French Program Review
West Bay Elementary
December, 2015
Overview
The purpose of this report is to provide our school community with an overview of the K-7 French program at
West Bay Elementary, together with an action plan developed to ensure continuous improvement. The report
consists of six sections:
I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.
VI.
Context
Scope and Sequence (Central Ideas/Big Ideas and Learning Standards)
Instructional Strategies
Assessment Information
Action Plan
Ways to Reinforce Language Learning at Home
Section 1:
Context
As an IB World School, French instruction is provided for students from Kindergarten to Grade 7. Each grade
receives 90 minutes of French instruction per week. The Ministry recently developed a new Core French
Curriculum for Grades 5 -7 which includes 6 Big Ideas and Learning Standards at each of the grade levels. The
Learning Standards outline what students are expected to know. In light of the new Ministry curriculum
documentation which reframes the French curriculum, West Bay staff developed a Scope and Sequence from
Kindergarten to Grade 7 to ensure a continuum of learning exists throughout the grades. (Please see Section
II.)
In November 2015 the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) conducted an evaluation of our IB
Primary Years Programme. Programme evaluation is both a requirement of and a service provided by the IBO
for all IB World Schools. The purposes of the evaluation are to assess the implementation of the PYP and to
assist schools in developing and maintaining a dynamic programme that reflects the philosophy and the
programme standards and practices of the IB. In preparation for this evaluation process our staff completed a
self-study and developed an action plan. The action items identified that relate to the IB Standards and
Practices and specifically pertain to our French Program are:
 Specialists refer to specific IB Scope and Sequence documents while writing planners and creating the
French K-4 scope and sequence, and
 Administration finds consistent time for specialists to collaborate with IB Coordinator and classroom
teachers within the school schedule.
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As a result of information from the IB review combined with the new Ministry curriculum for Grades 5-7, West
Bay teachers and administration conducted a further review of our French program and identified additional
action items to ensure continuous improvement. (Please see Section V.)
Section 2:
Scope and Sequence
Kindergarten
Central Idea:
Language facilitates social
interaction including routines, play
and developing friendships.
Students learn to:
 introduce themselves and respond to greetings
 respond to instructions and directions
 use French for everyday routines such as roll call
and calendar, opening and closing lessons and
transition activities
Central idea:
Every language has its own sounds
and rhythms.
Students learn to:
 Identify the letters and sounds of the French
alphabet, noticing differences
 Distinguish vowel sounds including ou vs u
 Sing various French songs
Central Idea:
Language allows us to define our
personal worlds.
Students learn to:
 Describe their families and pets
 Describe likes and preferences
 Name classroom items and personal possessions
 Describe colour, shape and number of objects to
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Central Idea:
Language can be imaginative,
expressive and entertaining.
Students learn to:
 Listen for key words in stories, rhymes and songs
 Make meaning of spoken text through visual cues,
familiar words and contextual clues
 Perform poems, songs and stories that include
repeated phrases and rhythms
 Create collaborative stories as a class
Students learn to:
 Appreciate the cultural significance of various
francophone celebrations
 Discuss symbols and cultural traditions related to
festivities
 Give appropriate wishes and greetings to one
another
Cultural celebrations strengthen
communities.
2
Central Idea:
Languages follow grammatical
patterns to convey intended
meaning.
Students learn to:
 Define a sentence as a subject with a verb
 Combine regular and frequently used verbs with
singular pronouns
Grade 1
Central Idea:
Language facilitates social
interaction including routines, play
and developing friendships.
Students learn to:
 share how they are feeling
 use formulaic phrases for everyday social
situations such as thanking, apologizing, offering
wishes and congratulations
 Learn simple French playground games and
nursery rhymes
 Learn and review numbers 1-10, colours and
classroom objectsh89
Central Idea:
Students learn to:
Every language has its own sounds
 Distinguish between the sounds of French and
and rhythms.
English, and other class languages
 Distinguish intonation patterns that create
statements, exclamations and questions
 Distinguish common vowel sounds including
diphthongs and nasal sounds, ou vs u
 Sing various French songs
Central Idea:
Students learn to:
Caring for a shared space creates
 Label the plants in the school garden
community.
 Describe the growth cycle of a plant
 Describe how to care for a garden
 Describe likes and preferences
Central Idea:
Students learn to:
Language can be imaginative,
 Make meaning of spoken text through visual cues,
expressive and entertaining.
familiar words and contextual clues
 Perform poems, songs and stories that include
repeated phrases and rhythms
 Make simple evaluative statements about
favourite characters in stories
 Use a model to create their own stories
Central Idea:
Students learn to:
Spoken language builds connection
 Ask simple questions in order to sustain a brief
dialogue
 Find the verb, subject and object in a familiar
sentence
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Central Idea:
Language enables collaboration,
creativity and discovery
Students learn to:
 Play games that involve listening, memory and
information exchange
 Work together on collaborative tasks such as
designing a poster, picture book, menu or
fundraiser
Grade 2
Central Idea:
Language allows us to explore our
sense of identity.
Students learn to:
 Make simple statements about themselves, where
they are from, their appearance, etc
 Design bilingual fiches personelles with identifying
details in both languages, ie nom, prénom, age,
j’aime…, etc.
Central Idea:
Students learn to:
Every language has its own sounds,
 Compare the sound of French to English and other
rhythms.
languages spoken in the class
 Recognize differences in intonation depending on
question, exclamation or statement
 Sing songs, rhymes and tongue twisters to
internalize the sounds and rhythms of French
 Recognise common sounds in French, such as ou,
oi, on, ai, ain, ille eau, –tion and –ent
 Understand that final consonants in French are
usually silent
Central Idea:
Languages and cultures change in
response to social and cultural
developments.
Central Idea:
Languages follow grammatical
patterns to convey intended
meaning.
(Pauvre Michel, Échos 1, Pearson)
Students:
 Explore the different languages used by peers
 Understand that the world contains many
different languages, some growing and some
endangered
 Recognize that French is an important world
language and is closely related to French
 Research a French-speaking culture and share
their findings with peers
 Learn dances, songs and lore associated with
carnival celebrations in Quebec
(Voici mon école, Échos 1, Pearson)
Students learn to:
 understand the different patterns of adjectivenoun order
 use grammatical gender in adjectives and articles
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Central Idea:
Language use varies according to
context.
use articles, singular and plural, definite and
indefinite
use numbers 1-20
(Les Superbibittes, Échos 1, Pearson)
Students learn to:
 use appropriate greetings depending on time of
day
 use terms of courtesy and politeness
 differentiate between formal and informal
situations
 use language and play games typical of French
children
Grade 3
Central Idea:
Language allows us to explore our
sense of identity.
Central Idea:
Languages and cultures change in
response to social and cultural
developments.
Central Idea:
Languages follow grammatical
patterns to convey intended
meaning.
Central Idea:
Spoken language builds
connections and understanding.
Students learn to:
 Conduct interviews and surveys, finding out about
one another, likes and preferences
 Use the sentence pattern aimer + infinitive
 Create a collage exploring who they are and what
they are passionate about, along with phrases and
quotations they respond to
(Des Passe-temps extraordinaires, Échos 2, Pearson)
Students:
 Explore the different languages used by peers
 Explore the meaning of culture
 Compare and contrast French and English through
written and spoken texts
 Compare cultural conventions
 Participate in a skype and/or letter-writing
exchange with a French-speaking class
(La famille, c’est spéciale, Échos 2, Pearson)
Students learn to:
 understand the subject-verb-object structure
 use negation
 use prepositions and conjunctions
 create a children’s book using a model
 use numbers 1-60
(Vive le renard, Échos 2, Pearson)
Students learn to:
 Use simple questions and statements
 Respond to simple questions about their home
life, school and pets
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Central Idea:
Language enables collaboration,
creativity and discovery
Students learn to:
 Follow simple recipes
 Create own instructional tasks such as treasure
hunts, making a model, invention, etc.
 Play games that involve listening, memory and
information exchange
 Work together on collaborative tasks such as
designing a poster, picture book, menu or
fundraiser
Grade 4
Central Idea:
Language allows us to express and
share our emotions.
Central Idea:
Spoken language builds connections
and understanding and develops
communication skills.
Central Idea:
Literature helps build understanding
Central Idea:
Language can be used to discuss
weather in French
Central Idea:
Reflecting on our learning helps us set
goals.
Central Idea:
Francophone culture includes
celebrations.
Students learn to:
 Express their emotional responses to different
situations (Quand il fait beau, je suis content; quand il y
a un test de maths, je suis nerveux)
Students learn to:
 Ask/respond to simple questions
 Identify greetings, expressions of politeness
 Respond to classroom instructions
 Ask for permission to do something (e.g., go to the
washroom)
 Use French numbers
 Present simple classroom dialogues
Students learn to:
 Identify key information in texts when reading simple
theme-based French readers
 Locate key words, familiar expressions and true/false
statements when reading simple text
 Listen purposefully to picture stories read in French
(e.g., The Little Red Hen)
 Present skits based on simple scripts
Students learn to:
 Use language involving weather conditions and
weather forecasts
 Announce local and international weather conditions in
French during morning announcements
Students learn to:
 Recall and record what French language they have
acquired and set goals for their own language learning
 Identify the advantages of learning French
Students learn to:
 Use basic vocabulary to describe common elements of
Francophone cultural celebrations
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Grade 5
Big Ideas (Ministry)
Listening and viewing with intent
helps us acquire French.
Students learn to:
 Identify French names for the letters of the
alphabet
 Recognize the difference between pronunciation
and meaning
 Make use of visuals to increase understanding
With basic French, we can describe
 Describe activities outside of school
ourselves and our interests.
 Describe interests in simple statements using
common, high-frequency vocabulary and
structures
 Describe interests in context of seasons
Both verbal and non-verbal cues
contribute meaning in language.
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Meaningful communication is
possible in French using simple,
high-frequency words and
patterns.
Francophone culture is a vibrant
part of many Canadian
communities.
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Each culture has traditions and
ways of celebrating.
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Recognize common intonation patterns
Interpret non-verbal cues to increase
understanding
Seek clarification of meaning with very simple
statements and questions
Ask for and tell time
Ask and respond to simple commands and
questions
Identify greetings, expressions of politeness
Identify
Respond to classroom instructions
Demonstrate basic awareness of Francophone
cultural influence in Canada
Locate places where bilingualism signs are
mandatory
Sing the bilingual version of the national anthem of
Canada
Identify places in Canada with significant
Francophone communities
A Francophone cultural festival or celebration in
Canada
Identify elements of own cultural background and
record using a French template
Use basic vocabulary to describe common
elements of cultural festivals and celebrations
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Grade 6
Big Ideas (Ministry)
Listening and viewing with intent
help us understand a message.
Language learners use strategies
to help them understand and
acquire language.
Students will learn to:
 Respond to creative works (movies) in French
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Meaningful communication is
possible in French using simple,
high-frequency words and
patterns.
With basic French, we can describe
important people in our lives.
Stories allow us to understand
ideas in a meaningful way.
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Learning about a Francophone
community helps us develop
cultural awareness.
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Use the verbs ‘être’ and ‘avoir’ through watching
and singing along with a music video using these
verbs
Use visuals or technology to assist in
communicating
Use verbs and expressions related to the market
place in order to present skits set in that context
(related to Unit of Inquiry on Economics); verbs
and expressions include acheter, vendre, vouloir,
pouvoir, très cher, moins cher, bon marché
Use greetings and expressions of politeness
Make and respond to simple requests
Express preferences and interests
Share their weekend activities in French
Use one or two adjectives to describe physical
attributes and personality traits of family members
and pets
Identify specific information from French resources
to complete tasks
Employ basic strategies to increase understanding
of texts
Comprehend high-frequency words and patterns in
simple texts
Describe sequence of events in texts
Identify elements of a Francophone cultural
community in Canada
Share information about an element of a
Francophone cultural community in Canada
Identify contributions of prominent Francophones
(especially those who have had a global impact)
Grade 7
Big Ideas (Ministry)
Listening and viewing with intent
helps us understand an increasing
variety of messages.
Meaningful interactions are
Students will learn to:
 Interpret gestures, body language, facial
expressions, intonation, and tone of voice

Use key vocabulary and structures to ask and
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possible even with limited French.
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With basic French, we can explain
why things are of interest to us
and others.
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Stories allow us to understand
ideas in a meaningful way.
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There are vibrant Francophone
communities in many regions of
the world.
Francophone communities in
different parts of the world have
similarities and differences.
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Section 3:
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respond to different types of questions
Seek clarification of meaning with a variety of
statements and questions
Follow directions to complete a task, by
responding to questions, or by asking relevant
follow-up questions
Use expressions to describe locations of objects
and people through songs and games
Use basic vocabulary related to concept of ‘justice’;
read from simple French readers
Express preferences and interests
Use adverbs of quantity and verbs to demonstrate
preparation of foods of interest to them
Describe physical activities that help maintain
balanced lifestyles (connected to Unit of Inquiry on
Healthy lifestyles)
Use expressions to state opinions of works of art,
using verbs including ‘aimer’, ‘dessiner’, ‘peindre’
Understand and retell simple stories
Read from simple theme-based French readers,
simple stories and other texts
Research Francophone communities and make
historical and cultural connections through
creating timelines and biographies
Describe similarities/differences between elements
of Canadian/International Francophone
communities
Instructional Strategies
The following instructional strategies are used to support achievement of the learning standards:
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Active listening with the intent to understand
Increasing cultural knowledge and awareness through cultural activities
Performing skits and plays
Making posters
Drawing and labelling pictures
Playing games
Viewing and listening to videos (e.g., ‘Carnaval de Québec’)
Listening to known stories using picture books (e.g., ‘The Little Red Hen’)
Choral reading
Repetition
Reading simple French readers and completing comprehension activities
Critiquing student art using French vocabulary that is displayed in a ‘galérie d’art’
Singing songs to enhance learning of vocabulary and grammar
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Creating alternative versions of songs or stories, adapting events or characters
Use of visuals to assist in communication
Purposeful conversations with a peer in French
Using dictionary skills to explore parts of speech
Classes begin with greetings, date, weather using French
Writing class books
Using class apps like ShowMe and Book Writer to showcase learning.
Section 4:
Assessment Information
Our French teachers use a variety of assessment tools, some of which include:
 Rubrics
 Anecdotal notes
 Checklists
 Quizzes
 On-going oral feedback (pronunciation, intonation/expression and use of acquired vocabulary)
 Written exercises to assess reading comprehension
Section 5:
Action Plan
As a result of the review of our program, the follow action items were identified:
 Communication between home and school will be enhanced in the following ways:
o Regular communication regarding the French content being covered
o French teachers will complete comprehensive overviews of their programs for each of the three
reporting periods; these will include learning standards addressed, instructional strategies
implemented and ways to support the learning at home. These overviews will be included in
the Communicating Student Learning Folders.
o French teachers will be available to meet parents during Learning Conferences and Student-Led
Conferences; sign-up sheets will be posted.
 Specialists refer to specific IB Scope and Sequence documents while writing planners and creating the
French K-4 scope and sequence;
 Administration looks at school schedule and structures to find consistent time for specialists to
collaborate with IB Coordinator and classroom teachers;
 West Bay teachers will continue to connect with Grade 8 French teachers to ensure students are
entering high school with the breadth and depth of the knowledge and skills needed to successfully
participate in French classes;
 French teachers will continue to connect with French specialists in other IB World Schools throughout
the Lower Mainland (e.g., IB PYP Extravaganza);
 Administration will continue to ensure French teachers receive ongoing Professional Development
which may include attending conferences or visiting other sites;
 Administration finds structures to support collaboration between primary and intermediate French
teachers to ensure consistency of approach and a continuum of learning;
 Administration will continue to ensure French teachers are provided with the necessary resources to
supplement/enrich their programs (e.g., theme-based readers)
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French teachers will continue to collaborate with school’s Digital Literacy expert to explore ways to
embed technology into the learning (e.g., finding appropriate apps)
French teachers will continue to explore ways to differentiate within the program to meet the diverse
needs of learners;
A French tab will be added to the school website so parents can access resources to support the
learning at home;
Improve the visual display of French throughout the school;
Each school day over the school PA system, student leaders will continue to deliver the opening section
of the morning message in French, stating the date, number of teachers absent, and guest teachers’
names.
Section 6: Ways to Support Language Learning
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Access resources to support language learning through the West Vancouver Memorial Library at
https://westvanlibrary.ca/research-learn/research/explore-your-topic/learning-language
Help your child review key vocabulary and structures; repetition is crucial in the learning of a language
Encourage your child to read simple French texts
Access YouTube videos related to the learning of the French language for children (for example, to
reinforce vocabulary related to telling time)
Use Duolingo, a computer program and app designed for students learning a language (including
French)
Contact your child’s teacher at any time to set up an appointment should you wish further information
regarding the French program and your child’s progress:
o Mme L. Lhotak (K – Gr. 3): [email protected]
o Mme N. Jetha (Gr. 4 – 7):
[email protected]
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