I was nervous going into French during my junior year of high school. I took Spanish since I was in sixth grade and I felt that learning a new language could either be beneficial or cause extra stress. I was afraid it would be too difficult for me and that I wouldn’t be able to do it – that was, until Mademoiselle Armour.
On the first day of class, I was intimidated. Mademoiselle Armour only spoke in French to us. But this ended up being one of the most helpful things. I learned new vocabulary and improved my comprehension skills simply by listening to her.
I remember when Mademoiselle handed us each a packet of questions about ourselves on the first day of school. We had to fill out the packet and turn it in the next day. The questions asked which day our birthday was, which bands were our favorites, and which books we liked. By the next time she saw us, Mademoiselle had all of our names (both French and English) memorized and our birthdays as well. We even quizzed her to see if she was correct and every time she was spot on. To say the least, I was very impressed.
Mademoiselle Armour made learning easy. We’d play games and practice talking with our partners every day. If we were curious about a word, she’d teach us it every time. Occasionally, she would throw in random phrases to make us smile. This made her classes silly and fun.
Her constant encouragement, however, was what helped me the most. When we went over homework, everybody would share an answer and whether it was right or wrong, she would encourage us to say it. If we were wrong, she’d walk us through how to do it correctly and make sure that we understood. While I’ve had teachers who’d do this in the past, none have done it as effectively as she does and it makes me feel much more secure in her class.
Mademoiselle knew I was taking Spanish too –and that I had been for a while– so she would take it upon herself to make small Spanish connections for me when we learned new grammar skills. This made me feel like she cared about how I was adjusting to the new language, as opposed to just moving on with the rest of the class.
Each week we’d have an artiste de la semaine, or artist of the week, where she’d introduce us to music that is popular in France. Sometimes we’d learn songs and other times, we’d just listened. I liked learning about the French in this way because you aren’t being talked at, you’re participating.
One of the things that made Mademoiselle Armour stand out was that she cared. Everyday she would ask how we were doing and if someone said anything less than alright, she would ask what was wrong. She would get involved in our lives in a good way. When we practiced speaking with our partners and she heard me say I was going to a concert, she would ask if I was going to see “Panique! À La Discothèque” (Panic! At The Disco), my favorite band. Simply by her asking little questions like these, I felt important.
I have Mademoiselle again this year and I am absolutely thrilled. Thanks to her, I understand French and can speak it now. Before going into French, I wanted to be a Spanish teacher. After having her as my teacher, I decided next year I am going to college to be a French and Spanish teacher.
Learning French has played a role in my life and has given me another thing to be passionate about. Thank you, Mademoiselle Armour, for all that you’ve done for me.