Big Ideas
Big Ideas
Listening and viewing with intent supports our acquisition of French.
The communicative context determines how we express ourselves.
Language and culture are interconnected and shape our perspective, identity, and voice.
Exploring diverse forms of cultural expression
represent the experience of the people from whose culture they are drawn; for example, customs, folklore, language use, traditions, ways of celebrating, and creative works (e.g., architecture, dance, filmmaking, musical composition, painting, poetry and prose, sculpture, theatre)
promotes greater understanding of our own cultural identity.
Acquiring French provides a unique opportunity to access and interact with the Francophone world.
Developing proficiency in French provides diverse opportunities
for example, educational, personal, professional, social, and travel opportunities
.
Content
Learning Standards
Content
commonly used vocabulary and sentence structures for communication in past, present, and future
for example, J’ai étudié pour mon test hier soir; Il faisait des sports quand il était jeune; Elles ne sont pas à l’école aujourd’hui; Nous allons regarder un film demain; Je ferai mes devoirs en rentrant chez moi; Voudriez-vous manger au restaurant à midi?
time frames:- questionsincluding using open-ended questions to elicit a deeper level of response (e.g., Pourquoi as-tu choisi ce film?; Le français, comment est-il similaire à l’anglais?)
- sequencesusing appropriate verb tenses and expressions of time (e.g., premièrement, en premier, tout d’abord, au début, pour commencer, deuxièmement, après, ensuite, puis, de temps en temps, troisièmement, finalement, dernièrement, en dernier lieu, enfin, après 30 minutes, le lendemain)of events
- predictions
- personal experiences
- opinionsexplanation of and justification for opinions (e.g., À mon avis…parce que…; Je pense que…parce que…; Quant à moi…parce que…)
- comparisons and contrastsincluding comparisons of differing points of view and opinions (e.g., Je crois que…mais il croit que…; Elle a raison; Quant à moi…)
elements of a variety of types of texts
for example, format (e.g., letter versus email message), language, context, audience, register (e.g., formal versus informal), purpose
register and language etiquette
- elements of formal versus informal speech and writing (e.g., cela versus ça; que l’on versus qu’on; c’est pourquoi versus c’est la raison pour laquelle)
- etiquette, such as addressing people they have not met as Monsieur or Madame + surname/title (e.g., Monsieur le Directeur)
- use of topic-specific jargon, abbreviations, and txt spk (e.g., mdr = mort de rire [LOL]; @+ = à plus tard; cad = c’est-à-dire; bp de = beaucoup de; qqn = quelqu’un; qqch = quelque chose)
idiomatic expressions
for example:
from across la francophonie
- expressions using avoir, faire, être (e.g., avoir besoin de, faire beau, être d’accord)
- expressions from l’argot (e.g., jaser for bavarder)
- other expressions (e.g., coûter les yeux de la tête, c’est dommage, un coup de foudre)
ethics of cultural appropriation
use of a cultural motif, theme, “voice,” image, knowledge, story, song, or drama, shared without permission or without appropriate context or in a way that may misrepresent the real experience of the people from whose culture it is drawn
and plagiarism
Curricular Competency
Learning Standards
Curricular Competency
Thinking and communicating
Explore and interpret a wide variety of texts
“Text” refers to all forms of oral, written, visual, and digital communication, including authentic or adapted texts (e.g., advertisements, articles, biographies, blogs, brochures, cartoons, charts, conversations, diagrams, emails, essays, films, forms, graphs, indigenous oral histories, instructions, interviews, invitations, letters, narratives, news reports, novels, nursery rhymes, online profiles, paintings, photographs, picture books, poems, presentations, songs, speeches, stories, surveys, text messages).
Identify perspectives
A text can reflect the author’s personal point of view, which may include bias.
in texts
Use a range of strategies to support communication
- include strategies to comprehend and express meaning
- will vary depending on the context and the individual student
- for example, interpreting body language; listening to intonation and expression; paraphrasing, reformulating, reiterating, and repeating; substituting words; using cognates, context, images, parts of speech, prior knowledge, reference tools, similar words in first language, and text features
Derive and negotiate meaning in a wide variety of contexts
for example, contexts differing in terms of audience, purpose, setting, formal versus informal
Respond personally
for example, provide personal reactions, interpretations, opinions
to a variety of texts
Make word choices
for example, nuances of different verb forms (e.g., J’avais peur versus J’ai eu peur), pronouns (on versus nous), word placement within a sentence (e.g., ma propre chambre versus ma chambre propre), words with close but not identical meanings (e.g., les chaussures versus les souliers; retourner versus revenir; sortir versus partir)
and adjust register to express intended meaning
Adjust speech and writing to reflect different purposes
for example, to convince, inform, entertain
Engage in meaningful conversations
virtual, online, and/or face-to-face; with peers, teachers, and members of the wider community
on a variety of topics of interest personal, local, regional, national, or global topics of interest, such as current events, matters of public debate, political issues, social trends, and diverse ranges of lifestyles and relationships
Express themselves with increasing fluency, both orally and in writing
Narrate
using a variety of expressions of time and transitional words to show logical progression using past, present, and future time frames
stories Stories are narrative texts that can be oral, written, or visual. Stories can be simple or complex and may be derived from real or imagined experiences. They can be used to seek and impart knowledge, entertain, share history, and strengthen a sense of identity. Examples are indigenous oral histories, personal stories, skits, series of pictures, songs, student-created stories.
, bothorally and in writing
Personal and social awareness
Explore regional variations
for example, accents, idiomatic expressions, slang, other vocabulary
in French
Explore Francophone cultural expression
Explore connections between language and culture
as expressed through, for example, regional dialects, historical origins of words, idiomatic expressions, and creative works (e.g., architecture, dance, filmmaking, musical composition, painting, poetry and prose, sculpture, theatre)
Recognize that language and culture have been influenced by the interactions of First Peoples and Francophone communities
for example:
in Canada
- the Michif language, which includes First Nations and French vocabulary and structures and expresses a distinctive Métis culture
- Chinook Jargon, which was used for trading along the West Coast
- the fact that First Peoples writers in Quebec, such as those from the Innu Nation, have used the French language through prose and poetry to bring attention to the negative effects of colonization on their families and communities
Explore the importance of story
Stories are an important way to seek and impart knowledge, beliefs, customs, perspectives, traditions, values, and worldviews. In doing so, they can share history and strengthen a sense of identity.
in personal, family, and community identity
Engage
through, for example, blogs, classroom and school visits (including virtual/online visits), clubs, concerts, courses, exchanges, festivals, films, pen-pal letters, magazines, newspapers, plays, social media and other online resources, stores/restaurants with service in French
in experiences with Francophone communities and people
Identify and explore personal, educational, and professional opportunities requiring proficiency in French