N.B.
Links in blue will work for you, but if they are red, then they will only work for me while in class.
This post is for the French Advanced Improvers Class at the City of Portsmouth College (Highbury Campus) on Wednesday evenings from January to March 2024.
The classes are due to run from 19:00 to 21:00 on Wednesdays.
17th, 24th and 31st January
7th, 21st, and 28th February (14th is half term)
6th, 13th, 20th, 27th March.
Classes are now available to book for the Summer Term.
The classes are due to run on Wednesdays from 7:00 to 9:00 pm. Just 8 weeks.
Wednesday: 17th, & 24th April
8th, 15th and 22nd May
5th and 12th June
Sometimes, the start is delayed if there are many applications for all classes in at the last minute.
Outside of Class
To improve your listening and speaking skills in a social setting, why not come to the evening or afternoon events I organise in the city?
Would anyone like to host with a view to returning to Caen in 2025, the year of Caen's 1000th Birthday? The French Exchange visit from Caen coming here in June 2024. (14th to 17th).
Tips for refreshing and reinforcing your French
Listen to French Music - Watch French TV series and films (or at least videos/news in French)
There is a lot of stuff online for the French language and learning (not all of it, correct!) The sites below are usually accessible for free and have French-language content.
Free sources for TV
All 4 (Walter Presents on Channel 4 has some French Series among the many foreign series)
France 24 (online news 24/7 in French)
TV5 Monde (an online bank of Francophone TV and Film)
BBC iPlayer (often under BBC 4 programming)
France Info has a live stream on YouTube below...
Free Sources for Radio
Radio.Garden (Sadly, since October 2022, the UK government has blocked this website for working outside the UK). However, click on the ellipsis (...). You can see the option to visit the website - click there, and you can go to the website - click on 'écouter la radio', and it gives all the France Bleu regional stations in France... then you can listen (this option will work on most radio stations based on 'Radio.Garden').
mercredi, 27 mars
Today, cultural aspects are Easter and the April Fool equivalent in France.
We will finish the theme of education sentimentale with 'que des excuses' and 'les perles du français'.
Here is a really 'classy' song about a little chick and all the other animals making various noises on the farm.
mercredi, 20 mars
From Entre Nous 3, We will look at the experiences of those who may have sought alternative education for their children and look at some discussion surrounding this concept.
In the same field - le poisson d'avril. Often a significant pursuit of French children on April 1st.
This is a longer reflection on the purpose of school ...
mercredi, 13 mars
Continuing the educational theme, we look at discipline among children and compare the behaviour of today's children with that of those in the past p128-129, including the debate about corporal punishment and its alternatives.
Grammatically, we look at rather vague ways of expressing quantity.
Jacques DuTronc - Fais pas ci, fais pas ça...
mercredi, 6 mars
L'éducation sentimentale.
You can tell the book was printed before 2020...
Les profs qui ont marqués nos vies...
La chanson du titre de ce chapitre - Maxime Forestier - L'éducation sentimentale.
mercredi, 28 février
The coursebook has a chapter on remembering your school years and education. It also has a chapter on news and 'Today's news will soon be tomorrow's history.' So, here's a story from LCI, which, although from September 2023, is still in the news (and isn't about Ukraine or Israel).
Dans les actualités sur LCI
Dans plusieurs villes chinoises, des "cimetières" géants pour voitures électriques apparaissent. Encouragés par une pluie de subventions, plus de 500 nouveaux constructeurs se sont lancés dans la course à la voiture électrique. En conséquence, les modèles trop vite obsolètes finissent dans ces cimetières. Un véritable gaspillage à grande échelle, car les batteries, qui contiennent de précieux métaux, ne sont pas recyclées.
Qu'en pensez-vous des voitures électriques ?
Sont-elles une bonne ou une mauvaise idée ?
Qu'est-ce que les Chinois auraient dû faire avec ces voitures et les bicyclettes ?
Rose-tinted glasses are, of course, the stuff of nostalgia and memories.
Avec la nostalgie, on voit « la vie en rose ».
Pour moi j'étais au collège dans le Gloucestershire. Le même collège que cette dame. Dans ces films et dans les livres que j'ai lus, je vois quelques-uns de mes profs surtout ceux qui y ont été pendant mes premières deux ans au collège.
mercredi, 21 février
Tonight, we will examine an extract from the script for the film Paris by Cédric Klapisch (trailer below)
Many emotions are involved, and we can look at expressing feelings and discussing behaviours shown.
Voici la Bande Annonce de Paris par Klapisch...
HALF TERM - (14 Feb) - College is closed in this week.
mercredi, 7 février
Le chandeleur - le 2 février
Le mardi gras - le 13 février (cette année)
La Saint Valentin - le 14 février pdf
You may have prepared a presentation about your favourite film(s) in French. Two of you did your presentations last week; well done.
mercredi, 31 janvier
Using p.112>, we will look at people expressing their tastes in films and talking about their films.
What about TV shows, etc - Can you talk about your favourite TV show genres or, indeed, ones you cannot bear?
This is just one guy's opinion; he is giving his idea that Master and Commander is a total anti-French flop! (or a turnip, as the French call them.)
mercredi, 23 janvier
You may have prepared a presentation about your favourite film(s) in French.
Cinéma, Télévision et les médias en France.
TF1
France 2
France 3
Canal +
France 5
M6
arte - Franco-German Channel
There are now many more channels on TNT (Télévision Numérique Terrestre)
EN3 CH6 P111 talks about open-air cinemas and five films that could have been seen at one of these, according to the write-up.
You might like to have a go at these online exercises.
Parmi mes films favoris sont...
Jurassic Park
Moi, j'adorais ce film, car je suis fan des dinosaures depuis un très jeune âge.
Mon dinosaure préféré c'est le tricératops
Ma Sorcière Bien Aimée
mercredi, 17 janvier
We will look (again) at the cinema and visual media in Francophone countries tonight. We began this in November, and some of you may have looked at and possibly even penned a review/ prepared to speak about 'Joyeux Noël,' the film based on the legendary truce in the trenches at Christmas 1914.
We will look at this description of Joyeux Noël to whet your appetite for discussing any film from its 'début' to its 'dénoument'.
Could you speak about your favourite film in French now, or would you need to prepare for next time? (If so, this could be homework for those who wish to have some.)
Here, you can find out what is currently being spoken about in the cinematic world in France.
Remember, this website also has a whole host of reviews written in French (Presse are media reviews, so they are more likely to be correctly written).
We can look at Chapter 6 of Entre Nous if we have time. This is about the cinema and films...
Pauvres Créatures - Bande Annonce - VF
Quelques virelangues bizzares - pour la prononciation
Le ver vert va vers le verre du verre vert.
Un ver vert en vair va vers un verre vert, mais verra un verre vert à l’envers à travers ses verres vers vingt heures.
Mur pourrit, trou s'y fit, rat s'y mit, chat l'y prit.
Si six scies scient six cyprès, six cent six scies scient six cent six cyprès.
Ton thé t'a tôt ôté ta toux.
Les chausettes de l'archi-duchesse, sont-ils sèches, archi-sèches?
Dans ta tente ta tante t'attend.
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