French
French is a useful and very beautiful language and learning it gives you access to a different, exciting culture of theatre, literature, cinema, music, dance, art and, of course, food!
We learn about these aspects through the language in the classroom and get to enhance our understanding through extra-curricular activities such as debates and theatre visits as well as trips to France in years 8, 10 and 11 and in the Sixth Form.
All girls study French in years 7, 8 and 9 and many go on to study it as an option in years 10 and 11. There is no limit to the options available to you if you study French at University as you can combine it with the majority of University courses and spend a year abroad. Having a language as part of your degree also increases your employability and, often, your salary.
In the Sixth Form, girls experience a wide range of polemic topics which often provoke interesting debates: for example, CCTV surveillance, identity cards, recycling and the use of renewable energy resources, prison sentences and crime, reality TV, drug and alcohol abuse and the importance of image to young people today (amongst others). Along side this, in year 13; girls are required to study two cultural elements of a French speaking country. This could be a region, a period in history, the work of a poet or playwright or even a recent film that they have enjoyed. This aspect has proved very popular with girls in previous years as they find they enjoy learning about a particular poet or figure in French history.
Fascinating FactsFascinating Facts
- French is the official language of the United Nations, NATO, the EEC and the International Red Cross, as well as the International Olympic Committee – worth bearing in mind for 2012!
- In the 300 years which followed William the Conqueror’s victory at the Battle of Hastings, all the English monarchs spoke French as a first language.
- 33 countries count French as one of their official languages – second only to English. France is one of them, can you name the rest? http://www.fll.vt.edu/French/francophonie.html
- Paris, the capital city of France, is the most visited city in the world and receives over 44 million visitors a year. We visit Paris in year 12! http://www.timeout.com/paris/
- Strangely, in France, you do not have a ‘frog’ in your throat when you have a croaky voice. Instead, you have a cat in your throat. (Un chat dans la gorge) .
- France produces 20% of the world’s wine – that’s about 5,500,000,000 litres per year. ..Not to mention over 400 kinds of cheese! Some of these can be found on your local supermarket shelves – have you ever spotted any?
- The Statue of Liberty was made in France and given to the Americans as a gift. A mini version of the statue can be found on the Seine – the river that runs through the centre of Paris. Incidentally, the man who constructed the statue was the same man responsible for building the Eiffel Tower.
- Well-known children’s classics ‘Cinderella’, ‘Sleeping Beauty’ and ‘Puss in Boots’ were originally written in French by author Charles Perrault and have since been translated into English.
- The word ‘blonde’ has only recently been borrowed from the French language. Up until the very recently, English people only used the expressions ‘Fair-haired’ or ‘flaxen’ to describe blonde people. Why not follow this link to see how good your knowledge of borrowed words is? http://www.whystudylanguages.ac.uk/ks3/listening
- French alphabet letters are the same as the ones used in English. However, no French word uses the letter ‘w’ and its usage is found only in foreign language words. Think about it...