AP French Language Syllabus
Course Design:
The AP French Language course is the culmination of a program which is
designed, from 6th grade through French V to prepare students for the AP exam.
Our approach to reading, writing, speaking and listening skills, from the earliest
level, is designed to provide students with numerous opportunities to acquire
French naturally and to perform in situations which call for unrehearsed use of the
language.
Overview of Program prior to AP French Language
French is taught (middle school through French 4) using TPRS (Teaching Proficiency
through Reading and Storytelling). French is the language of instruction in the classroom.
Our students focus on language acquisition through storytelling and reading and learn
both vocabulary and grammar in context of the stories. Very little grammar is taught in
isolation as a discrete element of language structure.
Listening
In the Upper School, we work on listening skills using materials not produced
intentionally for students of French.. This allows students to hear a variety of accents
and the language spoken at a normal speed in an extended contextualized situation.
French III uses the Caillou, Benjamin, Berenstein Bears dvds which have no English
subtitles. All levels (II, III, IV, V) use movies, some of which are not subtitled. Extensive
use if made of French popular music and of the news programs from TV5. Listening and
speaking skills are developed through the almost exclusive use of French in the
classroom. Students are expected to speak only in French in class.
Reading
Reading skills start in the 6th grade when students begin to read the Blaine Ray series of
readers which are almost 100% comprehensible and provide cultural topics for
discussion. In French 2 and 3 students do free reading outside of class as their major
homework assignments. Students choose among the almost 300 books on various
topics/levels which are available in the classrooms. These books range from the usual
student readers to books, published in Canada of France, for older children/young
adolescents. Students who plan to continue to French IV (and later French V) have
summer reading. Incoming French IV students read Le Petit Nicolas et les Copains over
the summer. In French IV students read Harry Potter à l’école des Sorciers and Harry
Potter et la Chambre de Secrets. Between French IV and French V, the first 250 pages
of Harry Potter et le Prisoner d’Azkaban are assigned as summer reading. Students
write either a reaction to each chapter or an explanation of the significance of the title of
the chapter.
Writing
Beginning in the middle school, students do weekly timed writings on a given topic. The
goal, in Upper School, is for French III students to write 150+ words on a topic within
10-15 minutes. This training is very helpful in getting the students to express themselves
freely, to build their confidence and to improve their writing. . This activity makes the
goal of a 300+ word essay on the AP test not such a daunting task.
In French III, IV and V, a correction key is used to indicate areas of difficulty and
students are trained to recognize and correct their mistakes and to be aware of their
particular “bête noire”. In French III, a very specific rubric is introduced to evaluate
student writing in terms of the accuracy of basic structures as well as requiring the
increased use of advanced structures ( present and past participles, conditional and
subjunctive sentences, object and relative pronouns etc) as well as transition words or
phrases. The goal in the writing program is to gradually focus on and improve those
skills of organization, accuracy, varied vocabulary and sentence structure which mark a
successful AP essay.
Speaking
With the almost exclusive use of French in classes, beginning in Middle School, students
have many opportunities to speak. The TPRS method of teaching ensures almost constant
student-teacher dialogue during the entire class period. The technique requires studentteacher collaboration on the creation, refinement and expansion of class stories. The
focus on asking students personalized questions engages them in the stories and openended questions are used to encourage the students to think creatively in French.
At the end of each level of French (again from 6th grade), students take an oral exam
based on the AP format. The students are given a picture to describe and a follow-up
open-ended question. They are to speak for about a minute. The exam is given in our
analog lab where students will eventually take the AP exam. Tapes are rated by the
teacher and the scores/comments are kept on file along with the cassettes. In French III
and IV, students take the STAMP test (Standards-based Measurement of Proficiency)
offered by Language Learning Systems in conjunction with CASLS (Center for Applied
Second Language Studies at the University of Oregon). This assessment has an oral
component in which students are given three prompts and are asked to give a 60 second
response. The advantage of using the STAMP is that the speaking section is rated by
professional evaluators and the results are reported using the ACTFL scale. Students in
French III and IV use the school’s email service, First Class, to respond to oral prompts
from the teacher which they send back as voice mails. In AP French, students give oral
presentations on cultural topics and record four practice exams using the AP format.
Assessments:
In both 8th grade and at the end of level III, our students take the New York Proficiency
(8th grade) or Regents exams (level III) as well as the STAMP test. These two
assessments allos us to judge our students’ progress against specific ACTFL standards
and to compare the results to the ACTFL levels which the French faculty has chosen as
the desired performance for each class. These two assessments allow us to pinpoint
weakness in the performance of individual students or of a class as a whole so that the
weakness can be addressed the following year. In French IV, students again take the
STAMP test and results are used diagnostically in planning specific remedial/ enrichment
activities in the AP class. Year end exams administered in all levels of French are
benchmarked to the ACTFL standards and are constructed using materials such as the
National French Contest. The same “benchmark” exam is used for a period of several
years in order to be able to the faculty to compare student achievement across levels. On
the final exam, each student’s performance in speaking, writing, reading, listening and
grammar sections is measured (meets, exceeds, fails to meet) department goals and this
information goes into the student’s language file.
Course Objectives:
 To provide students with a wide range of topics and a variety of settings in which
to practice and become proficient in their oral, aural, written and reading skills in
preparation for the AP French Language Exam
 To provide students with opportunities to study and discuss various topics of
French history and culture for purpose of enriching their appreciation of
French/franocophone culture and making connections between these topics and
their daily lives.
 To provide students with opportunities to encounter contemporary French music,
media and politics which allow them to practice their language skills in natural
situations.
 To encourage students to continue their study of French and to provide contact
with students in France with whom they may develop life-long friendships.
Primary Resources:
 Harry Potter et le prisonnier d’Azkaban ISBN 2-0-052818-9 Folio Junior
 Le Petit Prince ISBN 2-07-051578-8 Folio Junior
 Excerpts from “Un Sac de Billes (Joseph Joffo) ISBN
 Excerpts from “Jean de Florette” ISBN
and “Manon des Sources (Pagnol) ISNB 287706512X Editions de Fallois
 “Preparing for the French Language Exam “ (Ladd) ISBN 0-673-21847-3
 “The Best Preparation for the AP Language Exam” (Knauer)
ISBN 0-7386-0102-1
 Released AP exams
 “L’Actu” –on line newspaper from PlayBac Presse (Paris)
 “Presse Papiers” (extraits de la presse francaise) (ELI)
 TV5
Facilities
 Analog lab for practice taping/administrator of AP test
 Digital MAC lab for Rosetta Stone/ ClassPak activities
 Students all have laptops
 SMART BOARD linked to video/audio receiver to project movies on large screen
Course Planner
Weeks 1-34 Journal/Essay writing
 Weekly journals/essays are based on the reading being done in class (novels,
newspapers, magazines ), reactions to TV news or movie themes .
 In class essays (done bi-weekly) are timed (45 minutes) and use previous AP
prompts
 Rubric: 1st and 2nd trimester –diagnostic rubric identifying areas of concern.
Students are assessed on their ability to use a variety of advanced structures,
tenses and transition elements. Students correct/rewrite the essay and return for a
second grade. See appendix
 Rubric: 3rd trimester—holistic rubric using the AP guidelines. Students correct
and return the essay but no second grade is given.
 AP practice: 3rd trimester, the AP open-response section (fill-in and verbs) as well
as the essay are given in a 60 minute class period in order to familiarize students
with issues of time management/proofreading in preparation for the exam
Weeks 1-30 French Music
 Students listen to, on a weekly basis, traditional french singers (Brel, Brassen,
Moustaki, Duteil, Le Forestier, Piaf, Cabrel, Goldman) as well as more recent
singers/groups such as Renaud, Axelle Red, Zebda, Benabar, Chanson Plus,
Manau, Teri Moise, Alpha Blondy
 Songs are introduced as cloze activities with an emphasis on a particular tense,
grammatical structure. Discussion, in French, is held on the theme, images, choice
of vocabulary and cultural setting/significance. Students are asked to identify the
importance of the grammatical/syntactical choices that a composer makes when
writing a song.
 Students are asked to choose a French song and present it to the class as an
“analyse du texte”. If an accompanying video clip is available, it is viewed and
the class discusses the manner in which the video meets their expectations given
the theme/imagery of the song. Students often comment on how different French
music videos are from their American counterparts.
 Themes such as immigration, living in an urban area, use of language (verlan,
foreign terms, slang), French history, modern conflicts (terrorism, war), are
discussed in the context of the songs studied. Emphasis is given to those
singers/songs which reflect the changes in French society (Zebda, Frere200,
Benabar for example)

Students write an essay comparing the theme/songs of a French singer/composer
with an American singer/composer of their choice.
Websites: http://musique.ado.fr
 http://plateau.pntic.mes-es/_cvera/hotpot/chansons/index.htm
 www.tv5.org
 www.paroles.net
Weeks 1-5 Harry Potter et le Prisonnier d’Azkaban
 Review of the first 12 chapters which are read over the summer. Discussion, in
French, of plot developments from the first two books which continue in this
book.
 Presentations, in French, by the students on the development of the characters
over the series of books. Discussions of the significance of the chapter titles and
the differences between the story line as seen in the video and read in the book.
 The remaining chapters 13-22 are read with accompanying questions/discussions.
 The corresponding video sections are seen once with subtitles are a preview of the
reading and then without subtitles on the day of the discussion.
 Grammar is reviewed in the context of excerpts from the text. Vocabulary is
chosen from the text and quizzed.
 A final essay is assigned on the popularity of this genre of writing and a
discussion is subsequently held in class.
 Edition used: Folio Junior ISBN 2-07-0528-28-9
Weeks 6-10; Le Petit Prince
 The objective of this unit of study is to understand the significance of St-Exupery
as a French writer and to recognize the importance of this work in the body of 20th
century French literature.
 Students do a preliminary study of St-Exupery and make an oral report to the
class. Topics are: his early life, his career as a pilot, his stay in the US, his other
works,,commentaries on the meaning of Le Petit Prince, his disappearance and the
recent finding of his plane….
 Students have plot and open-ended questions for each chapter and have to name
the chapters. In class discussion centers around plot questions, the names chosen
by students for each chapters, and finally the open-ended question for each
chapter.
 There is a final essay and the students all create a clay creation that symbolizes
the book for them and these are presented in class as well as a follow-up
discussion of the students’ various answers to the essay questions. All discussion
takes place in French.




Students listen to various sections of the book as read on the CD “Le Petit Prince
by Gaillmard Jeunesse. They also listen/look at the assorted
biographic/commentaries contained on the CD.
Edition used: Folio Junior ISBN 2-07-051578-8
Websites: www.richmond.edu/~jpaulsen/petitprince/petitprince.html#activite
www.lepetitprince.com (Official site, activities, multimedia
presentations)
Activities/questions to accompany the book –see Appendix.
Weeks 11-19 Le Sac de Billes/ German Occupation of France
 The objective of this unit is for the students to be able to, in French,
1. explain the attitude and preparation of the French military prior to the
invasion of France with an emphasis on the role of Petain and DeGaulle.
2. identify the major figures in French history from 1940-45
3. identify the area of France which was officially occupied as well as the
site of the Vichy government
4. explain the role fo the French resistance during the war, its major leaders
and its impact on French society and the outcome of the war.
5. explain the series of Jewish laws passed by the Vichy government
from1940-44 and the resulting impact on the daily lives of French Jewish
citizens.
6. explain the significance of camps of Drancy and Struthof.
7. understand and explain the terms “milice” and “collabos’ in terns of the
conflicts which French citizens faced during the Occupation as well as
identifying the actions of those who protected Jewish citizens.
 The students are asked to do a preliminary study of the war and to present their
papers to the class as an introduction to the novel/films which will be used. The
presentations are in French as are the papers. Each student had to prepare a
powerpoint for the class.
 The novel “Un Sac de Billes” was read, in its entirety. Students were asked to
summarize and give titles to each chapter as well as answering some specific plot
questions. Discussion was held about the titles chosen and their appropriateness.
 Students watch the film : Un Sac de Billes (no subtitles), Au Revoir, les Enfants
(with subtitles), La Shoah (an interview with a French survivor of the
Holocaust—subtitled), and Chabonne (subtitled). With Au Revoir, les enfants
and Chabonne, some sections were shown with subtitiles.
 Students gave impromptu in-class presentations on the plot and characters.
 Final essay on the moral dilemmas faced by the French citizenry during the
Occupation.
 See Appendix for sample worksheets, presentation guidelines.
Websites
Note to students: The following is a short selection of the hundreds of websites on Joffo. Any
Search engine such as www.altavista.fr or www.google.com will find them. Many have been
written as school projects by students across the world. Their French is not always accurate. The
sites were visited in March 2006.
1. http://www.sacdebilles.co.uk/
A very useful site by David Ash which has downloadable synopses of the
book.
2. http://www.ac-creteil.fr/clgjzaybondy/Lecture/Jeux/babyfoot.htm.
A set of multiple-choice questions in French on Un Sac de billes.
3. http://b8.stradax.net/misc/un_sac_de_billes.html.
A detailed study of Un Sac de billes by Beat Strasser.
4. http://coverpearl.piranho.de/.
Daniela Fülbier's pages with information in French. Just click on Joseph Joffo
in the menu on the left.
5. http://www.magenta.nl/crosspoint/shoah.html.
One of the many websites on the holocaust (Shoah), with many links to other
websites.
6. http://aphgcaen.free.fr/cercle.htm.
A very useful website by the Cercle de la déportation et de la Shoah with links
to articles and other resources on the position of Jews in World War II.
7. http://hypo.ge-dip.etat-ge.ch/www/cliotexte/index.html.
A very detailed website on the teaching of history. It is worth scrolling down to
the Twentieth-century section for texts and chronologies of French history.
Sites on World War III France
9.. http://www.crdpreims.fr/memoire/bac/2gm/etudes/03cartedefrance.htm
10. http://www.musee-resistance.com/officiel/visGuid/peuHist/apercu/apercu4.asp
11.www.charles-de-gaulle.org/dossier/18juin/temoignages/son22j.htm
12.www.musee-resistance.com/officiel/visGuid/peuHist/apercu/apercu1.asp
13.www.franceweb.fr/poesie/resist1.htm
14.http://www.sunderland.ac.uk/~os0tmc/occupied/vichy.htm
15.http://www.ac-rennes.fr/pedagogie/hist_geo/ResPeda/affiches/affiches/somt3.htm
16.http://www.polyinter.com/resistance/
17.http://www.musee-resistance.com/officiel/visGuid/intro/index.asp
18.http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Moulin
19.http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ligne_Maginot
20.www.maginot67.com/
21.http://perso.orange.fr/d-d.natanson/milice.htm
22.http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milice_fran%C3%A7aise
23.http://erra.club.fr/LA4re.htm
24.http://blog.france2.fr/baccalaureat/index.php/2005/05/28/1435-levolutionpolitique-de-la-france-de-1945-a-nos-jours
Weeks 13 – 34 AP Vocabulary
 Students study vocabulary on a variety of topics which are tested on the AP exam.
 Emphasis is placed on “Faux Amis” and “transition words/phrases” as well as
topics listed in the back of AP French: Prearing for the Language Exam.




Vocabulary lists are posted on the class page on quia.com where students can
practice at their own pace.
Students are responsible for creating original sentences/short stories using
selected words.
Students work on translations which use the vocabulary in a variety of contexts
and with varied sentence structures (to allow for review of tenses or those
structures which are of particular problem to English speaking students).
Weekly quizzes are given on the vocabulary. Quizzes are culmulative with
selected words from the previous weeks appearing.
Weeks 20-34 Intensive AP review
 Students use the books “AP French :Preparing for the Language Examination”
and “AP French Language” to systematically practice each of the sections of the
exam.
 Intensive review of all types of pronouns (relative, demonstrative, object,
possessive) precede the practice of the “function word” drills
 Practice of conditional sentences, subjunctive, present and past participles,
precede the practice of the verb fill-in drills
 Students are assigned weekly 4 fill-ins/ 4 verb completions and 4 readings
sections from the “AP French: Preparing for the Language Exam.” These are
corrected in class. The first 7 weeks, no scores are given for the work other than a
completion grade. After week 8, scores are given to each activity. Students finish
approximately 30 of the 40 practices for each section.
 In class, one day a week, 25 minutes is given to listening comprehension using the
tapes/cds which accompany the books mentioned above.
 Once a week, students write an essay using a old AP prompt during a 45 minute
class. The holistic AP writing rubric is used to determine the student’s score.
 For the first 4 weeks, students meet individually with the teacher to discuss the
weak areas of their compositions and strategies to improve their writing. Grades
for the firsts 4 essays are not recorded and students can rewrite their essays. The
succeeding essays are graded, students must rewrite but there is no “second”
grade.
 The last month before the exam, students work on the free response sections of
the AP exam 2001-2006. Students also starting doing a set of free-response fillins/verbs and an essay during a 65 minute class to familiarize students with issues
of time management/proofreading in preparation for the exam
Weeks 22-34 Review of verb formations (tenses)
 Students receive a list of tenses for review and there are to do the lessons on their
own using www.conjuguemos.com (either the sites lessons or lessons listed under
“My teacher”). Cumulative pop quizzes are given weekly.
 The practices themselves count as a grade on the trimester as well as the quizzes.
 Students also have access to quizzes/practice activities on the class page of
www.quia.com where they can practice verbs in context (past tenses, conditional
sentences and use of the subjunctive/present/indicative
Weeks 26-27 Review and Practice for the National French Contest
 Students are given packets of the grammar sections from the 2004-2006 national
French Contests. These are done independently and then class time is used once a
week for correction and explanation.
 Emphasis is placed on recognizing the proper use of
present/past/future/conditional/subjunctive tenses as used in context.
 Review of the proper use of pronouns, adjectives and prepositions are they occur
in the context of a sentence.
 The reading sections and listening sections are reviews as a source of vocabulary
practice.
 All students take the National French Contest and their score is counted as a
trimester grade.
Weeks 26-30 Pagnol: Jean de Florette and Manon des Sources
 Students are introduced the work of Marcel Pagnol and the importance of these
two books/film within the body of his work.
 Students view the films, accompanied by excerpts from the books. Discussion is
held on the theme and plot as well as the cultural aspects of life in a small village,
and the role of stereotypes and ethnocentric behavior in the development of the
story.
 The excerpted passages focus on the relationship between Jean and Ugolin in the
first book and between Papet and Ugolin in the second book. The questions of
innocence and guilt and revenge are discussed throughout the two works.
 At the end of the first film, a class discussion is held as to the possibilities for the
plot of the second book. An attempt is made to predict the outcome for all the
major characters of the first book. Students write an essay after the class
discussion giving their “sequel” to Jean de Florette. These essays are then
discussed again at the end of the second film. The focus of discussion the second
time is the ways in which the story differed from their suppositions and the
reasons for Pagnol to have ended the story in this manner. The final essay is on
the role of fate and guilt in the two stories.
 Both movies are watched in their entirety with subtitles due to the difficulty of
understanding the heavy provencal accent of the actors.
Week 35—AP Exam
 Prior to the AP exam, students will have taped 4 practice AP oral exams in our
analog lab under conditions similar to the exam. A master tape is made up with
the instructions for the students, time built in for preparation and then the 60
second response times. These tapes are evaluated by the teacher. The first two
are not a recorded grade as the teacher confers with the student on their relative
strengths and weaknesses. The last two oral tapes count as a trimester grade.
 In all, the students will have 3 full AP practices with each section being done
under the time constraints of the actual exam. Students have these scores
recorded as past of their final trimester grade.
 All students are expected to sit for the exam.