AP FRENCH LANGUAGE & CULTURE
Scripps Ranch High School
Christine Leidhoff cleidhoff@sandi.net
(858) 621-9020 x4259
AP French Language and Culture class is intended to prepare students to pass the AP French Language
and Culture exam by extending their proficiency in the four language modalities (reading, writing, speaking and
listening) using each of the three modes of communication (interpretive, interpersonal and presentational).
Students will take mock AP exams and graded AP exams during the second semester. During the exam,
students will be tested on their ability to speak and write the language. Therefore, I shall use French exclusively
in the classroom. I also expect students to communicate mainly in French.
The AP French Language and Culture course aims to:
- use fluent, automatic, and authentic contemporary French orally;
- develop listening skills in order to understand the wide variety of vocabulary and accents that
can be heard in the French-speaking world;
- have students engaged into conversations and to exchange information and opinions orally and
in writing in French (interpersonal);
- support students in understanding and interpreting written and spoken language on a variety of
topics in French (interpretive);
- provide opportunities for students to present information, concepts, and ideas to an audience of
listeners or readers on a variety of topics in French (presentational);
- assist students in gaining knowledge and demonstrating understanding of the relationship
among practices, products, and perspectives of cultures other than their own (culture);
- express original ideas in writing using authentic idiomatic and contemporary French
vocabulary, expressions, and structures;
- read and understand a variety of documents, emphasizing current events in the French-speaking
world;
- perfect the rules governing an authentic French expression by associating the grammar with the
circumstances in which it has been used;
- include a variety of student-centered activities focusing on the different abilities, needs, and
learning styles of the students;
- facilitate frequent access to a variety of authentic media and other electronic means.
TEXTBOOKS
Muyskens Judith, Harlow Linda, Vialet Michele & Briere Jean-François. Bravo! Communication,
Grammaire, Culture et Littérature. 4th ed. Heinle & Heinle, 2001.
Workbook: Agarwal Morgane, Solberg Janet, Godish Dugas, Larissa, Muyskens Judith, & Harlow
Linda. Bravo! Cahier d’exercices et manuel de laboratoire. 4th ed. Thomson/ Heinle, 2002.
Amiry, Laila. How to Prepare for the AP French with Audio (Barron's How to Prepare for AP French
Advanced Placement Examination). Barron’s Educational Series, 2002.
Other resources and reference materials:
Une Fois Pour Toutes Deuxième édition
Trésors du temps, Glencoe 2005
Moments Littéraires
Imaginez, Vista
Panaché Littéraires with audio
Collection Littéraire Lagarde et Michard
En bonne forme, 7th édition, Houghton Miflin 2001
Released AP French Language Exams
LITERATURE
Le Petit Prince, Saint-Exupery
La Rue Case-Nègres, Zobel
La Gloire de mon père, Pagnol
L’enfant noir, Laye
L’homme qui plantait des arbres, Giono
Selected fables, La Fontaine
La Génie du mangier
Candide, Voltaire
WEB SITES
A LCD projector with speakers in the classroom and the school computer lab give the
opportunity to my students to be able to do other activities using authentic web sites.
Grammaire and Vocabulaire:
Le point du FLE www.lepointdufle.net
Tex’s French grammar http://www.laits.utexas.edu/tex/index.html
Bonjour de France http://www.bonjourdefrance.com/bonjour.htm
www.bbc.co.uk/languages/french
http://www.sunderlandschools.org/mflsunderland/resources%20pr%20fr.htm
http://www.referentiel-fle.be/
http://web.mac.com/maryamdam/iweb/Site%20Map/Site%20Map.html
TV, newspapers & podcasts:
Tf1 www.tf1.fr
France 2 www.france2.fr
Canal plus www.cplus.fr
TV5 www.TV5.org
www.lemonde.fr
ITunes podcasts
Chansons and other listening activities :
www.paroles.net
http://french.yabla.com/
Littérature :
http://www2.ignatius.edu/faculty/turner/apfrlit.htm
http://pages.infinit.net/cltr/littfr.html#cfl
http://poesie.webnet.fr/
http://clicnet.swarthmore.edu/litterature/litterature.html
THEME &
GRADING
PERIODS
La famille et
la
communauté
September/
October (5-6
weeks)
La vie
contemporai
ne
October/
November
(5-6 weeks)
La quête de
soi
December/
January (5-6
weeks)
RECOMMENDED
CONTEXTS
ESSENTIAL
QUESTIONS
STRUCTURE
LITERATU
RE
 Le petit
Prince
 Excerpt
of La
Rue
CasesNègres
MOVIES
(CM= court
métrage)
 J’attend
rai le
suivant
(CM)
 Le
ballon
prisonni
er (CM)
 Amélie
 La
Boum 1
+2
 Les rapports
sociaux
 L’enfance et
l’adolescence
 La citoyenneté
 Les coutumes
 La famille
 L’amitié et
l’amour
 What
constitutes a
family in
different
societies?
 How do
individuals
contribute to
the wellbeing of
communities?
 How do the
roles that
families and
communities
assume differ
in societies
around the
world?





 La publicité et
le marketing
 L’éducation et
l’enseignement
 Les fêtes
 Le logement
 Les loisirs et le
sport
 Le monde du
travail
 Les rites de
passage
 Les voyages
 How do
societies and
individuals
define quality
of life?
 How is
contemporary
life included
by cultural
products,
practices and
perspectives?
 What are the
challenges of
contemporary
life?
 How are
aspects of
identity
expressed in
various
situations?
 How do
language and
culture
influence
identity?
 How does
one’s identity
develop
 over time?
 Reflexive
verbs
 Adjectives
 Adverbs
 Preposition
 La Gloire
de mon
père
 Le
placard
 L’étudia
nte
 Passé
composé
 Imparfait
 Plus-queparfait
 L’enfant
noir
 La Génie
du
mangier
 De
l’autre
côté
(CM)
 Entre
les murs
 Madam
e
Brouett
e
 L’aliénation et
l’assimilation
 Les croyances
et les systèmes
de valeurs
 Les sexes et la
sexualité
 La langue et
l’identité
 Le
pluriculturalism
e
 Le nationalisme
et le patriotisme
Present
Imperatif
Questions
Négation
Present
participle
MUSIC
 Marseille de
Patrick Fiori
 Viens à SaintGermain de Dany
Brillant
 Comme d’habitude
de Claude
François (present
tense)
 Lève-Toi et Rap
de MC Solaar
(impératif)
 Je suis un homme
de Zazie (présentt)
 Cash City de Luc
de la Rochelière
(negation)
 Le banc des
délaissés de
Boulay (present)
 Dessine-moi un
mouton
 Oxygène de Dion
 J’adore de Couxor
 Chômage de
Zebda
 Armand est mort
de MC Solaar
 Ma France à moi
de Diam’s
 Jeune de banlieue
de La Peste
 Je suis blanc de
Kamini
 Je suis né de Doc
Gynéco (PC)
 Il avait les mots de
Luna (Imparfait)
 Hier encore
d’Aznavour (PC/
imparfait)
 J’avais rêvé d’une
autre vie (plus-que
parfait)
THEME &
GRADING
PERIODS
La science et
la
technologie
January/
February (56 weeks)
Les défis
mondiaux
February/
March (5-6
weeks)
L’esthétique
April/ May
(5-6 weeks)
RECOMMENDED
CONTEXTS
ESSENTIAL
QUESTIONS
STRUCTURE
LITERATU
RE
 La recherche et
ses nouvelles
frontières
 Les découvertes
et les inventions
 Les choix
moraux
 L’avenir de la
technologie
 La propriété
intellectuelle
 Les nouveaux
moyens de
communication
 La technologie
et ses effets sur
la société
 How do
developments
in science
and
technology
affect our
lives?
 What factors
have driven
innovation
and discovery
in the fields
of science
and
technology?
 What role do
ethics play in
scientific
advancement
 Futur
 Conditionel
 Si clauses
Articles:
 Tous
égaux
face au
web
 La Tribu
des
Yetties
 La tolérance
 L’économie
 L’environneme
nt
 La santé
 Les droits de
l’être humain
 L’alimentation
 La paix et la
guerre
 What
environmenta
l, political
and social
issues pose
challenges to
societies
throughout
the world?
 What are the
origins of
those issues?
 What are
possible
solutions to
those
challenges?
 Subjonctif
 Pronouns
 Relative
pronouns
 L’homm
e qui
plantait
des
arbres
 Selected
fables
from La
Fontaine
 Comme
nt j’ai
marché
sur la
lune
(CM)
 L’hom
me qui
plantait
des
arbres
(CM)
 Au
revoir
les
enfants




 How are
perceptions
of beauty and
creativity
established?
 How do
ideals of
beauty and
aesthetics
daily life?
 How do the
arts both
challenge and
reflect
cultural
perspectives?
 Review of
all verb
tenses and
structures
 Tintin:
Le secret
de la
Licorne
 La Belle
et la
bête
L’architecture
Le patrimoine
Le beau
Les arts
littéraires
 La musique
 Les arts du
spectacle
 Les arts visuels
MOVIES
(CM= court
métrage)
 MarieCurie
 Docume
ntaries
on aids
in
Africa
MUSIC
 Rien que pour toi
de Feldman
(future)
 Mourir demain
(conditional)
 Si tu veux de
Palmas (future)
 Sit u n’étais pas là
de Luna
(conditional)
 Jeune Demoiselle
(future)
 Tu vas me détruire
(close future)
 Si je devais mourir
demain de St
Pierre
(conditionel)
 Je chanterai de
Dion (future)
 Né en 17 à
Leidenstadt (si)
 Si j’avais un
marteau (si)
 Faudel
 Le pont Mirabeau
(subjonctive)
 Sexy pour moi
(subjunctive)
 À ta place de
Zazie et Bauer
(subjunctive)
 Quelqu’un que
j’aime de Dion
(relative pronouns)
 Clic Clac Oh c’est
beau de Dimey
 Où veux-tu que
j’aille de Fakoly
 Cendrillon de
Telephone (mixed
tenses)
 J’irai où tu iras de
Dion & Goldman
(mixed)
This section presents the array of instructional and teaching strategies used in order to support students
in extending their proficiency in the four language modalities (reading, writing, speaking and listening) using
each of the three modes of communication (interpretive, interpersonal and presentational).
WRITING

Students receive instruction on how to write a well-organized analytical or persuasive essay,
which will include strategies for brainstorming, organization, using of transition words.
 Students write an AP format persuasive essay about every 2-3 weeks with a time limit of 50
minutes (class period). Students are graded according to the AP test grading system.
 Students receive feedback from their peers and/or their teacher for each essay they write.
Using this feedback and other references, students will rewrite their essay by making
corrections on vocabulary and grammar and by improving the content as needed.
 Students write and present their own fable after analyzing a selection of fables written by La
Fontaine.
 Students create a children’s short story book and read it to other students.
 Students respond to emails and/or blogs written by their teachers and/or their pen pals located
in France (teacher has students correspond to students with a French high school). Emails
and blogs may be graded according to the AP test grading system.
o Teacher may provide students with a topic or theme (as listed in the course planner)
they need to discuss in their emails/blogs
o Teacher encourages students to compare and contrast their lives in the US to the lives
of their pen pals in France using graphic organizer and/or well-organized essay.
SPEAKING










Students are engaged in conversations similar to the AP test format. Students are graded
according to the AP test grading system.
Students are assigned projects on the themes listed in the course planner and students present
their projects to their classmates.
Students participate in debates and have to explain their opinions with concrete examples or
facts.
Students prepare for debates by researching and reading materials related to topic.
Students discuss topics and themes presented in their readings (see literature listed in course
planner).
Students discuss similarities and differences between texts and movies (if available).
Students perform a play of their choice in a small group setting.
Students analyze and discuss how a character in a story relates to them.
Students participate in unrehearsed role-plays on a variety of themes studied.
Students interpret the meaning and/or the intent of the artist while analyzing a picture or an
art piece.
READING

Students read authentic texts.
o Students analyze and discuss the reading
o Students respond to multiple-choice questions
o Students compare and contrast themselves to the characters
o Students compare and contrast their lives to the lives of the characters


o Students summarize what they read
o Students predict events
Students read a variety of Francophone excerpts and short stories.
Students read authentic news, magazines and online articles in order to widen their cultural
awareness and to be exposed to materials related to the themes listed in the course planner.
LISTENING





Released AP French exams
AP French listening practices from Barron’s and Ladd
Music and video clip
o Students listen to authentic music and/or watch music video clip
o Students are exposed to a variety of accents and vocabulary repertoire
o Students answer multiple choice questions
o Students complete cloze activities
o Students tell in their own words what the theme of the song is, what the message is or
what the intent of the singer is
Movies
o Students watch authentic movies and short films
o Students respond to multiple-choice questions
o Students respond to short answers question type
o Students compare and contrast the lives of the characters with their own
o Students provide summaries of films
Students engage in conversations with peers and teacher
CULTURE
 Students are exposed to a variety of texts, audio and visual materials that present the products
and practices of different Francophone countries
 Students access authentic materials through the use of the Internet
 Students compare and contrast their products and practices to those of the Francophone speakers
and countries studied in class
 Students discuss the cultural and linguistic differences presented in their reading and/or movies.
 Students create their own French wedding: students learn about French traditions, French laws
and regulations, religion and apply what they learn to the creation of the wedding.
TECHNOLOGY








Students research information on authentic websites
Students participate in web quests created by teacher
Students use emails and blogs to talk with teacher and students in France
Students access online activities provided by teacher
Students take virtual tours of museums and answer multiple choice questions and open-ended
questions to express their views, beliefs and understandings.
Students create power point presentations on a variety of topics assigned by teacher or chosen by
students
Students create an animated video on one of the Comic book characters
Students create an advertisement for a product of their choice
Grading policy: Student’s Grades are divided by five categories. Participation, written and
listening, projects, Exams and quizzes. Weekly quizzes are usually on Fridays. All grades are updated
on Zangle which can be viewed on PARENT CONNECT. If you have any questions on student grades,
please contacted me at cleidhoff@sandi.net.
Class rules regarding electronics, tardies, Honesty Policy truancies can be accessed in your
Student Handbook page 28. Violation with any of these rules will be in compliance with school policy.
Homework will vary and can be accessed daily on srhsfalcons.org website.
Students have the right to learn and I have the right to teach. If a student is impeding the
learning of others, immediate action will be taken and citizenship will be lowered after first warning.