FrontPage

Page history last edited by Haskins 4 months, 2 weeks ago

For Madame Haskins' French Classes at Morgan Park Academy

La plus perdue de toutes les journées est celle où l'on n'a pas ri.

Sébastien Roch Nicolas, dit CHAMFORT, Maximes et pensées

The most wasted of all days is the one during which you did not laugh.

Classroom Links:

Kindergarten

1st Grade (I will not be teaching 1st grade for the 2011-2012 school year.)

Bienvenue! My name is Sarah Haskins and I am the French teacher for kindergarten through sixth grades and French 2 at Morgan Park Academy. As a language teacher I have the privilege and the mandate to help foster a broader, well-rounded understanding of the world. To spark interest in young minds for the French language and francophone cultures is truly a joy for me. When you consider primary speakers, secondary speakers, number and population of countries where used, number of major fields using the language internationally, economic power of countries using the languages, and socio-literary prestige, French is ranked as the second most influential language in the world (from Weber, 1997). It is easy to forget this at times when, living in the Chicago area, it is quite clear to us that Spanish is a useful and growing language. And it truly is, especially in the United States. But I challenge you to think globally, and to put the same challenge to your child. Where better to begin opening minds to this global way of thinking than with those in whose hands the future of the world will rest?

I believe that learning French can open many doors for young people, not to mention have a positive impact on their future studies. Research shows that students who study the French language for more than four years typically score around 125 points higher on the verbal portion of the SAT! I truly hope you are not worrying about the SATs yet, but it's great to know that the benefits of speaking French can be far-reaching. And though I hope you won’t limit your child’s language learning to one secondary language over the course of their years in school, there are certain advantages to learning French at an earlier age that are often overlooked. My goal is to help get this helpful information to you, and to that end, I hope that you will find this website and its various links useful, informative and amusing.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions about the French program or curriculum. I’m looking forward to a great school year filled with the gratification that comes from passing on my love for the French language and francophone cultures to the students I teach.

Promote French at MPA and elsewhere (pdf brochure)

Middle School French Club Cocurricular

Déjeuner en français - French Club is sponsoring a Déjeuner en français for any MS French students on the last Thursday of each month. Eat lunch while speaking entirely in French! All conversation, facilitated by the French Club officers and Mme H., will be correction-free!

Mme's schedule

Click here to send me an e-mail

E X T R A S :

Fun french video clips **

GIFTS AND MORE - Where to get French "stuff"!

How to type "accents" (diacritical marks)

French Grammar explanations and links

FLES (Foreign Language in Elementary Schools) Methodology

Tips for Studying French

French is not that hard, really

Why speaking French is a good idea

Pronunciation woes