Course Syllabus

FREN 1010 Elementary French I

Course Description

This course introduces students to the French language and the cultures of French-speaking peoples. Designed for beginners, it develops basic communication skills in speaking, listening, reading, and writing through interactive, participatory activities. Students learn to use French in everyday contexts to discuss familiar topics such as self, family, home, school, and daily life. The course also fosters appreciation for cultural perspectives and ways of life different from their own.

Justification

This course is a prerequisite for FREN 1020, which satisfies the foreign language requirement for the Associate of Arts degree at Snow College. It is also a prerequisite for intermediate and advanced study of the language. Students are introduced to the language, cultures, and values of French-speaking peoples, one of the largest linguistic groups in the world and a major contributor to Western thought and culture. Learning French, particularly in combination with studies in other fields, such as art, music, philosophy, history, business, medicine, political science, social science, and technology, can provide a valuable and employable life resource.

Student Learning Outcomes

1. Upon successful completion of FREN 1010, students will be able to understand some everyday words, phrases, and questions about themselves, their personal experiences, and their surroundings, when people speak slowly and clearly or there is repetition.
2. Upon successful completion of FREN 1010, students will be able to understand familiar words, phrases, and simple sentences.
3. Upon successful completion of FREN 1010, students will be able to interact with help using words, phrases, and memorized expressions. They will be able to answer simple questions on very familiar topics.
4. Upon successful completion of FREN 1010, students will be able to provide information about themselves and their immediate surroundings using words, phrases, and memorized expressions.
5. Upon successful completion of FREN 1010, students will be able to provide some basic information on familiar topics in lists, phrases, and memorized expressions.
6. Upon successful completion of FREN 1010, students will be able to demonstrate a basic knowledge of cultural traditions, customs, and values in one or more French-speaking country.
7. Upon successful completion of FREN 1010, students will be able to seek opportunities to learn about and experience new cultures.

Course Content

Functions covered in French 1010 include but are not limited to basic interactions like greetings, asking and answering yes/no and basic information questions, describing people and things, expressing preferences, inviting, accepting, refusing, making purchases, giving directions, requesting information, telling time, recounting past events, interpreting basic or simplified texts (e.g., calendars, biographical information, menus, cultural information, poems/songs, maps, advertisements, film reviews, instructions, schedules, websites, surveys).Vocabulary included in the course covers greetings, school, home, family, possessions, numbers, days, months, public buildings, food, weather, and sports.Grammar structures covered in the course include sentence formation, regular and irregular verb forms in present and passé composé, agreement (e.g., subject-verb, adjective-noun), determiners, and comparison.Cultural topics cover France and other French-speaking countries and include practices and products (e.g., food, music, transportation, shopping, routines, sports, pastimes, telling time, and scheduling), cultural perspectives, diversity, regional identities, and daily life.