I recently wrote a blog post about the new books I was able to take home after participating in a resource review. New books have always been exciting to me, but once they hit my bookshelf, my main goal is to not let them gather dust. My biggest wish after each of the reviews I've … Continue reading
Reading and Understanding in a second language: strategies for all learners
This post is about a resource I developed in about 2017, and it allowed me to align the way that I teach reading in my second language classes with a series of beliefs that I've held for a long time: Reading is NOT translation. For years, every time I asked students to read something in … Continue reading
On my bookshelf: 3 new French books with First Nations connections.
I've been making a big effort to integrate more non-textbook style reading into my French as a second language classes over the past few years. I vividly remember the moment at which I started to understand French books on my own without translating, and the excitement of having access to new ways of expressing thinking … Continue reading
Cultural celebrations: cheese and chocolate tasting
Full confession - while there is no actual holiday during which everyone gets together and celebrates cheese and chocolate (although... wouldn't that be amazing?), planning a classroom experience like this is an opportunity to showcase certain aspects of French culture that are fun, interesting, easy to compare to others, and very popular with my high … Continue reading
Cultural celebrations: La fête des mères and El día de la madre
La fête des mères, or Mother's Day, may not immediately jump to mind as a cultural celebration. I have treated it as such for a couple of years now, and this has become an event that I and my students look forward to every year. I've seen a lot of discussion around students who have … Continue reading
Cultural celebrations: Carnaval!
Our languages department recently celebrated Carnaval at our school for the first time, and I wanted to share what we did for others who are planning cultural celebrations. For those who may not have heard of it, Carnaval is celebrated in a few parts of the world, and this quick video (in French) explains its … Continue reading
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