El Segundo Unified School District

El Segundo High School

 

Course Description

 

Course Title:                 French 4

Department:                  Foreign Language

Grade Level:                 10-12

 

 

French 4 is a course for students who have completed French 3 or who perform at Stage3 competencies in comprehension, thinking, speaking, reading and writing. There will be continued emphasis on vocabulary development, the correct use of idiom, proficiency in the use of verbs and syntax, and increased emphasis on reading and composition. The course will include content related to the cultural perspectives inherent in language, geography, history, tradition, art, music, dance and literature. Students will explore topics that are less familiar, experiment with more complex structures associated with advanced functions, and engage in more elaborate discourse. Since learning advanced language skills requires excellent study habits, this course will require substantial study and practice time outside of class. Course content prepares students for the SAT II in French.

 

Length:  One year

Prerequisite for Enrollment:  75% or better in French 3

Recommendation for Enrollment:  Teacher Recommendation

Type of Course:  College Preparatory (UC/CSU)

 

Course Outline and Standards

(Language Learning Continuum)

 

Function: What the student can do with the language

 

Students expand their ability to perform all the functions developed in Stages I, II and III.  They also develop the ability to:

  • provide and obtain information, express feelings and emotions, and exchange opinions (ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines) (Effective communication)
  • give and understand advice and suggestions; (ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines) (Effective communication)
  • initiate, engage in, and close a conversation; (ACTFL Proficiency  Guidelines) (Effective communication)
  •  compare and contrast (Personal / Social Development)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Context: Situations in which the student can perform functions

 

Students can perform these functions:

  • when speaking, in face to face social interaction, in simple transactions on the phone, and in group discussions, prepared debates, and presentations; contrast (ACTFL ProficiencyGuidelines) (Effective communication)
  • when listening, in social interaction and using audio or video texts, including TV interviews and newscasts; (Personal / Social Development)
  • when reading short literary texts, poems, and articles; (Personal / Social Development)
  • when writing journals, letters, and essays. (ACTFL ProficiencyGuidelines) (Effective communication)

 

 

 

Text Type: How the students expresses himself or herself in terms of discourse

 

Students can:

  • use simple discourse in a series of coherent paragraphs when speaking; (ACTFL ProficiencyGuidelines) (Effective communication)
  • understand most authentic spoken language when listening; (ACTFL ProficiencyGuidelines) (Integration of Core Knowledge)
  • create a series of coherent paragraphs when writing; (ACTFL ProficiencyGuidelines) (Effective communication)
  • Acquire knowledge and new information from comprehensive, authentic texts when reading. (Personal / Social Development)

           

 

Accuracy: How closely the student’s performance matches the criteria

 

Students:

  • can engage in conversations with few significant patterns of error and use a wide range of appropriate vocabulary; (ACTFL ProficiencyGuidelines) (Effective communication)
  • demonstrate a heightened awareness of culturally appropriate behavior although, as the task or message becomes more complex, they tend to become less accurate; (ACTFL ProficiencyGuidelines)  (Personal/Social Development)
  • Are able to understand and report most key ideas and some supporting detail when reading and listening. (Critical thinking/Problem Solving)
  • speak with phonetic accuracy, fluency, and appropriate use of idiom and syntax (ACTFL ProficiencyGuidelines) (Effective communication)
  • Students narrate and describe in major time frames with good control of aspect. (ACTFL ProficiencyGuidelines) (Effective communication)

 

Content: What the student is able to communicate about

 

Content embraces:

  • concepts of broader cultural significance, including institutions such as the education system, the government, and political and social issues in the target culture; (Critical thinking/Problem Solving)
  • Topics of social and personal interest such as music, literature, the arts, and the sciences. (ACTFL ProficiencyGuidelines)  (Personal/Social Development)

 

 

 

 

Standards  

Communication

 

Standard 1.1:    Students engage in conversations, provide and obtain information, express

 feelings and

                         emotions, and exchange opinions.

Standard 1.2:    Students understand and interpret written and spoken language on a variety

of topics.

Standard 1.3:    Students present information, concepts, and ideas to an audience of listeners

 or readers on a variety of topics.

 

Cultures

 

Standard 2.1:     Students demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between the practices

                        and perspectives of the culture studied.

 

Standard 2.2:    Students demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between the products

and perspectives of the culture studied.

 

Connections

           

Standard 3.1:     Students reinforce and further their knowledge of other disciplines through

 foreign language.

Standard 3.2:    Students acquire information and recognize the distinctive viewpoints that are

only available through the foreign language and its cultures.

 

Comparisons

 

 Standard 4.1:    Students demonstrate understanding of the nature of language through

 comparisons of the language studied and their own. 

 Standard 4.2:   Students demonstrate understanding of the concept of culture through

 comparisons of the culture studied and their own. 

 

 

Communities

 

 Standard 5.1:   Students use the language both within and beyond the school setting.

 Standard 5.2:   Students show evidence of becoming life-long learners by using the language

for personal enjoyment and enrichment.

 

 

Instructional Materials

 

Texts

 

A.     C’est Ca, Scott Foresman l993
B.     C’est Ca Workbook and Tape Manual, Scott Foresman l993
C.     Chez Nous, Scholastic Magazine
D.     Qu’est-ce Qui Se Passe

 

Instructional Methods

 

  1. Lecture, description, explanation with maps, painting, artefacts, etc.
  2. Reading
    1. Group reading with teacher explanation, comment, questions,
    2. Paired reading
    3. Individual assigned reading.
  3. Discussion and analysis based on reading and research
  4. Group, pair and individual activities and presentations based on art, literature, history, culture

Geography, etc.

  1. Writing
    1. Answering questions based on reading of literature, newspapers, letters, magazine articles, recipes, advertisements, menus, etc.
    2. Exercises in advanced sentence structure and vocabulary as wall as a review of language fundamentals.
    3. Comment, and analysis.
    4. Paragraph writing.
    5. Essay writing
    6. Letter writing
    7. Note taking
  2. Quizzes, tests, graded assignments and oral reports.
  3. Augmentation of the vocabulary of cultural experience through film clips, videos, tapes, art, music, and cultural events.
  4. Presentations.  Brief (2-5 minutes) and long (10-15 minutes) based on interviews and research.

 

Assessments

 

A.  Entry Level Assessments

1.   Diagnostic Test

2.      Portfolio of written work from previous year

3.      Oral assessment:  informal interview

 

B.       Progress/Monitoring

1.      Oral grades on paired practices

2.      Class Attendance and the quality of preparation and participation

3.      Assignments both oral and written

C.       Summative

1.      Quizzes, oral and writing

2.      Chapter Tests

3.      Cumulative Tests

4.      Proficiency Tests

5.      Semester and Final Exams

6.      Projects

7.      Oral Presentations