
  • Calendars arent really worth it in the classroom
  • Time for theatre is so crucial in your centers
  • Paul et Suzanne – Amazing series for teaching litterature, they was around when I was in kindergarten and I still see it in classrooms! Legit!
  • Six Cedars – It is a good idea to teach and learn about the animals before trying to incorporate their symbolism with respect to curricular competencies
  • FLO Franco – A french artist that Danica really enjoys!
  • Shauit – “Shauit is probably the only singer-songwriter to ingeniously mix reggae, dancehall and soul with Innu-aimun, his native language. ” Another Danica recommended artist!
  • Dr. Deborah MacNamara- What’s a kids best chance
  • Word Reference is your go to for translating
  • Create systems that are independent!!!!!!!