question on how you all implement Galore Park foreign language

[Tina Duke]

we just started the french and it seems really good but how do you all actually implement the lessons.. do you have them notebook the voacab words? what does your lesson actually look like?

[Lorna]

We are using French Prep 1.
We do many of the exercises out loud. I only really ask them to do writing to emphasize verb endings.
I have added in a few questionnaires of my own based on the vocabulary in each chapter (always done out loud). This is quite simple to do. I simply replace verbs or nouns in other exercises or use the 'useful phrases' at the end of the chapter. I also ask them plenty of extra questions on verb construction, for example, 'How would you say, 'you (plural/polite) have' or 'we make''.
We make flash cards at the end of each chapter with the end-of-chapter list. I generally find that they remember the nouns easily and the verbs need more practice.
We listen to the CD over and over again (before, during, at the end of the lesson and the next day before the next lesson)
It helps that I can speak French already and that the children have already got French speaking experience. There is quite a bit of French in the book that is not spoken on the CD. I really recommend Michel Thomas's 8hr and advanced course for brushing up on French grammar and pronunciation for yourself. It is so much nicer to be able to learn a language one to one or in a small family group. Everyone is relaxed and is not afraid to have a go.
We usually spend half an hour to forty minutes, five days a week.

[Tina Duke]

I"m using french prep 1 as well... we just started two days ago.. he's done french since early elementary... using Learnables and this year he'd used Rosetta Stone free online through the library. I've heard they are doing away with this which is why I purchased SYWTL.. I will have him use RS too as long as the library has it. I don't speak french at all which is why, I'm sure, he's doing ok but not as well as he should be after all these years. I should probably start with the beginner one by him then? if I did this would it benefit him to do as well?

[Lorna]

I"m using french prep 1 as well... we just started two days ago.. he's done french since early elementary... using Learnables and this year he'd used Rosetta Stone free online through the library. I've heard they are doing away with this which is why I purchased SYWTL.. I will have him use RS too as long as the library has it. I don't speak french at all which is why, I'm sure, he's doing ok but not as well as he should be after all these years. I should probably start with the beginner one by him then? if I did this would it benefit him to do as well?


I would really encourage you to do the Michel Thomas Course yourself yes. Start right at the beginning. You will be speaking French very quickly. Take your time with the pronunction and listen to the Galore Park cd as much as you can.
I love the Michel Thomas course but I probably wouldn't do both courses simultaneously with your son because they teach the language in quite different ways. You could both try the Michel Thomas course every day for maybe two weeks and see if you think your son is advancing using it. The 8hr beginner course would certainly take him up to the level of grammar taught in book one of SYRWTL French 1 and beyond. He could then go through the SYRWTL French Book 1 relatively quickly, simply picking up the extra vocabulary and consolidating what he has already learned. It will be easier for you to check he is learning with the SYRWTL French book too.
If he has already covered plenty of French, Michel Thomas may give him a lot of aha! moments. It did that for me and I had six years of school French.