Intensive French courses in France, GCSE
and A level French in France
Common Entrance/pre-GCSE
These courses are designed to encourage
and support younger students as they prepare for their Common
Entrance examination, or as they move towards GCSE. Danièle
and her assistants are well-practised at adapting teaching
methods in order to engage younger children, and those who
may not have been learning French for very long.
Scholarship Preparation
All of the students that we have coached
have gained their scholarships, and we are very proud of our
100% success rate! We take this course very seriously, as
the scholarship papers are extremely demanding. High levels
of concentration and focus are required on the part of the
students, and a different method of teaching is used by the
tutors. We also limit student numbers to three per week. It
is for these reasons that the price for the Scholarship Preparation
week is higher than for the other courses. We are of course
happy for Scholarship students to be accompanied by a parent,
in which case we charge an additional £60/night to cover
the parent's bed, breakfast and dinner. Please note that the
parent will stay in a separate bedroom from the student, so
as to limit the English spoken!
GCSE/IGCSE
This course is aimed at building students'
confidence, as well as identifying each student's weak points
in order to correct ingrained errors. We also try to stretch
students as much as possible so that they feel they have gone
beyond what they previously thought was achievable. Mornings
are taught in groups, and afternoons are for individual work
and one-to-one oral sessions. We cover all the essential grammar
and all the areas of experience needed to achieve the highest
IGCSE or GCSE grade using the Defined Content documents. We
put the emphasis on oral work working from the principle that
ce qui se conçoit bien s'énnonce clairement
- i.e. if you understand it, you will say it clearly and will
therefore write it clearly.
Bridging
The jump from GCSE to AS or IB is an enormous
one. It is reasonably easy to get an A at GCSE, but even highly-competent
GCSE students can be daunted by the transition from GCSE to
A-Level or International Baccalaureate. Many students spend
the first few months of sixth-form struggling to find their
feet and regain their confidence. This course is designed
to address that gap and smooth their transition.
A1/IB
The A1/IB course builds on the GCSE syllabus
to provide continuity and students cover the essential grammar
and syntax areas required for the highest grades. We pay specific
attention to the subjunctive, passive, compound tenses, pronouns,
and tend to concentrate on oral work (while always taking
into account the particular needs of each individual). Students
are encouraged to make short presentations to each other on
subjects they have chosen and with which they feel comfortable;
this encourages them to structure their thoughts in order
to present them, and builds their confidence by showing them
that they are competent at communicating these thoughts. Further,
all students can benefit from the knowledge of the others
in the group. Each student also works on his/her individual
project, which he or she will then debate with a tutor during
several one-to-one sessions. Students are also encouraged
to watch the news and discuss as a group what they understood.
We take a similarly rigorous approach regarding the literature
element of the course, but the exact method will vary depending
on the individual requirements of each student.
A2/IB
The A2/IB programme is similar to the A1
programme. Once we have ascertained that a student's grammar
is sound enough for a top grade, and that issues of the topics
students need to discuss are clear and clearly-defined, more
emphasis is given to individual projects. Students are encouraged
to work independently, and to use their tutors as sounding-boards.
This means that we can further tailor our tuition to individual
needs. We also work on exam technique and do exercises and
role-plays in order to encourage students to use a wide range
of complex structures both in their oral and written work.
Pre-University
Due to the fact that the literature element
of the A-Level syllabus has been reduced over the past ten
years, many students go up to university to read French or
a combination including French, and find that they struggle
to cover the required reading. The Pre-University course is
designed to ensure that student's grammar is up-to-scratch
after their long summer break - or following a gap year! -
and to equip them with the skills to read fluently, analyse
and discuss French literature in French in preparation for
their first term at university.
University Booster
Students often find the transition from
A-Level to university harder than they expected. This course,
at the end of the first term, or just before the beginning
of the second term, is designed to rebuild students' confidence
after what is often a difficult start!
Intensive residential weekends
We are pleased to offer intensive
residential weekends in the France in 2012. Students would arrive on the
Friday night, and would return home or to school after an
early dinner on the Sunday night. The level is subject to
demand, so please contact us if you are interested in this
opportunity.
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