Tag Archives: school

A fun day’s fishy filming at Port du Bec

Posted on by Joseph
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Our school project this year is all about water and we are making a film with a professional team for the Conseil General de la Vendée (the department council).

Last Thursday was the first day of our filming trip, to Port Du Bec near Noirmoutier. For this I had to get up at 6:30am for school, but normally I get up at 7:30am. I got to school at 7:15am to be on the bus at 7:30.

So we set off up to the north of the Vendée. The journey took 2h30, which was long, but when we got there it was worth it. After the introduction we were split into two groups: the Yellows and the Reds (I was yellow). There were two parts to the day, the first one in the morning and the second in the afternoon. In the morning the Yellows went to do an interview and the Reds took the sound and some photos of the countryside and then we swapped round. We each took it in turns to take the different roles: director, sound engineer, cameraman etc…

So we went to interview an ostreiculteur (someone who works with oysters). His name was Jean-Louis and he showed us where he works and what he does. Here’s a video of an ostreiculteur at work.

Then it was dinnertime, so we got our picnic and we ate in a big room near the port.

After, it was our time to take photos and the sound of the country side. We saw lots of wildlife, including some horses, sheep and birds. While we where doing this, the other group were interviewing Nicolas, who is aquaculteur (he works with all different types of fish – mussels, prawns etc…) then we met up to film the last scene.

Port du Bec Chinese port

Port du Bec (photo by David Howlett)

We left Port Du Bec at 4:45pm and got back to school at 6:55pm. We were very tired but had had a fantastic day. The next trip is on 24th of March, with another on 14th of April and I can’t wait!

My Life in France as a Teenager

Posted on by Rosie
7

I’m soon about to leave College (Secondary school) in France and I thought it would be nice to tell you about life in France for a teenager. When we moved out here I was only 12 and I’d had a year and a half in comprehensive school in England.

I was in year 7 when we moved over here but, because I didn’t know a lot of French, we decided that at my new french school I should go back a year. It is not unusual for students to do this (to “redouble”). If a student is struggling then a decision is made between the student, the parents, the college and a governor. There is no stigma attached to this decision, as it is considered the best way forward for the student and their education.

When we arrived in France, I went into school for one week before the Christmas holidays to get used to it. I have to say it was very hard, sitting at the back of the class with everyone talking French, not having a clue what they are on about, not to mention the difficulties of getting into the school routine or finding some friends. That went on for a few weeks, but with every month my french progressed and every new year I went into my new class understanding more than i did the year before. I was soon telling the French what lessons we had next and when the holidays were. I felt much better.

In 4eme (year 9) I joined a music club where, every Monday lunchtime from 1pm to 1:55pm, a group of musicians reproduce songs with different instruments, and because I’ve been playing the piano since I was seven years old, I thought I’d give it a go. At the end of the school year we got to play our songs in front of loads of people at the ‘Fête du collège’. Everybody loved our songs and I even had a teacher come over to me and tell me how very talented I was! I felt very happy :)

I also joined a ‘Comédie musicale’, which is a theatre group held during lunchtime at school, where we act, sing and dance, and at the end of the school year we perform our play to everyone in a theatre. First of all I had to do a singing audition, which was scary at first, but at the end everyone said that I sang very well. A few weeks later I heard that I got a part and I was delighted. It wasn’t a big part, but I opened the play and I closed it so I guess it was okay. It was really hard to remember the lines and to make sure that I prononced the words correctly (it doesn’t help when you have an english accent). I suspect the teachers didn’t think that I’d be able to do it, and neither did I to be  quite honest. It didn’t go so well in the dess rehersal and the first performance, but I think the last performance went really well and the teachers were very pleased with me. It goes to show that english people who don’t know a lot of french can play a part in a French play.

This year I’m in 3eme (year 10) which is my last year, finally! This year is a big year, i have 2 ‘Brevet Blanc’ exams, which are the equivalent of “mocks” in England, and at the end of the year I take my ‘Brevet‘ (similar to GCSEs) I  have already had a ‘Brevet Blanc’ in November and I will have another in May. In September I will be going to Lycée. I have to choose between two Lycées. I’ve been to an open day at one and I’ll be going to another one in March. It will be a hard decision.

College St. Joseph, Fontenay-le-Comte

I would really recommend Collège St Joseph to anyone for their children. It is a good school and the teachers are very nice and they are always there to help.

I still miss England and I would really like to still be there. Depending on where you live, life can be very different to England. We used to live in a village where most of my friends were and I’d see them everyday. We’d walk to each other’s houses and could catch a bus or a train to Grimsby town centre in around 15 minutes. Here I live in a lovely little village, but I don’t have any friends who live here, and to go into town it’s about 20 mins drive and there is no train or bus. I think that probably, from a parents point of view, this could be good because you can spend more time with family and explore more things together. Then, when you go to school in the week, you can see your friends again and have a good gossip with them about the weekend.

I’ll soon be 16 and that means I can start driving. I can drive with a parent in the car with me. I have to do so many hours with an adult till i’m 18 then take a driving test. When I heard I could do that I was so happy! It’s a really good idea because, when you’re 18 you will have a good experience of driving, and so you will pass your test much easier (hopefully!). I can also start working here as well, like in england. I was scared at first because I heard that you had to be 18 to work but I did some research and I found that you can work at 16. I will be doing that soon :)

Thanks for reading and I hope this might help you if you are a teenager who is moving to France soon. If you want to ask any questions, just leave a comment and I will try to answer for you.

A child’s duties, French style

Posted on by Lisa
4

It’s half term in the UK, and here in the Vendée we are looking forward to ours starting next week. Of course school holidays means that the kids are at home 24/7, so I thought I would share these words of wisdom with you all that you might find helpful!!

Taken from a book I bought from Emmaus and gave to Richard one birthday, I think you will find this food for thought.

The book,  ”La classe en Anglais”, from The Green Series by E. Gourio, was written in 1918. It is a french text book for teaching english (written in english), split into different lessons.

This is lesson 57:-

Duties of Children

Treat your parents with respect.There are children who speak to their parents with rudeness, and grow sullen when their parents find fault with them. Beware of such disrespect. You are young, and you should therefore take the lowest place. You have much to learn, and you should therefore hear instead of seeking to be heard.

Be grateful to your parents. When you were sick, how tenderly did they hang over you! When you were in want of anything, how cheerfully did they toil to supply your need! Surely, there cannot be a greater monster than an unthankful child.

Obey your parents. Do not receive their commands with a sour, angry look, which says louder than words that you obey only because you must; but whatever they bid you do, do it cheerfully. Do not wait for them to repeat a command: obey at once. Even when only a look tells you what they want, fly to perform it.

Place confidence in your parents. You should have no secrets which you are unwilling to tell them. If you have done wrong, you should openly confess it, and ask their forgiveness. If you wish to undertake anything, ask their consent. A dissembling child cannot thrive, and is often very miserable.

Children! These are your duties. Love, obey your parents; trust in them. Be to them a comfort and an honour. So live, that they may ever look upon you with delight. So live, that the thought of your virtues may smooth their last hours.

I love this passage and have been known to read it to visiting children! Unfortunately they all know me far to well to take it too seriously.

Why don’t you try to read it to children you know. Let us know how you get on :)

Gnome is where the heart is. Friends are where the wine is.

Posted on by Lisa
4

When we moved to France, there were certain things we hoped to gain from our new life which we felt Foussais would offer. We were very impressed on our first visit to Ecole St. Antoine and this has proved to be a school providing a great foundation for Molly (very briefly) and Joe. Along with the school came a really friendly community who welcomed us whole-heartedly. The village also offered chances for the children to join various groups, including football, handball, and both piano and guitar lessons. We have been blessed with great neighbours who are always there and willing to help, be it providing us with home baking (we are lucky enough to live in a hamlet with an ex-baker and a very talented Italian cook), gardening tips, home-made sangria or even JCBs!

2010 brought a new dimension to our life here and that is our friends Lynn & Alan and Curtis & Dee. We “met” both couples through this website. They had both bought plots of land in Foussais and, while searching the web for information about this area, they came across La Vie en Foussais and got in touch. Prior to them moving here permanently, we met up during their various trips to Foussais, but nothing could have prepared us for the fun that was about to come our way!

We have spent many a happy evening, or Sunday afternoon, sharing “aperos” and enjoying our time together. Both couples are marvellous with our children and we are very lucky to have them around the corner from us.

One particular sunny summer Sunday afternoon we were having a gathering. Let me set the scene….

The location was chez Curtis and Dee, the drink – pamplemouse rosé.

(I should give a quick explanation. We discovered pamplemouse rosé while attending a free jazz concert at the Salle Polyvalante at the beginning of summer. We bought what we thought was our usual interval drink, a little glass of rosé. On drinking, we discovered an unusual taste; not unpleasant but not expected either. “Mmmmm…” we thought, “not bad”. It was only when we got to the bottom of the glass that the true wonder of this drink became clear. This was rosé wine mixed with a pamplemouse (grapefruit) liqueur *.  Well, let’s just say, a trend was set, and the rest is history. Summer had a whole new dimension!)

So, back to the story. Fuelled by aperos and pamplemouse rosé, talk turned to “Let’s have a party!”. Curtis and Dee were spending Christmas in Foussais, but Lynn, Alan and us Barleys were all heading to England. However, it turned out we were all going to be back for New Year, so the plan was made. New Year’s Eve party – our house – more friends invited – good times ahead!

Now, I’m still not so sure how this came about, but we decided fancy dress would be a good idea. We discussed Super-Heroes, Musicals or Films and Nursery Rhymes…and then Lynn said “We once went to a party dressed as gnomes…”.  Great idea! We could all take a character. Rosie loves 1940′s style, so her character was “Keep The Gnome Fires Burning”. Molly, who loves football, would be “Gnome Goal”.  Joe, our James Bond fan, would be “Double Gnome Seven”. The possibilities were endless! A phone call, along with an invitation to the party, was made to Jim and Val (our super-hero seamstress!)

So this is how Foussais became invaded by gnomes on 31st December. The gathering included “The Gnome-Coming Queen” (me), “Gnome On The Range”(Richard), a “Metrognome”, “Gastronome”, “Gnome Improvements”, a “Gnome Help”, “Twickergnome”, a National “Elf” Service Nurse, some “Gnomads” and a smattering of Smurfs!

The night was to be a relaxed affair. As is tradition in the Barley family, quizzes were written, games were devised, food was prepared, candles were lit and costumes were on. Friends arrived, and what a huge effort they had made! After much eating, dancing and chatting it was time for quizzes. A note to friends who will be joining us in the future – learn your Christmas tunes! Who would have thought quotes from really well-known Christmas songs could have been the reason for so many blank faces? :)

Of course, with the hour’s difference  New Year gives us a chance to celebrate twice. Our friends Annie, Drew and the girls, along with the rest of their party, joined us on Skype for our midnight celebration and then we joined them for theirs. We will never forget us being put on Annie and Drew’s windowsill to watch the chinese lanterns being set of in the street!

I love New Year. A time to reflect on the good times shared, good times to come, family and friends. A big thank you to Val, Richards Mum, for our fab costumes and a great big thank you to our lovely  new Foussais friends who give us such great times and happy memories.

* You can mix rose with pamplemouse syrup which is a little less lethal, but not half as much fun  (Back)

Qualifying the French way to get back in the classroom

Posted on by Richard
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There are very few things I miss from living in England.

Of course family and friends are greatly missed, but I miss my job more than I thought I would. Having trained as a Nursery Nurse after leaving school, I spent the last four years in England working at our local Primary school as a Teaching Assistant. The last three of which were spent in the Foundation stage (ages 3-5).
This is a job I loved.

While there I toyed with the idea of fulfilling my ambition to become a teacher. The forms were sent for and terms agreed with the Head teacher. Just at the point of sending them back, Richard was offered his present job and with it our chance to move to France. My teaching plans were put on the back burner again. Instead I took my HLTA ( Higher Level Teaching Assistant) qualification which only took three months as opposed to three years of teacher training.

A year ago, having lived in France for about six months, I had been chatting with Nathalie, Joe’s teacher at that time, when she asked me to go in and read a story to her class in English. This has since developed into weekly visits and the planning of lessons and sourcing resources. Another chat with a parent of one of Molly’s friends has lead to another regular visit into a school to help with English.

After a year of this, I felt it was time to take it further, perhaps make it more official. The school in Foussais-Payré approached me about three months ago to see if I would like to sit for “l’Habilitation en Langue Vivante”, an official qualification that recognises the candidate’s ability to teach a foreign language in primary schools. This comprises of an interview and a class observation. It is hoped that anyone who wishes to teach English in any primary school in France will have passed this.

In March I went along with Nathalie to the meeting where we would find out what exactly would be involved. Nathalie isn’t ready to take the habilitation yet, but came along anyway. Moral support was definitely needed by me!

Expecting to find a room full of English and a few French I was shocked to find just one other person – a French teacher who, like Nathalie, wasn’t ready to take it, but just wanted to see what standard of English she would need to reach. So that left me!

On 20th May I went for my interview with much trepidation. The English side of the interview, of course, held few concerns. I had to be able to understand a short conversation after listening to it twice, and to be able to give a précis of the information given. The second part was to read a short story, with understanding and good accent! No problems. The third part was to know about the country and some of its history and cultures. All good so far.

Then came the fourth, and for me, the most worrying part. I had to be able to talk about the teaching of English and the curriculum, in French! I know my French has improved but I am still at the point where, if someone talks to me too fast or with a different accent, I tend to freeze and my eyes glaze over. I had a real fear that I would fail this part. I had been told it was important to have a good understanding of French or I could not pass.

Half an hour later it was all over, nerves still intact. Luckily Franck Graveleau and Françoise Aujard had been kind and allowed some chat in English amongst the French. I could not believe I had actually been to an interview in French!

A week later I received the excellent news I had passed this part and gained my Habilitation Provisoire. The next part will be my class observation which will take place during the next school year.

I’ll keep you posted!!

Lisa