Teaching about Francophone trailblazers who have made significant contributions to society is a beautiful way to weave together history and culture. In this blog post, I introduce you to 5 remarkable Francophone individuals who have made significant contributions and left lasting legacies.

Why should you teach about Francophone trailblazers in your French classroom?

Teaching Francophone history is an absolute must. French class shouldn’t just be grammar and verbs. Students need to have a basic understanding of the history connected to the language. This very much so includes teaching about Francophone history and famous Francophone individuals.

How can you teach about Francophone trailblazers in your French classroom?

There are so many ways to teach about Francophone trailblazers in class and it doesn’t have to be a unit.

Here are some ideas:

• Set up a French bulletin board with French classroom posters of these Francophone trailblazers
• Choose one Famous Francophone a week and learn about that figure in every class
• Watch a movie or read a book about a famous Francophone individual
• Create a unit for your advanced French class where they learn about Francophone pioneers and their contributions

Here are some additional resources that may be helpful for you

• In this blog post on French picture book ideas for Black History Month, I have shared books on some of these figures.
• Duolingo also did a multi-episode podcast on Joséphine Baker.
• Read this heartbreaking graphic novel about Louis Riel’s life and the treatment he experienced at the hands of the John A. MacDonald Canadian government. This is an absolute must if you are new to the history of the horrible treatment early French Canadians experienced. This is a graphic novel read in Canadian Social Studies classes and it can definitely be read in French classes as well!
• I have created this beautiful set of French posters on these Francophone trailblazers. You can grab your copy here.

Famous Francophone Pioneer #1 – Joséphine Baker

Josephine Baker was born in 1906 in St. Louis, Missouri. She was a trailblazing dancer, entertainer, and civil rights activist. After experiencing discrimination in the entertainment industry in the United States, Baker moved to France where she was received with much love.

She became an icon known for her energetic dancing. Baker became the first Black woman to star in a major motion picture, Siren of the Tropics. During World War II, she spied on German troop movements and military installations. Baker also was an advocate for the civil rights movement, alongside prominent leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. Josephine Baker passed away in 1975 in Paris.

Famous Francophone Pioneer #2 – Léopold Senghor

Léopold Sédar Senghor was born in 1906 in Senegal. He was a renowned poet, philosopher, and politician. Senghor became Senegal’s first president following its independence from France in 1960.

He co-founded the Black consciousness movement called Négritude. Senghor played a pivotal role in promoting African culture and identity during his lifetime. Senghor also became the first black writer elected to the Académie française. Leopold Sédar Senghor passed away in 2001 in Verson, France.

Famous Francophone Pioneer #3 – Simone Veil

Simone Veil was born in 1927 in France to a Jewish family. During World War II, Veil and her family faced persecution at the hands of the Nazis, with Veil surviving the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp.

She was a trailblazing politician and women’s rights advocate. Veil became the first woman to be elected President of the European Parliament in 1979. During her career as a politician, she also served as Health Minister of France and was instrumental in legalizing abortion in the country in 1975. Simone Veil passed away in 2017 in Paris.

Famous Francophone Pioneer #4 – Louis Riel

Louis Riel, born in 1844 in the Red River Settlement (present-day Manitoba, Canada), was a Métis leader and political figure. Riel played a pivotal role in advocating for the rights of the Métis people, leading the Red River Resistance in 1869-1870 and the North-West Rebellion in 1885.

Riel played a major role in the resistance against the Canadian government’s encroachment on Métis land and rights during the Red River Rebellion of 1869–1870. Lastly, Louis Riel was the founder of the province of Manitoba.

Famous Francophone Pioneer #4 – Paulette Nardal

Born in 1896 in Martinique, Paulette Nardal was a trailblazing Black Francophone woman. A writer and journalist, she played a key role in co-founding the French Black consciousness movement known as Négritude.

In 1920, Nardal was the first Black person to attend Sorbonne University. In Paris, she and her sisters set up a literary salon that delved into the experiences of the African diaspora. Paulette Nardal passed away in 1985 in Fort-de-France, Martinique.

Fun fact, Nardal was honoured during the Paris 2024 Opening Ceremony along with many other remarkable French women!

Teach about these Francophone trailblazers with these inspiring French classroom posters

The post 5 Must-Know Francophone Trailblazers for French Class appeared first on FLE Avec MmeD.

Picture this – you are a first-year French teacher excited to decorate your classroom. So you head to the Teacher supply store and they have one whole corner dedicated to French stuff. Everything is outdated, the fonts are so ugly, and the posters are so boring. Let me tell you that it does not have to be this way. In fact, this whole blog post is dedicated to inclusive, effective & gorgeous French classroom decor for the modern French classroom.

If you have 20ish minutes, please go ahead and watch my video where I share some important information related to French classroom decor!

Before we begin, you should note that I print all of my own classroom decor! I have a subscription to HP Instant Ink and I pay $5.99 a month for 100 pages. Ink shows up at my door weeks before I am in need!

If you are interested in trying out HP Instant Ink (and getting 1 free month of ink!), click here!

STOP! BEFORE YOU SCROLL – DOWNLOAD THESE FREE POSTERS

The problem with French classroom decor

The classroom decor products sold in teacher supply stores are so boring! I am not just referring to the aesthetics, but also the grammar and vocabulary. So many of the posters have way too much vocabulary listed on them and it is information overload for our Core French students.

Plus, a lot of the posters are the exact same French posters that my own Core French teachers had up in their classrooms. This reflects the fact that the companies making these posters are out of touch in regards to how French pedagogy has changed in the past 10+ years.

I certainly do not teach the same way that my High School French teachers did (still love them though) and I need my French classroom decorations to be reflective of that.

What makes ‘good’ classroom decor for Core French or Immersion?

Good French classroom decorations should be targeting our students at their level of language. Therefore, if you have advanced FRIMM students, your posters and decor should reflect and challenge your students’ language level.

Basically, it boils down to the fact that classroom decor isn’t just for aesthetics. French classroom decor should be a tool for your students. Classroom decor should serve a purpose!

Francophone musician posters

I am a huuuuge fan of teaching French music. For me personally having posters of Francophone musicians was a no-brainer!

These posters would make an excellent addition to your French bulletin boards and unit displays! This set includes posters of 26 francophone singers.

This is a prime example of the fact that French classroom decor should also inspire your students and bring culture into the world language classroom.

French common expressions posters

If you teach beginner French students or intermediate French students, you likely teach students who need visual reminders of major French expressions.

These French expression posters are an absolute must French classroom decor item in any Core French and/or Core French classroom! 

Poster versions :

• Colour + French only
• Colour + French & English 
• Black & white + French
• Black & white + French & English

French accents posters

Hands up if you get tired of being asked “which way does aigu go Madame??”.

That was a major problem I had in my first year of teaching.

So I made posters on all of the different accents. Now when I get asked this question, I just point at them.

Effective and functional French classroom decor for the win!

These are free too 🙂

French reading comprehension strategies posters

French classroom decor shouldn’t just be pretty, it should serve a major purpose. These French reading comprehension strategy posters do just that. These French posters are especially ideal for Core French students (grades 5+). If, after months of teaching, your French students ever say “but MADAME…I can’t read French!!!!” – you need these posters in your classroom ASAP. 

What strategies are included?

In total, there are six different strategies. I’ve included strategies in this resource that focus on the skills that students HAVE currently and strategies that will help each student feel more confident the more and more that they read. I’ve actually broken down all of these strategies in a blog post, so please read it at some point before you put these up in your classroom!

French subject pronoun posters

Another essential set of posters!

Which ‘pronoms personnels’ are included in this French decor set?

• Je
• tu
• iel
• elle
• il
• qui
• on
• nous
• vous
• iels
• elles
• ils

French command posters

As Core French teachers we tend to repeat certain French verbs or French commands in class. These French command posters serve as visual support for your students as you are teaching your lessons.

They are ideal for beginner or novice French students or intermediate French students. All you have to do is print, laminate, and put them up.

I like putting magnets on mine and put them up on the board as I teach them in the target language. 

Here are some examples of French verbs included :

– regardez

– écoutez

– écrivez

– levez-vous

– parlez

Essential question posters

If you teach Core French and/or French Immersion classes, having visual support for the essential French classroom questions is key!

As soon as I teach these, the expectation is that students will ask these questions in French!

I have these up in my high school Core French classroom and my students refer to these dozens of times a day. Posters include “est-ce que je peux” and “puis-je” options so you print whichever one you prefer.

French calendar sets

Say AU REVOIR to boring French calendar sets!

Whether you teach Core French Elementary or Secondary or Elementary French Immersion, calendar sets are essential. I actually have my beginner French students (Grade 8s) do a calendar routine every single class in order to practice essential questions and vocabulary.

REPETITION is key, y’all! Seriously, ditch the vocabulary lists and quizzes because that is not what will help them remember French vocabulary.

I do the calendar routine for the first month or so and then I have a different student do it everyday!

My French calendar routine consists of the following :

• Greetings/ça va
• quelle est la date aujourd’hui, quelle était la date hier, quelle sera la date hier
• combien d’élèves sont en classe aujourd’hui?
• quels sont les jours de la semaine?
• quels sont les mois de l’année?

French grammar posters & French verb posters

Okay, so here’s the deal – French grammar posters can actually be a very helpful tool for your students. However, I do not put ALL of these up on my classroom walls given the fact that that would be information overload.

So here is what I ACTUALLY do – after implicitly or explicitly teaching certain French grammar concepts, I put some of the French grammar posters in the photo below on my bulletin boards.

The posters I choose to put up reflect the current needs of my students. Therefore, I often switch up the French grammar posters when that need changes.

This is particularly important if you teach multiple levels of Core French or French Immersion!

These French grammar posters include the following posters :

What grammatical concepts are included?

• déterminants définis, indéfinis, démonstratifs, partitifs, possessifs
• pronoms personnels
• noms
• verbes
• adjectifs
• adverbes
• exemples de participes passés
• conjugaisons des verbes -ER au présent, -IR au présent, -RE au présent
• la négation (ne…pas, ne…jamais, etc)
• pronoms réfléchis, relatifs
• participes passés DR MRS VANDERTRAMP
• prépositions et les prépositions de lieu
• comment écrire une phrase

Be inclusive with your posters

This is the trifecta of posters at the entrance of my classroom.

During the summer of 2020, I created these free printable posters and I have them posted by my classroom door. It is important to show our students that BLM wasn’t just a trend to us. These posters are physical proof of our solidarity and activism for our Black students.

Click here for the Chaque enfant compte posters.

The Pride poster is from Oui Madame Oui. It’s part of a beautiful set!

French pronunciation posters

During the summer before my third year of teaching, I had the idea to create French pronunciation posters. I had noticed that my Core French students had been really struggling with French sound patterns.

These posters boosted their confidence as they were subtle reminders of common sound patterns. I have a whole blog post dedicated to how I use these French pronunciation tools in my French classroom if you are interested in learning more.

French Inspirational Quote Posters for the Classroom

Who says that French motivational quote posters have to be ugly (e.g. at the teacher supply store). Look at these beauties!

Save 20% with the full French classroom decor bundle

The post The truth about French classroom decor appeared first on FLE Avec MmeD.

It goes without saying that teaching French pronunciation can be very tricky. Students’ shyness and anxiety surrounding pronunciation impact their confidence and growth in their acquisition of French when it comes to French pronunciation. That being said, here is an awesome French pronunciation tool to improve your French students’ pronunciation in a passive way!

Teaching and re-enforcing pronunciation in the FSL classroom can be a little tricky.

Now as a teacher, I have struggled to help students improve their pronunciation in creative ways. Furthermore, I teach so many introverts and correcting their pronunciation in front of the class just isn’t an option.

French classroom decor shouldn’t just be pretty. It must also serve a purpose.

My goal for the year was to improve the way that I taught pronunciation in FSL. As a result, I ended up quickly making pronunciation guide posters to place under my main whiteboard. They ended up being an immediate hit!

On multiple occasions in September alone, I caught students glancing at the posters before speaking in front of the class.

Using French pronunciation tools like posters

1. These Posters serve as an excellent visual reminder to all students before, during, and after oral activities.

2. They are especially important for shy students who often don’t ask questions. These students can also be the most self-conscious about their accents and pronunciation. The posters combined with other techniques and strategies can be very empowering for our shy students.

3. Place them at the front of the classroom so that students are pretty much always staring at them. This will help students internalize over the school year.

4. They aren’t just pretty, but they also serve an important purpose in the FSL classroom.

5. Your students will think that you have a very “aesthetic” classroom. Win-win!

You can make your own, unique pronunciation posters in PowerPoint. I also have many different themed posters available in my TPT if you want something ready to print and laminate.

Click here to see all of the pronunciation posters in my TPT

I hope you enjoyed this French pronunciation tool! If you are interested in more tips and tricks, I have a whole page dedicated to ideas for the French class.

Avec plaisir,

Pav

The post You have to try this amazing French pronunciation tool! appeared first on FLE Avec MmeD.