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New French teacher Magali Forêt helps the students at LeBlanc Elementary.

LeBlanc Elementary’s French Immersion program off to good start

“Un, deux, trois! C’est bon pour moi,” says Madame Forêt as each student gets a drink of water.
The French Immersion class at LeBlanc Elementary in Vermilion Parish is starting its fifth week.
Most of these kindergarten students have gotten over the hump. They don’t cry for mom anymore and they know the routine. At nap time, every student opens a mat and gets under a blanket. The difference here is that their teacher gives instructions only in French.
Just minutes before, students were sitting in front of the Smartboard, fully engaged with a lesson about the family. The next minute, the teacher had them on their feet swaying and dancing, repeating the vocabulary. All attention was on the flash cards. The lesson continued with desk work. Madame Forêt went to each table to help her 24 students stay on task.
Magali Forêt is from a village near Liège, Belgium, where she is a teacher of immersion in English.
“I’m so happy to teach immersion in French,” says Madame Forêt. “The French here is amazing. Some of the words are just like in our Belgian countryside. It’s a wonderful experience for me and my husband.”
Principal Rachelle Brown echoes that sentiment. “We are so happy to have Madame Forêt. French immersion at LeBlanc Elementary is a wonderful experience for all of our students. Our entire school community is excited about it. We have an awesome team of educators making it happen.”
The librarian, Kim Langlinais, is creating a special place for the donation of French books by the Rotary Club of Abbeville and the French Acadian Music Festival, Inc. Lauren Schexnayder, the music teacher, is working to incorporate folksongs in French. Last May, she taught the third graders how to waltz and two-step. The English teacher in Immersion, Kelly Such Stewart, is all in.
“We call ourselves the most Cajun place on earth, so we need to live up to our name,” says Stewart. “I have been volunteering for Festivals Acadiens et Créoles for years and have witnessed the positive effects of French immersion.”
“I provide 90 minutes of Language Arts and enrichment in English every day,” adds Stewart.
The principal is also excited about the newest group at LeBlanc Elementary, the LeBlanc Roaring Fiddlers. Roaring because their mascot is the lion.
“Our fourth grade participants will receive the use of a fiddle and instruction two days a week starting in October,” says Rachelle Brown. “French Supervisor, Madeline DeHart, has helped us to obtain this grant from the Acadiana Center for the Arts with additional support from the Vermilion Arts Council and the Al Berard Foundation. Our students will get to meet Cajun fiddler, Michael Doucet. That’s awesome!”
“We have also been approached by the sports club, Pétanque Lafayette. They would like to introduce our whole school to this French pastime. They have visited our playground to scout out the best place to play,” adds Brown.
“Plus, our immersion students have been invited to participate in the Omelette Festival.”
“These are all wonderful opportunities for our students. We are so proud that it’s all happening here at LeBlanc Elementary,” Brown says with a big smile.

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