Tina in ME Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 Hi Ladies, I'm trying to figure out what to use for french for high school credit. I will have a 10th and 8th grader that want to do french (I also have a 4th grader). My oldest tried to do SOS Spanish this year and we didn't make it very far. He had some trouble and really just didn't want to do it. I asked him what he would rather do and he said French. Both of these dc did French when they were younger but not to much. I asked them why French and not Spanish since Spanish seems more benifical to me. But they all do ballet and have since they were 3 and 5. So to them French is more exciting. Plus I am French even though I don't speak it. Since oldest will be in 10th and I want him to have 3 years of a Foreign Lang. on his transcript we need to make it work this time. Rosetta Stone just came out with a Homeschool version is this any better then the older version? We own the older version which they used when they were younger. I know it doesn't include grammar plus not much writing. Can it be supplemented? What about So You Really Want to Learn French, is this credit worthy? I am considering letting oldest do French at the local high school, he already takes Jr. ROTC there. But if I can't get the classes back to back it would be crazy to run back and forth. Sorry, now I'm rambling. Thanks for you help. Tina Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather in Savannah Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 Tina, We are Canadian's who have recently moved to the USA. My children have had some French a few years ago, so for us too, this was a better choice than Spanish. My dd has just completed a full year of French in her 9th grade, using a combination of Powerglide and our co-op. The teacher and students were not impressed with Powerglide. They were frustrated that it failed to teach ordinary vocabulary, i.e. Comment ca va? Ou est la salle de baine? All the practical conversation.....instead it told a story about a King and a Quenn, etc. The teacher at the co-op really augmented their vocabulary and grammar. Next year, all the students in the class will be studying French at Georgia Virtual School (we get to take 1 class for free with them). For her 3rd and 4th year, I will be looking at other on-line French courses. Keystone National Highschool has French III and IV, so that may be a possibility. There are other on-line highschools, like Oklahoma University Highschool, North Dakota University Highschool, Texas Tech High, etc. Possibly they would have what you are looking for, with the added bonus of someone else keeping your ds on track....when studying a language, it is essential to not get behind, or all is lost. Hope this gives you some other ideas. Blessings, Heather Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mooooom Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 You can watch the video part free on the Annenberg website. I found the textbooks & workbooks used at college book websites and had to spring for the cds (there are audio tapes out there cheap, but I won't do it..) It is a real immersion program, watch, listen, repeat, write.. Kind of like a language lab. It is a two year college course, which makes it a 4 year high school course. I've been looking over it now, and think it will be easy to implement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie in GA Posted June 20, 2008 Share Posted June 20, 2008 Memoria Press has a French program designed for later elementary/middle school, but in the course description they say that if you complete two books in one year, it equals one high school credit. The layout is very similar to Latina Christiana. This is what I will probably use for French 1 (i.e., books 1 & 2 of First Start French), both for the affordable price, and the simplicity of the layout & lessons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liza Q Posted June 20, 2008 Share Posted June 20, 2008 We used Le Francais Facile and it was pretty good. The first book was a little babyish as it is meant to be flexible enough to use over a few years with a younger child or all in one for a teenager, but the content was solid. The second book was definitely age appropriate. After the first year of French I considered switching to a different program, preferably one that had received lots of good reviews like French in Action or the Potter's School class that uses BJU. But I think that I made the right choice to stick with LFF, if only for consistency. My daughter has a good understanding of French grammar but struggles with all the vocabulary - some words slide out of her head after a while, even with constant review. So, I am having her take a class at the community college in the fall as I think that speaking French in a class will really cement a lot of what she has learned. We have used some excellent books as supplements - Big Blue book of French Verbs Harper Collions Begiunners French Dictionary Easy Reader - French (de Sales) English Grammar for Students of French (Morton) Hth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tina in ME Posted June 24, 2008 Author Share Posted June 24, 2008 Thanks ladies, I'm looking over the programs and trying to decide. Has anyone used the new Rosetta Stone homeschool version3? Is this more worthy of high school credit then it use to be? Thanks, Tina Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5sweeties Posted June 24, 2008 Share Posted June 24, 2008 Hi! I know I've read that the new Rosetta Stone may be worth even less than the older version? I've never used RS though. We are using Breaking the French Barrier this coming year, for our first "real" year. Dd had a mild intro to French for 8th grade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denise in PA Posted June 24, 2008 Share Posted June 24, 2008 Hi! My daughter plans to learn French (9th grade) this fall with Breaking the Barrier with French, too. My son is completing his first year of Breaking the Barrier with Spanish. THe grammar is excellent and provides helpful hints to remember verb conjugations and new vocabulary. My years of Spanish in high school is a big plus. French.... I do not know this beautiful language and am not sure Breaking the Barrier is the only answer for my daughter. She will learn grammar and vocabulary, but this mom cannot help her with the oral exercises. Yes, a audio CD accompanies the text, but my child needs a live French speaking partner to truly enjoy speaking French. Any suggestions? Adios, Denise Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tamarind Posted June 24, 2008 Share Posted June 24, 2008 Denise, Breaking the Barrier looks like a great program; I have seen the online samples. Perhaps you could supplement with French movies, especially those by Truffaut (they are clean!). Year 1: your daughter could watch them in French with English subtitles; then Year 2: French with French subtitles; and Year 3: French only. Truffaut's movies are great can can be watched multiple times. I adore Small Change in particular. 400 Blows is also good. There is a recent Cyrano de Bergerac my daughters enjoyed. We also loved La Gloire de mon Pere, Jean de Florette, and Manon des Sources. Also, Babette's Feast is good (filmed in Danish & French). I like anything with Audrey Tautou but her movies are generally not appropriate for teenagers younger than 17. You should also supplement with literature and perhaps audiobooks. Dover has inexpensive bilingual French-English books; some may be accompanied by audio CDs. Also, don't miss Le Petit Prince by St. Exupery. Read it and listen to it on audiotape (to hear the language). I think all French students should also read Guy de Maupassant stories! Enjoy your study of French! Tamarind Homeschooling with Kolbe, grades 6 & 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denise in PA Posted June 24, 2008 Share Posted June 24, 2008 Tamarind: Thanks for keeping this thread alive! Great advice that I plan to copy and paste for reference. Denise Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie in GA Posted June 24, 2008 Share Posted June 24, 2008 What is Manon des Sources? Do you mean Manon of the Spring, the sequel to Jean de Florette, or is there a movie I've missed? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tamarind Posted June 24, 2008 Share Posted June 24, 2008 Julie, Yes, Manon des Sources is the French title of Manon of the Spring. There is another movie based on Pagnol's works, Le Chateau de ma mere, or My Mother's Castle; but I don't like it nearly so much as the other three. Tamarind Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kareni Posted June 24, 2008 Share Posted June 24, 2008 Here's a post from another thread that might be of interest: http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showpost.php?p=213455&postcount=14 Regards. Kareni Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karensk Posted June 25, 2008 Share Posted June 25, 2008 Hi!My daughter plans to learn French (9th grade) this fall with Breaking the Barrier with French, too. My son is completing his first year of Breaking the Barrier with Spanish. THe grammar is excellent and provides helpful hints to remember verb conjugations and new vocabulary. My years of Spanish in high school is a big plus. French.... I do not know this beautiful language and am not sure Breaking the Barrier is the only answer for my daughter. She will learn grammar and vocabulary, but this mom cannot help her with the oral exercises. Yes, a audio CD accompanies the text, but my child needs a live French speaking partner to truly enjoy speaking French. Many of the U.S. Department of State Foreign Service Institute's language courses are available online for free. I guess these are the materials used (at one time) by U.S. diplomats to learn a new language for their overseas assignment. Their French course consists of 1 cultural component (Le Monde Francophone) and 3 language components (Intro to French Phonology, Basic Course 1, Basic Course 2). There are over 200 downloadable audio files (free) plus the coordinating text for each lesson. These same books are sold on amazon for over $30 each and can be downloaded for free here! In an upper-division French oral expression course I took at U.T.-Austin, our only text was The Basic Course 2 book. We were also required to go to the language lab for ~3 hrs/wk, where we listened to the audio tapes (which are the downloadable audio files) as we followed along in the text. You don't have to have the text in front of you to use the tapes. Part of it is just listening to the short dialogue. Another part is repeating phrases or sentences you hear; the lab equipment enables you to listen to your spoken French immediately after you speak, so you can determine if your pronunciation is correct. It's actually extremely repetitive; the goal is to get your speaking & listening speed up. The speakers have a pretty thick Parisian accent, I think (plus they speak really fast), and it was hard for me to understand them the first time round without the text in front of me. Intro to French Phonology would be useful for learning to use correct French pronunciation. Though not as good as having a live person to speak French with, at least this program is convenient and free. HTH! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lynn in Caribbean Posted June 27, 2008 Share Posted June 27, 2008 I was wondering who has used BJU French. I see BJU Spanish mentioned on this board occasionally, but not French. I am thinking of using it for 9th grade coming up as my ds really wants to study French. Opinions, anyone? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamaof2andtwins Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 We will be trying Tell Me More French this fall with the older two. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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