Alex et Zoe?

[EducationX2]

I know that a couple people have used this program. How much reading is involved in this program? DD can read in English, but she still needs to sound things out and isn't reading fluently. Should I wait until she's reading fluently to start Alex et Zoe?

 

I *think* I've decided to go with this program. Right now we're using L'art de dire, but it's too unstructured for me. I need something with more... substance.

I can read pretty much anything in French, and when DD specifically asks me "Mommy, how do you say..... in French?" I can generally tell her, but I have a harder time just speaking off the cuff- it usually comes out as a horrible mixture of French and Spanish (I'm learning both). :tongue_smilie:

 

DD is *very* motivated to learn French. I'd like to find something solid, that we can make good progress on in the next 6 months, so that we can add Spanish in Feb. I've been holding off on adding Spanish, but DD has been asking for it for a long time now, I don't want to wait too long and miss out on her interest.

[enviromommy]

I don't know, but I just ordered it for my 7 and 5 year olds, so I should find out soon! I'm so excited. We had l'Art de Dire, but I truly hated it. I thought it was so boring and not at all pretty to look at.

 

They are both reading fluently in English, but I actually think it might be a plus not to be reading fluently in English yet, it gives the languages more of a chance to be on an equal footing, KWIM?

[EducationX2]

We use Alex et Zoe 1 and in your case, I think it would work perfectly :) There isn't much reading involved - so far DS has been able to get away with just knowing the beginning sounds (Bonjour starts with the B sound, etc) in order to do the matching and what not.

 

I couldn't tell you about any higher levels.

 

(Also, I think the teacher's manual is invaluable!)

 

Thanks! I'll definitely have to keep considering it. It seems to be highly recommended. And even if the higher levels do require more reading, I know enough French to expand level 1 out some if needed. She's right at the edge though between nonreader and reader, I'm just waiting on that lightbulb moment.

I really need to get serious about French. We've done a lot of casual and passive learning, but not enough active learning.

 

I don't know, but I just ordered it for my 7 and 5 year olds, so I should find out soon! I'm so excited. We had l'Art de Dire, but I truly hated it. I thought it was so boring and not at all pretty to look at.

 

They are both reading fluently in English, but I actually think it might be a plus not to be reading fluently in English yet, it gives the languages more of a chance to be on an equal footing, KWIM?

 

I agree about L'art de dire! It is boring. And I could have put that together myself. I guess for parents who don't know French, or who know very little French, it could be helpful, but I was really unhappy with it.

 

But I disagree about reading. Because when you can read in one language, you can read in another. You don't have to re-learn HOW to read. I mean, you may have to learn new sounds for the letters, but the basics of reading are still the same.

[unity]

I agree that there's hardly any reading. One thing to note is that in the workbook much of the writing is in French handwriting. That was tricky for my dd.

 

You might be interested to know that there's a coordinating series, "Apprendre a lire avec Alex et Zoe," which I believe is a phonics program in French.

 

I love Alex et Zoe, which you probably know if you've been reading old posts! :001_smile:

[flyingiguana]

Does one need the classroom CDs for Alex and Zoe? Or is everything in the books?

 

I'm kind of confused by the books as well. On Amazon, one reviewer said it was the wrong book. That Amazon was shipping the workbook instead of the actual book. I don't really know what to make of that:

http://www.amazon.com/Alex-Et-Zoe-Compagnie-DActivites/dp/2090338172/ref=pd_sim_b_3

[unity]

You don't strictly *need* the classroom CD, and you could make do with the individual CD and the Guide pedagogique (GP). The individual CD has the just songs and raps, so you know the tunes. If you buy the classroom CD, you get the songs, raps, and all dialogues & exercises from the textbook. The script for those dialogues/exercises is printed in the GP, so you could just read them yourself. Even if you have a great accent in French (even if you are a native speaker), I still think there is value to the CDs, because they have lots of different voices speaking French. There is always the danger of a student's getting used to only the teacher, and then not being able to survive in situations with other speakers. Plus the CDs purposely put background noises on the tracks, to strengthen the real-life simulation of the listening environment.

 

Personally, I think they are well worth it.

 

I don't know about the Amazon shipping problem. It would certainly make me hesitant to buy that item from Amazon.

[enviromommy]

Does one need the classroom CDs for Alex and Zoe? Or is everything in the books?

 

I'm kind of confused by the books as well. On Amazon, one reviewer said it was the wrong book. That Amazon was shipping the workbook instead of the actual book. I don't really know what to make of that:

http://www.amazon.com/Alex-Et-Zoe-Compagnie-DActivites/dp/2090338172/ref=pd_sim_b_3

 

Yes! I just received it, and I got 2 copies of the cahier d'activités instead of one of those and one textbook. Fortunately, I need 2 of the cahiers d'activités anyway, I just wanted to make sure I liked it before buying the rest.

 

Now off to buy the textbook from another vendor. Oh, and by the way, the Guide Pédagogique is FABULOUS. Walks you through the lesson. You do have to speak fluent French to teach from it, though.

[Guest heybets]

We found the Alex et Zoé series to be really easy to use, and fairly effective. The books and CDs lived in the car, so we 'carschooled' whenever we went anywhere. The workbooks got used at home. Between those and a vacation in France, we're now at the point of speaking French around the house about half the time, so it's worked for us. I second that the Guide Pédagogique is worth having. Even if you don't follow French well, it'll help you to look up some of the trickier CD dialogues, which enables you to explain them, Mine kids are now 7 and 9, and are about done with the three available levels. Can someone please suggest a good next curricular step? I'm at a loss without further Alex et Zoé!

 

Many thanks,

 

-Betsy

[yinanyinu]

How about Amis et compagnie? The website suggests level 2 for students who have already completed Alex et Zoe.

[Guest inmaroc]

Hi Everyone! Thanks for all the wonderful advice.  Since some people had problems ordering from Amazon, where do you recommend that I purchase Alex et Zoe?  I live in Morocco but I can order it to an address to the states and whenever people come visit us, they'd bring it over (which is actually quiet often!).

 

Anyway, I'd really appreciate your advice! I want the CDs (individual and classroom) since that's what you guys recommend, and of course the book. 

[Guest heybets]

Amis 2 purchased! Thank you for the advice on that, yinanyinu.

 

As for where to buy Alex et Zoe, I really like World of Reading. It's a small outfit that goes for a high wheat-to-chaf ratio. http://www.wor.com/cat-french-books---elementary-curriculum.cfm If you call the person that runs it, she's fairly knowledgeable, and can answer questions.

 

Also, someone asked if the CDs are necessary. I would say they are. Emphasis in Alex et Zoe is very much aural, so skipping the CDs would make this otherwise good curriculum a lousy choice. If you want to go CD-less, there are almost certainly better packages for the job.