Welcome to the ThinkSpace area for teachers and educators.
We have asked the participants in one of our feedback workshops to submit an idea for a lesson plan that uses the website’s resources. Please feel free to take inspiration from these ideas and explore the website’s resources. Alternatively, you can also comment with your own ideas about how the resources on this website could be used in a classroom setting, or if there are any other resources you would welcome on this website.
We are actively using this ThinkSpace section to develop teaching plans and other educational materials to enhance the teaching of French, history and geography in schools. Please do get in touch through the CONTACT page if you have further questions.
Thank you!
To learn about the daily life in West African countries and to produce either a video diary of a typical West African school child in English (KS3/4). For A-Level to produce a research project on the rise of French colonisation in West Africa. Comparisons can be drawn between Africa and Asia, Vietnam for example. This is more age appropriate as colonisation is not really appropriate for KS3/4.
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=mhd+a+kele+nta MHD “Afro Trap” music song title “A kele n’ta
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jf0bKAUt4wc
I have used this video as a starter activity for year 9’s the lyrics are mainly French with the phrase “A kele n’ta” used throughout (meaning “he has chosen only her”) The video shows Francophone Africa in a positive light and how tribal languages are used along with French.
Pupil give their feedback on the video and translate selected lyrics.
I think the resources on gender literacy levels, in particular the infographics and videos, could be useful for teaching PSHE or Citizenship not only MFL lessons. E.g. to look at gender equality in the world. Also it may be beneficial to have subtitles in French/English on some of the videos as I think younger pupils in KS3 would struggle to understand in target language only.
Follow Savineau’s journey along the map with who she met along the way and her experiences; this is essentially tying all the resources together. This could be made into an interactive game to engage KS3, where students have the option to make decisions as Denise Savineau, unlocking her journey and meeting the key figures. To focus on French language learning, students could use the resources as a basis for drama, acting as the people Savineau meets during her travels. Music from this era and geography could also be explored on the website, which may be a springboard for exploring the African French language.
Response: We’re going to be making new materials around these suggestions. Thanks to all of you who came today for your contributions and inspiring ideas for teaching children about French-speaking worlds beyond Europe. Keep your ideas coming.