Bienvenue à la classe de français

As you may know, most colleges and universities require their students to have completed 2-3 years of a foreign language while in high school. We would like to invite you to choose French for your foreign language adventure in your upcoming freshman year at NCHS. Should you want to be a pro with French, we could help you get to our AP level through your time at NCHS, which also gives you the potential to erase some college coursework requirements!

You already know more than 15,000 French words and expressions including destination, RSVP, café, etiquette, and voila. In total, over 30% of the English vocabulary is borrowed from French. French is enjoyable to learn, the French people are fun to know and the culture and history are very exciting!

It is interesting to know that French is a global language.

• 220 million people around the world speak French

• French is spoken in over 50 countries and on 5 continents

• It is the 3rd most frequently used language on the internet

• French is the most frequently taught foreign language after English, and the only one to be taught in almost every country in the world

Not only is French exciting, it can also help you on college entrance exams such as the SAT and ACT. Many English words that are borrowed from French appear on these exams, such as effervescent, supplication, palpable, fruition, and misanthrope.

French can enhance your career in a variety of areas, such as military and security, tourism, medicine, education, banking, culinary arts, archaeology and curatorial studies, technology, publishing, art, fashion, luxury goods and beauty, and international organizations.

In the French program in Unit 5, we learn through games, puzzles, cooking, arts and crafts, and other exciting and authentically French activities and materials. Most of our French students look forward to their French class every day. When talking about French class, several students this year said, “French is my favorite part of the day!”, “I wanted to be different so I chose French.”, and “French is known in many countries so it is easier to connect to other people in foreign countries whether it be for work or leisure.” It's amazing that you can even have chance opportunities to speak French in the Bloomington/Normal community more than you might think.

When deciding on your classes for your first year at NCHS, we, along with the current French students, strongly encourage you to choose French! If you’d like to know more about the opportunities in the Foreign Language Department at NCHS or have any questions, please feel free to contact us by email at Hertznd@unit5.org, Lovem@unit5.org or Schnabelmm@unit5.org.

Merci and à bientôt! (See you soon)

Monsieur Hertzner, Madame Love and Madame Schnabel