Grade 8: Creating Children’s Books in French

Under the guidance of Graland French teacher, Madame Carlson, Grade 8 students recently created their very own children's book, entirely in French!  

"For this assignment, the students wrote a children's story describing the life of a bug (or bugs). I challenged them to write in the past tense and to use French vocabulary words related to nature such as forest, trees, mountains, etc." Madame Carlson said. 
In addition to writing and illustrating their own stories, the Grade 8 French students were also able to read each other's imaginative narratives at the end of the project. 

"This activity is not only fun and interactive, but it also allows the students to practice their reading comprehension skills," Madame Carlson said. "I think they also enjoy the challenge of reading stories in a language other than English." 

At Graland, while students in Kindergarten through Grade 4 are exposed to Spanish as part of their specials rotations, full-time world language classes begin in Grade 5, where students can choose to study Spanish or French. In fact, due to their four-year language commitment, many students who graduate from Graland are proficient in French or Spanish and skip ahead in their high school language classes. 

"I've been teaching most of my Grade 8 students for four years," Madame Carlson said. "They are all very motivated and engaged, and their progress in understanding how the French language works has been amazing. Most of them will continue to take French in high school, and many will automatically start in advanced French, which I consider a success." 

To follow her teaching philosophy of keeping class fun, intriguing, and engaging, Madame Carlson has many more creative French lessons planned for the rest of the year. "In Grade 8 French, the students will learn about food, in particular French food, and create a video of a cooking class. In addition, they will study animals in detail, play charades, learn about French holidays, and will finish the year by studying future tense and jobs, and imagine their lives 20 years from now, in French!" Madame Carlson shared. Très magnifique!
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Graland Country Day School

Graland Country Day School is a private school in Denver, Colorado, serving students in preschool, kindergarten, elementary, and middle school. Founded in Denver in 1927, Graland incorporates a rich, experiential learning approach in a traditional classroom setting, emphasizing the development of globally and socially conscious leaders who excel academically.