Class Descriptions
For more information or to register for classes, call 503.223.8388 or email info@afportland.org.
Core Language Instruction
Beginner Core Levels 1-5 uses the Methode Latitudes 1, a new series that has recently been adopted by the largest Alliance networks in the world. Teachers and students work with student text, workbook and audio CD that cover beginning French conversation, verb conjugation, listening and writing. The Level 1 Courseware can be used for all five semesters before transitioning to Level 2 - Intermediate. With respect to DELF/DALF and the levels recognized by the Cadre Européen Commun de Référence, Latitudes 1 corresponds to A1/A2 (utilisateur élémentaire), and Latitudes 2 reaches into B1 (utilisateur indépendant); Latitudes 3 is B1.
Beginner Core Level 101:
Communication: Greetings, introductions, nationalities and numbers, expressing preferences, tu vs. vous forms of address.
Grammar: Verbs "to be", "to have", " to do" and some "-er" verbs; introduction to pronouns; masculine/ feminine adjectives and articles, possessives, interrogative forms, alphabet, numbers, the partitive, negation with ne…pas.
Phonetics: Intonation, rhythm, elision, and vowel sounds.
Cultural context: Geography of France, its location in Europe, Francophony, French family life.
Beginner Core Level 102:
Communication: Making a request, inviting, accepting and refusing, telling time, giving your opinion, expressing quantities, foods.
Grammar: Near future using aller + infinitive, il y a; Est-ce que question form, verbs aller, vouloir, pouvoir, savoir connaître, venir, prendre, finir; direct object pronouns and the pronoun "en", measurements, introduction to passé composé with avoir; idiomatic expressions.
Phonetics: Final sounds, some consonant sounds, linkage between words, hard c vs. soft c.
Cultural context: French traditions, parties, hobbies; going out to cafés and restaurants, groups; animals.
Beginner Core Level 103:
Communication: Asking and giving directions; reading a map; saying where things are situated, giving commands, speaking about past events, indicating frequency, asking and giving permission, measurements.
Grammar: Passé composé (2) using avoir vs. être; possessive adjectives, imperative, prepositions of place, plaire and faire plaisir; ordinal numbers; furniture in a home; shops and public places in town, relative pronouns, indirect object pronouns, forms of à + definite article, passé compose using être; immediate future tense using aller + infinitive; connaître versus savoir, simple future tense.
Phonetics: Pronunciation for questions, vowel sounds.
Cultural context: Gift-giving; architecture; nature.
Beginner Core Level 104:
Communication: Expressing obligation, suggestion, advice; describing a place; timelines; frequency of actions.Grammar: Using en in verb constructions with de; quelque chose, rien; quelqu'un, personne, construction of obligation: il faut, devoir; relative pronouns qui, que, où, indirect pronoun complements; placement of adjectives; names of cities, countries, continents and their prepositions; pronoun complement y; demonstrative adjectives.
Phonetics: Prononciations of "e"; consonant sounds [b] and [v]; utilisation of aigu, grave and circonflexe accents, vowel sounds.
Cultural context: French departments overseas, European Union.
Beginner Core Level 105:
Communication: Describing your day, comparing, speaking of the past/future, quantity, expressing agreement/disagreement; understanding and expressing the weather; describing someone; expressing your wishes; writing a letter and a story.
Grammar: Interrogation with inversion; reflexive pronouns, passé composé (3), imparfait, futur simple, present subjunctive; 4 seasons; parts of body; negations with ne...plus, ne...que and ne...jamais; verbs sortir, partir, quitter; sequence words d'abord, puis, enfin.
Phonetics: Open and closed sounds.
Cultural context: Books, fashion, socitey; francophony, music.
Level 1 Review
This class is a solid review of important structures originally covered in the 5 parts of level 1, through extensive written and oral drills, with an emphasis on communication. The class provides a good review of French for people needing to revisit the language after years of dis-use, or as a review for recent 104/105 grads before they move on to the new content of the 200-series (intermediate).
Intermediate Core Level 201:
Communication: Describing actions in past tense; asking and expressing opinions; comparing; talking about household tasks.
Grammar: Possessive pronouns; comparative and superlative forms; recent past; Subjunctive form (1); interrogatives with inversion; negations.
Phonetics: Vowel sounds.
Cultural context: French music, art and culture, advertisements etc.
Intermediate Core Level 201:
Communication: Expressing certitude/incertitude, agreement/disagreement; expressing and asking one's opinion; expresing intention to do something; justifying choices; expressing restrictions. Verbs aller, venir, revenir, retourner.
Grammar: Recent past; possessive pronouns; past tense, imperfect (review); interrogation (review); subjunctive; double pronouns.
Phonetics: Accents of insistence; distinction of past, present & imperfect endings; the sounds [t], [d], [v] & [f].
Cultural context: Caricatures, street art, the French and Francophony.
Intermediate Core Level 202:
Communication: Expressing likes, preferences; comparisons; expressing joy, sadness, fear, anxiety; reassurance; surprise.
Grammar: Nominalisation, suffixes; comparitives, superlatives; past participle agreement with avoir; plus-que-parfait; duration of time.
Phonetics: The sounds [s], [i], [y], [u], [?].
Intermediate Core Level 203:
Communication: Expressing anger, discontent, disappointment, regret; asking to do something; responding to a proposition; verbs donner, offrir, prêter.
Grammar: The pronouns en and y; uses and irregular conjugations of subjunctive; quantity; demonstrative & interrogative pronouns; frequency.
Phonetics: Nasalization of vowels; [r] and [l].
Cultural Context: Sundays, the French & business.
Intermediate Core Level 204:
Communication: Giving an order; responding to a question; promising; organizing one's discourse; speaking on the telephone; accuse, dispute, criticize.
Grammar: Le, en & y replacing a proposition; formation of adverbs using -ment; articulations of discourse; working world vocabulary; clarifying.
Phonetics: The sounds [k], [g], [j], [w].
Cultural Context: Money; communication & the media.
Intermediate Core Level 205:
Communication: Interacting by mail; expressing opposition; to complain, to protest; expressing cause & consequence; emphasizing; expressing hypothesis, condition, evidence.
Grammar: Opposition; frequency; passive form; cause & consequence; condition & hypothesis; present conditional (formation & usage); gerund; discourse sensibility.
Phonetics: The sounds [n], [s], [z], [3]; homophones.
Cultural Context: Current events, debates.
Advanced Core Level 301:
Communication: Telling a story in the past; expressing memories, what one has forgotten; reminding someone of something; describing a place; comparison; describing a person, characteristics.
Grammar: Passé composé, imparfait, plus-que-parfait; past participle agreement with pronominal verbs; adjective placement and their nuances; relative pronoun dont; indefinites; composed relative pronouns; time sequences.
Phonetics: Pauses in spoken French; specificities in formal and informal pronunciations; denasalisation.
Cultural Context: Griots and Africa; Montréal; music.
Advanced Core Level 302:
Communication: Describing oneself; describing maladies; expressing pleasure, joy, happiness; expressing sentiments and emotions in general; giving critical opinions; expressing regret and criticisms; hypotheses.
Grammar: Time indications; gerund; indicative vs. subjunctive; conditionnel passé; using si with hypotheticals.
Phonetics: Intonation with suggestion and advice; groupings and rhythm.
Cultural Context: Dietary trends in France; African cinema.
Advanced Core Level 303:
Communication: Expressing one's capacity to do something; expressing interest; beginning & leading a discussion; expressing cause & consequence; asking for help; proposing services; expressing goals.
Grammar: Articulations of discourse; present participle; expressions of cause, consequence, goals and solidarity.
Phonetics: Québécois accent; accent of insistence.
Cultural Context: Working (and not working) in France; Solid neighbors: Switzerland and Belgium.
Advanced Core Level 304:
Communication:Arguing: expressing opposition, giving in; expressing agreement & disagreement; expressing anger, dissapointment, hope, doubt.
Grammar: Le futur antérieur; indicative vs. subjunctive (2); vocabulary of argumentation and the environment.
Phonetics: Interjections; Accent from southwestern France.
Cultural Context: Prejudice and Francophony; Overseas ecologies.
EDITO Classes - Perfecting Your French Through Texts
If you have mastered French at the medium B1 level or higher, then you are ready for Le Nouvel Edito. Optionally, if you are already at B2 level, this class is a good one for maintaining that level. The Edito textbook, with its companions CDs and DVD, was just released in 2010 and provides a rich collection of authentic documents, pulled from multiple current-day media. The documents -- which are stimulating and challenging -- provide the focus on which to develop and improve your mastery of French in the areas of listening comprehension, oral production, grammar and vocabulary, all the while gaining cultural insights as well. The chapters can be taken in any order; see the topic list below and click here for details by chapter.
NOTE: Each 10-week session covers 2 themed unités (chapters).
Unités 1/2: The Media & Pop CultureUnités 3/4: Art & Film plus Travel & Tourism
Unités 5/6: The Environment & 20th Century French History
Unités 7/8: Love & Friendship plus The Working World
Unités 9/10: Health & Well-Being plus La langue française
For the fall term of 2010, here is the roster of which Edito Classes are focusing on which unités:
Edito-A -- Unités 9/10: Health & Well-Being plus La langue française
Edito-B -- Unités 1/2: The Media & Pop Culture
Edito-C -- Unités 7/8: Love & Friendship plus The Working World
Edito-D -- Unités 9/10: Health & Well-Being plus La langue française
Edito-E -- Unités 5/6: The Environment & 20th Century French History
Edito-F -- Unités 5/6: The Environment & 20th Century French History
Edito-G -- Unités 3/4: Art & Film plus Travel & Tourism
Themed Conversation Classes
These classes are for students ranging from low intermediate to advanced and involve extensive class discussion, tout en français around a theme such as a novel, selected texts/literature, viewing and discussing excerpts from TV programs, current events or theatrical improvisation. Texts/books may be recommended for these classes, on a case by case basis. Levels for these classes range from A2/B1 to C2. See the Classes at a Glance page for times and dates.
Beginners Conversation Class
Have you always wanted to join a conversation group, but have been too shy? This course provides an environment wherein beginners may work on their French conversation skills, accompanied by a teacher to help facilitate conversation, assist in grammar and prononciation, and answer any questions that may arise. (CECR level A2)
Sounding French - Accent and Intonation (1 and 2)
Are you happy with your reading and comprehension but wish you could speak with more authority and confidence? Then these classes are for you. Learn to avoid the traps that ensnare Americans. Practice getting the right nasals, just the right "u" versus "ou," and more. Use songs, poems, discussion and role-playing games to aid in pronunciation and intonation and increase your vocabulary. Note: the SndFr2 covers different materials than SndFr1. (CECR level A2/B1)
Littérature et Conversation: Lettres de mon moulin, de Daudet
This course covers short stories by Alphonse Daudet (different stories than in earlier terms). Through literature we will visit the towns and villages described in the short stories of Daudet as they appear in his historical collection, Lettres de mon moulin (late 19th century). Regions to be studied include Avignon, Arles, Aix-en-Provence, Aubagne, Nîmes, Beaucaire, les Alpilles. Expand your vocabulary and apply grammatical rules learned in class, improve your conversational skills through oral presentations and discussions. (CECR level A2/B1)
Conversation et Lecture Facile: Les misérables (Cosette, Gavroche, Fantine)
This is an "easy reading" class intended for intermediate students. Ce roman est une vaste epopée populaire simplifiée où l'on voit Victor Hugo se porter comme défenseur des faibles, des vaincus et des opprimés dans la France du XIX siècle. (CECR level B1)
Littérature et Conversation / Book Discussion
This class centers around reading and discussion of a book; book focus changes each term. Before each class the students are asked to read a chapter or two of the book (usually 10-25 pages). The class time includes asking and answering questions about the book, about the author and the theme. Intermixed are grammar refreshers as needed, reading aloud for pronunciation, and analysis of complementary media (for example, the film adaptation of a book). Past book selections were Séraphine : La vie rêvée de Séraphine de Senlis, books from the authors Amélie Nothomb, Fred Vargas, Marguerite Duras and Georges Simenon. (CECR level B1/B2)
Le Français "In" Saturday Workshop (offered occasionally - see Alliance bulletins)
This special workshop (generally 6 hours on a Saturday), focuses on modern-day French language as used in informal situations in everyday life: on the terrasses of cafes, at the movies, and in popular music. Students will practice using popular expressions (slang) and learn how to decode the different registres of the French language. Covers common idiomatic expressions that use animals and vegetables; evaluates the argot used in popular songs; interjections and onomatopées; passages of a play; passages of a polar; words of Arabic origins adopted into today's parlance; and recommended Internet-based resources. (CECR level A2/B1)