Big Ideas
Big Ideas
Listening and viewing with intent supports our acquisition and understanding of French.
We can have meaningful conversations in French using high-frequency vocabulary and sentence structures.
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.
help us to acquire language and understand the worldexploring, for example, thoughts, feelings, knowledge, culture, and identity
around us.
Expressing ourselves in French involves courage, risk taking, and perseverance.
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)
allows us to experience and appreciate cultural diversity.
Acquiring French provides opportunities to explore our own identity and shape our perspective.
Content
Learning Standards
Content
French alphabet, phonemes, and letter patterns
- individual sounds for consonants and vowels, including diphthongs (e.g., au, eu, oi, ou, ui) and nasal vowels (e.g., an, ain, en, im, on, un)
- distinguishing similar phonemes (e.g., u versus ou, e versus eu, s versus z)
such as groupings of letters that make the same sound (e.g., au, aux, eau, ô, os) rhyming words, and letter patterns that have consistent pronunciations (e.g., ai, -ille, -ment, -tion)
gender and number
introduction to:
- masculine and feminine forms of words (gender) (e.g., chanteur versus chanteuse, acteur versus actrice, the determiners le, la, un, une)
- singular and plural forms of words (number) (e.g., livre versus livres, animal versus animaux, the determiners un/une versus des and le/la versus les)
common, high-frequency vocabulary and sentence structures for communication in past, present, and future
Sentences change according to when events occur (i.e., a change in time frame requires a change in wording); for example, J'ai étudié pour mon test hier soir; Elles ne sont pas à l'école aujourd'hui; Nous allons regarder un film demain.
time frames:- various types of questions
- intonated questions (e.g., Tu as faim?)
- Est-ce que questions (e.g., Est-ce que tu as faim?)
- inversion questions (e.g., As-tu faim?)
- questions using different interrogative words, (e.g., Comment…?; Où…?; Pourquoi…?)
- greetings and introductionscommon expressions used in greetings, salutations, and getting to know others (e.g., Bonjour; Bon après-midi; Bonsoir; Comment ça va?; Quel est ton nom?; Quel est ton numéro de téléphone?; À plus tard; Bonne journée!; Bonne fin de semaine!)
- basic informationcommon expressions used to share information about one another (e.g., Comment vas-tu?; Quel âge as-tu?; Je m'appelle…; J'ai __ ans; Mon anniversaire est ...; J'ai un frère et une sœur; J'habite à Prince George; Je suis artistique; Je parle deux langues)about, descriptions of, and interests of self and others
- degrees of and reasons for likes, dislikes, and preferencesfor example, J'aime…parce que…; J'adore…mais je préfère…; Puisque je n'aime pas les tomates, je déteste manger les spaghettis
- descriptions of items, places, and events
- descriptions of emotions and physical statesfor example, Je suis triste parce que…; Je suis excité puisque…; J'ai envie de jouer au soccer, Je suis occupé avec…, J'ai mal à la tête; J'ai mal au dos
- simple needs
- sequencesusing words that indicate sequence (e.g., premièrement, deuxièmement, après, ensuite, troisièmement, finalement)of events
common elements of stories
for example, place, characters, setting, plot, problem and resolution
Francophone communities
- communities across Canada, such as les Acadiens, les Franco-Albertains, les Franco-Colombiens, les Fransaskois, les Québécois; Métis communities in Baie St. Paul, MB, Fort Nelson, BC, and Île-à-la-Crosse, SK
- communities in countries around the world, such as Belgium, France, Haiti, Morocco, Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal, Switzerland, Vietnam
- could include information about celebrations, festivals, food, geography, history, population, territory, traditions
traditions and other cultural practices
relating to celebrations, holidays, festivals, and other events (e.g., Le Tour de France, la St-Jean Baptiste, Noël, le Mardi gras, le poisson d'avril)
in various Francophone regions
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)
lives of Francophone Canadians
including First Nations, Métis, and Inuit people; immigrants to Canada; and Canadians of diverse backgrounds
and their contributions to society
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
Recognize the relationships between French letter patterns and pronunciation
Identify, predict, and pronounce groupings of letters that make the same sound (e.g., au, aux, eau, ô, os), rhyming words, letter patterns that have consistent pronunciations (e.g., ai, -ille, -ment, -tion), silent letters, les liaisons and les élisions.
Derive meaning from a 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).
Recognize the relationships between intonation and meaning
for example, recognizing whether someone is making a statement or asking a question and how it relates to their message; noticing and practising cadence of spoken French
Use various 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
Seek clarification
using a variety of statements and questions (e.g., Je ne comprends pas; Répétez, s'il vous plaît; Répète, s'il te plaît; Peux-tu répéter?; Que veut dire…?; Comment dit-on …?; Comment écrit-on…?)
of meaning
Engage in conversations
virtual, online, and/or face-to-face; with peers, teachers, and members of the wider community
about familiar topicscan include personal, local, regional, national, and global topics of interest
Exchange ideas and information using complete sentences, orally and in writing
Comprehend and narrate stories, both orally and in writing
- understand key information and events
- narrate using common expressions of time and transitional words to show logical progression using past, present, and future time frames
Express themselves and comprehend others through various modes of presentation
making use of those best suited to their own and others' diverse abilities (e.g., digital, visual, and verbal modes; students may make use of aids such as charts, graphics, illustrations, music, organizers, photographs, tables, and videos)
Personal and social awareness
Explore and share information about Francophone communities
Explore regional variations
for example, accents, idiomatic expressions, slang, and other vocabulary
in French
Explore Francophone cultural expression
Explore and share information about connections between indigenous communities and the French language
- for example, First Nations, Métis, and Inuit communities where French is spoken, in Canada (e.g., Huron Wendake Nation, Innu Nation, Micmac Nation, and Mohawk Nation in Quebec; Métis communities in Baie St. Paul, MB, Fort Nelson, BC, and Île-à-la-Crosse, SK); indigenous communities where French is spoken, around the world (e.g., communities in Gabonese Republic, Guiana, and Republic of Côte d'Ivoire)
- Discussion could include 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 lives and contributions of Francophone Canadians
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