Bringing the joy of reading to your French classroom is reading easy and will provide so many long term benefits for your students. A reading program can take some time to 'get off the ground', so be patient. It takes time to see the results, to build a library of books and to get all of your students habitually involved.
When I first introduced a reading program in my Year 8 classroom, there were mixed emotions. Some students loved to read and gravitated to the French books with ease. Others took more convincing and aid but once the expectation and habit was set, they joined in.
Here are the hows, the whys, the whens and the whats to starting your own French reading program in your highschool classroom:
What are the benefits of increasing core literacy skills in a foreign language?
- Phonemic awareness - encourage your students to read aloud so that they can try to identify each sound in a word. Some students have trouble identifying the letters that aren't pronounced - those pesky 'silent' letters in French! You can provide them with a 'cheat sheet' which to use while reading aloud and they can use their thumb to cover the unpronounced sound in a word.
- Vocabulary - insure that your students have access to many reading levels so that you or they can pick a book for which they already understand most of the vocabulary. This allows them to easily learn new words in context. Say to the kids, if you can understand 80-90% of the words when you flick through this book, choose that book to read! This is called comprehensible input. Stories allow words to be learned in context, this means that they may not need to access a dictionary to get the meaning (but also a teachable moment for dictionary practice!)
- Fluency - your students will be reading automatically, accurately and with appropriate tone when reading books in French. Such great habitual exposure to real language! This also accounts for punctuation. Have you also experienced young learners ditching punctuation when they learn French? "Madame, I didn't think I needed it?"! Reading with punctuation helps with this exposure. That in written language, we use punctuation to help with phrasing and meaning.
- Comprehension - an incredibly important skill gleaned solely from reading! Not only do students read for meaning but they are forced to make inference from a text. Your students will reach a conclusion of meaning based on evidence and reasoning. Just another reason to choose a book with high comprehensible input. You could assess their comprehension through simple and repetitive questioning or just asking them to draw a picture.
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| 'Learn French with Luc and Sophie' - top pick for beginner readers |
How to implement a reading program?
- Extended time - make sure that you implement a reading program over a long time period so that your students get into the habit of reading. Otherwise, you aren't allowing them any time to improve their core literacy skills. Creating a habit of reading will also aid your students in reading lengthy texts as they get more sophisticated in their language skills.
- Comprehensible input - ensure that you have many reading levels available to your students and encourage them to pick their own reader. As a teacher, you know your students best, so aid and teach them what it means to pick a reader at their level. Also, encourage them to move up a level as their comprehension growths.
- Investment - Invest in a book collection for your school! Bring your principal or library on board by explaining the benefits of a reading program in a foreign language. Not to mention how your French reading program will supplement the English reading program. You could also work with the English department to see if you could streamline the materials for your program, such as implementing similar book logs or vocabulary/comprehension workbooks (with a LOTE approach, of course).
- Audio - Overtime, you may wish to record yourself or someone reading the texts available at your school. This way, students can also listen to recordings while reading which increases their phonic skills. There are also many readers available to purchase with accompanying audio.
When can you ask your students to read?
- If you have a long or extended class, ask your students to partake in silent reading for 10-15 minutes.
- You may wish to include reading as a homework task and students can keep a reading log. Ensure they are completing timed reading to make sure that all your students feel that reading French is achievable. I ask students to read for a minimum of 15 mins/week in Years 7-8.
- One class per fortnight could be allocated to reading in the library (if you are lucky to have decent hours dedicated to your language program!)
Which books could I use for my reading program?
For my highschool students (levels A1-B1), here are the books that I have used and recommend:
Entry-level books
Learn French with Luc et Sophie - vibrant books with thematic content. The pictures are highly engaging and there is limited text on each page. These books will be very attractive to your reluctant or complete beginner readers.
T'Choupi - although made for French children, these books won't contain the past simple and have young audience topics that your students will relate to. There are some books that have a 'histoire à deux voix' - there are the written words and the key vocabulary is illustrated.
Multi-levelled sets
AIM readers - the AIM program was developed in Canada for second language learners of French and contains frequently-used vocabulary. You will also notice that key vocabulary is reused and recycled across the readers. Reading packs levels 1-3 will cover levels A1-A2, from early beginner with limited text to readers that resemble advanced children books with large chunks of text.
À Lire series - designed for high school and adult readers, this series contains easy-to-read books for foreign learners that look like real books. They also have lower level versions of popular French literature, such as Beauty and the Beast, The Little Prince and Arsene Lupin (for those Netflix viewers!). You will find levels A1 through B1.
Bilingual books
Stories with English translations are another great way to access literature, but ensure that the French is highly comprehensible for your student, otherwise the read will be overwhelming and unproductive. My favourite is Easy French Reader, but there are so many bilingual readers to choose from!
Be aware, that when you purchase books written for French native readers, they may contain the past simple. In my opinion, I would only introduce a student to a book with the past simple if they were learning to use the past simple themselves or if they were proficient enough readers that it would not be distracting. Otherwise, the read would detract from building on the skills previously mentioned.
Have you implemented a reading program in your classroom? Which books do you love to recommend your students? Comment below!
