French Program
The Hawker School French program is aligned with the Australian Curriculum- French, in the key areas of Communicating and Understanding. French is taught through a weekly lesson to students from Kindergarten to Year 6 by a specialist teacher.
Language learning at Hawker School focuses on high levels of participation in speaking and listening activities, supported by writing and reading tasks. Kindergarten students engage in mini topics throughout the year to introduce them to basic vocabulary and phrases through song, dance, written and spoken activities. Students in Year 1-6 participate in language acquisition lessons based on the Accelerated Integrated Method (AIM) program. The AIM program focuses on language learning through the comprehension of vocabulary and grammar. This is achieved within the context of storytelling, kinaesthetic movement, song, dance and drama.
In addition to language lessons, each year there is a cultural focus for students, looking into various Francophonie countries (French speaking countries), such as Switzerland, Canada and Morocco. Students in Years 3-6 participate in research tasks to investigate and compare different aspects of a specific country. The country is chosen by the ACT school’s French Network leader, in consultation with the Alliance Française de Canberra. The Alliance facilitate the Primary School’s Francophonie Competition and French Market during Francophonie Week (annually during March).
In Term 3 each year, all students have the opportunity, in class, to learn a French poem at their level. This is in the lead up to the Non-Francophonie French Poetry Competition. From this, 14 students across the school are chosen to represent their year level in the competition, open to all Primary School aged French learners. These students recite the poem unassisted, while being filmed for judging. The Alliance Française de Canberra host an award ceremony for any successful participants.
Students in Years 2-6 have access to online learning tools such as Duolingo and Education Perfect, as part of their language program These websites can be accessed from home as well, to support and increase language acquisition and retention. Students can sign in with their school email and password through Google sign in (links below).
Education Perfect (accessible to Hawker students until the end of 2024)
