Extensions

Glossary of French Terms

  • Bonjour! = Hello!
  • C’est horrible! = That’s horrible/terrible.
  • Je m’appelle…= My name is…
  • Ma cherie = My dear
  • Mémère / Mémé = Grammy or Gran
  • Donc = Therefore; and so
  • Pépère / Pépé = Grampy or Papa
  • C’est nous! = That’s us
  • Ecoute = Listen

Think About it… (for family or class discussion)

1) Josephine, the narrator, is learning French in school, but it is different from the French she speaks with her family at home. Why do you think this is?

2) The name Acadia comes from the European explorer Giovanni da Verrazano. What else do you know about him? What other contributions has he made to North American history?

3) As Josephine learns more about Acadia, she learns that there were French people in North America before the Pilgrims landed in New England. Did you know that? Why do you think we don’t learn about that part of our history in school?

4) What did Josephine learn about the location of Acadia? Where was it? Where is Acadia today?

5) What happened in the Grand Dérangement?

Use your newspaper (with Maine Learning Results applications)

Acadia is the name of a former French colony. Search your newspaper for the word “Acadia.” Where did you find it? What is the name “Acadia” used to describe? Why do you think the word “Acadia” was used? What does it mean? (English Language Arts: Language and Images. Modern and Classical Languages: Cultural Practices, Products and Perspectives.)

English is generally considered the official language of the United States. Josephine speaks French with her family. Find articles in the newspaper that are about French or other languages. What are some of the issues around languages in the United States today? (English Language Arts: Language and Images. Modern and Classical Languages: Cultural Practices, Products and Perspectives.)

When Josephine looked at a map, she found that there were lots of towns in Northern Maine and Canada that had French names. Look through today’s newspaper and see how many articles occur in places with French names. Then look at a map and find some of these places. Where are they located? Then look up the names in a French dictionary. What do some of these names mean? Why do you think they were given that name? (Social Studies/Geography: Human Interaction with Environments. English Language Arts: Research Related Writing and Speaking. Science and Technology: Communication. Modern and Classical Languages: Workings of a Language.)

Mémère Comeau tells us that Acadia was really a border land between the colonies of two countries, Britain and France, and that the country that ruled over the Acadians changed many times. Search the newspaper for a story about land that two countries or groups are arguing over. Why do both sides want this land? Why don’t they want the other side to have it? Do they share any common values or goals? How can they compromise? (Career Preparation: Integrated and Applied Learning. Civics and Government: International Relations. History: Historical Knowledge, Concepts and Patterns. Geography: Human Interaction with Environments. Science and Technology: Implications of Science and Technology. Mathematics: Discrete Mathematics.)