WORLD LANGUAGES

Graduation Requirement: None, but 2+ years of the same language is required for admission to some 4-year colleges.

5200 French 1 (Novice Low - Novice Mid) 1 credit

The first year of French emphasizes the acquisition of vocabulary and expressions that pertain to self, family, school, weather, preferences, food shopping, restaurants, and daily activities, and using these in writing and speaking tasks. The verb work for level one focuses on the present, the imperative, and the progressive tenses, with a basic introduction to the past and the future. Attention is given to the gender of nouns and agreement with adjectives, everyday expressions, and sentence structure. Students work on comprehension of the spoken and written word through reading, aural understanding, dictation, conversations, and presentations. They will learn about Paris and its monuments, museums, and famous sites, how to navigate the Métro, about regions and other cities of France, as well as other Francophone regions and cities. Students will practice acquiring proper pronunciation and intonation and further their French language practice through varied activities, such as role-play, paired work, dialogues, and telling short stories. We will use the “T’es branché?” textbook series with supplementary materials, authentic texts and films, the “French in Action” series, and follow the National World Language Standards from ACTFL (American Council of Teachers of Foreign Languages) for presentational, interpersonal and interpretive communication, and cultural understanding.

Prerequisite: None

5210 French 2 (Novice Mid - Novice High) 1 credit

The second year of French provides an opportunity for students to improve their French 1 skills. They will be encouraged to speak as much French as possible. The course emphasizes the acquisition of vocabulary and expressions that pertain to the classroom, everyday life, travel, shopping, leisure activities, food and meals, clothing, and meeting new friends. The verb work for level two consists of gaining a familiarity with simple and compound tenses covering the present, the past, and the future. Short, authentic texts, songs, poems, and films will provide context for developing narration skills in writing and speaking. The cultural focus is France and Quebec, along with an introduction to the French experience of World War II, the Occupation, D-Day, and the Holocaust. Students will practice speaking and writing in the target language through re-telling and summarizing stories, creating dialogues, engaging in role-play and paired work, and preparing and giving short presentations. There will be an opportunity to engage in a year-long exchange of email and postal pen pal letters with student peers in France. We will use the “T’es branché?” textbook series with supplementary materials, and follow the National World Language Standards from ACTFL (American Council of Teachers of Foreign Languages) for presentational, interpersonal and interpretive communication, and cultural understanding.

Prerequisite: successfully passing the French “placement test” given by the LRMS teacher and/or French 1

5220 French 3 (Intermediate Low - Intermediate Mid) 1 credit

The third year of French focuses on speaking, reading, listening, and writing. The class is conducted mostly in French. The students will speak spontaneously in French, discuss as a group, as well as prepare and make presentations. They will write compositions of 2-3 paragraphs in length, and work on improving their narration skills as they recount personal stories and summarize from their readings or from films. Previously learned grammar will be reviewed. The course emphasizes the acquisition of more extensive vocabulary, common expressions, and getting comfortable with most of the major verb tenses. Verb work for this level includes a review of the present and past tenses, the study of the future and conditional tenses, along with “si” clauses, and the use of the passé simple in a literary context. Several readings from authentic sources, French films, and videos will be used as a basis for class discussions, presentations, and writing. The cultural focus is the French-speaking world and topics relating to France, World War I, and the European Union. Students will practice their French through the study of literature, current events, poetry, song, and Impressionist art. There will be an opportunity to engage in a year-long exchange of email and postal pen pal letters with student peers in France. We will follow the National World Language Standards from ACTFL (American Council of Teachers of Foreign Languages) for presentational, interpersonal, and interpretive communication, and cultural understanding. Honors credit is available.

Prerequisites: French 1 and 2

5230 French 4 (Intermediate Mid - Intermediate High) 1 credit

The fourth year of French provides an opportunity for students to learn and practice advanced grammatical notions, master the 11 basic verb tenses (including subjunctive), improve their aural and reading comprehension, along with developing stronger writing and speaking skills. Students will explore French culture, French history from 1870 to the present, the European Union, current events, and the language of the working, business world. Students will work to improve their ability to express abstract ideas, speak and write spontaneously, summarize, and narrate as they study authentic texts of French literature, watch films, and explore relevant internet sites. The class is conducted entirely in French. Current topics concerning the environment, pollution, racism, nationalism and immigration will be discussed. Students will read the story “L’homme qui plantait des arbres” by Jean Giono, along with watching a short film of the story. There will be an opportunity to engage in a year-long exchange of email and postal pen pal letters with student peers in France. We will follow the National World Language Standards from ACTFL (American Council of Teachers of Foreign Languages) for presentational, interpersonal and interpretive communication, and cultural understanding. Honors credit is available.

Prerequisites: French 1, 2, and 3

5250 French 5 (Intermediate High-Advanced Low)/AP French Language & Culture 1 credit

This course not only prepares students, usually seniors, for the AP French exam (optional), leading to college credit and advanced French studies, but fosters greater competence in French that in today’s global community is an essential part of communication and cultural understanding. Oriented around the 6 interrelated AP themes of Beauty & Aesthetics, Contemporary Life, Families & Communities, Global Challenges, Personal & Public Identities, and Science & Technology, the course covers a variety of topics aimed at increased vocabulary usage, communication strategies, and cultural awareness of attitudes, values, institutions, and practices of the Francophone world. The course is taught almost exclusively in French and emphasizes engaging in communication. Students will synthesize information from a variety of authentic audio, visual, film, written, and print resources (journalistic & literary texts, announcements, ads, letters, news, maps, tables, graphics) both in contemporary and historical contexts. They will learn to write emails and a persuasive essay, simulate a conversation, discuss modern concerns, make cultural comparisons, respond to interviews, podcasts, public service announcements, conversations and brief presentations, and apply their French language skills to real-life situations as they pursue their own interests beyond high school.

Prerequisite: French 4

5100 Spanish 1 (Novice Low - Novice Mid) 1 credit

This course deals with all aspects of language study: grammar, listening and understanding, speaking, reading and writing. The grammatical emphasis is on learning and using ser, estar, tener, ir and gustar, plus memorization to acquire vocabulary. There is an emphasis on comprehension of the spoken word through listening, understanding and repeating the language with proper pronunciation and intonation. Dialogues, question and answer scenarios, and videos will cover cultural themes from the Hispanic World, including the USA and Mexico.

Prerequisite: None

5110 Spanish 2 (Novice Mid - Novice High) 1 credit

This course provides an opportunity for students to improve their Spanish skills in listening, reading, writing, and speaking. They will be encouraged to speak Spanish with basic sentences as much as possible. Through a concentrated study of vocabulary and grammar in a thematic context, they are able to ask and answer questions in complete sentences in Spanish, and are also able to start writing short, coherent paragraphs in Spanish. They continue to use the present tense orally and in writing, and are introduced to the preterite (past) tense in the second semester. A chapter reader will provide comprehension practice and additional vocabulary in the context of the history, literature, and culture of the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Colombia, and Spain.

Prerequisite: successfully passing the Spanish “placement test” given by the LRMS teacher and/or Spanish 1

5120 Spanish 3 (Intermediate Low - Intermediate Mid) 1 credit

The third year of Spanish focuses on the skill areas of listening, reading, writing, and speaking. The students will speak spontaneously in Spanish, as well as make prepared presentations. They will attempt to converse about everyday subjects in Spanish and write compositions of 2-3 paragraphs in length. They will use a chapter reader in Spanish, supplemented by films and videos that will serve as a stimulus for discussions and/or compositions. The students will be introduced to the use of more advanced grammar topics in oral and written form. The class is conducted primarily in the target language.

Prerequisites: Spanish 1 and 2

5130 Spanish 4 (Intermediate Mid - Intermediate High) 1 credit

The fourth year of Spanish provides an opportunity for students to learn and practice the more advanced grammatical topics within the Spanish language. Students discuss more abstract ideas in Spanish, and read and discuss authentic literature and poetry in Spanish. The class is conducted entirely in the target language. Students maintain a journal that encourages personal expression on teacher- or student-selected topics. Films in Spanish, and topics on music and art are used to provide students with a real life experience with the language. Students begin to read stories by Spanish and Latin-American authors that serve as a stimuli for discussion and compositions. Honors credit is available.

Prerequisites: Spanish 1, 2, and 3

5240 French Culture “Ooh, la, la!” ½ credit

Have you got a French name or family who hail from Quebec or other parts of the Francophone world? Are you keen to look out for French fashion or catch a French film or impress your guests with some delicious French cuisine? And those kings… How do you tell a Louis XIV from a Louis XVI? And what was Napoleon Bonaparte up to after all? And how about Lafayette and his men giving us a mighty hand in the American Revolution and then Americans helping to liberate France during the world wars? As English speakers we owe more than 35% of our vocabulary to French! Come learn some useful French sayings, how to make your way around Paris or the Quebec region to see the best sites, and distinguish Brittany from Provence from the Côte d’Azur! We cover a variety of topics touching on history, travel, fashion, food, current events, the European Union, French “B.D” (comics), châteaux, and more, plus watch several French films. Chouette!

Prerequisite: None Suggested grade levels: 9-12