Spring Break en Français! March 25 - 31
Publié par Jennifer Fulton le
Ideas to help us all promote French language learning this week, including Washington, D.C. area French-language and cultural events for kids and families. Please share any other ideas by commenting below or posting to Bonjour Mama's Facebook page!
For many of us, there are way more daytime hours to fill this week during les vacances de printemps, so let’s try to spend as many of them as possible en français !
There are several opportunities for French practice with kids this week both at home (see essential vocabulary for Easter Egg-dying below) and out and about in the Washington, DC area: French storytime at PB and Jack in Fairfax, VA on Wednesday hosted by Language Planet, and an Easter Egg hunt on Saturday at the Alliance Française are a couple of highlights.
Also: Language Stars is offering 90-minute "foreign language blasts" for Spring Break ($29 each) at various locations with enticing themes include Angry Birds, Pirates, and Fairies & Pixies! Admittedly, this post is late and some may have already filled up (I promise to do an advance list next time!) but it may be worthwhile checking to see what is still open -- we will attempt to register for at least one of these - they had us at "Angry"! Merci et bonne semaine!
Out and About
($) indicates there is a cost for the event.
Tuesday
4pm: Storytime at the Alliance Française
Wednesday
10:30am: Storytime in French at PB & Jack, hosted by Language Planet DC (free with $10 admission)
Thursday
4pm – French Storytime at the Cleveland Park Library
Friday
6pm – Kids Movie Night (Cine Mome) at the Alliance Français: Le Renard et l"Enfant(ages 6+)
Saturday
10:50am - Storytime at the Alliance Française (free) and Egg Hunt at the local park! ($)
At Home
Dye and Decorate Easter Eggs /Teindre et Décorer les Œufs de Pacques
Below are some basic instructions and some of the vocabulary* we used today as we made our first batch of real Easter eggs.
- Boil the eggs= cuir les œufs (hard-boiled eggs = œufs durs)
- Make the dye baths = preparer les bains de teinture
- Pour water into a plastic cup = verser l’eau dans un gobelet en carton
◦ add vinegar / lemon juice to the water to make the colors brighter = ajouter du jus de citron / vinaigre a l’eau pour que les couleurs soient plus vives
◦ dip the eggs in the dye = plonger les oeufs dans le colorant
◦ The longer you leave the eggs in, the brighter the colors will be = plus tu laisses les œufs, plus vives seront les couleurs
- After ten minutes, check the color = apres 10 miutes, verifie la couleur
- Use the egg dipper to take out the egg = utilise ta louche pour retirer les œufs !
- Decorate with paint, stickers and glitter! = decorer avec la peinture, des autocollants et paillettes!
|
First we have to boll the eggs, then let them cool. [How about tidying up while we wait?] |
D’abord il faut faire bouillir les oeufs, puis les laisser refroidir. [Et si on rangeait le salon en attendant?] |
|
use the egg dipper so you don't stain your fingers |
utilise la louche, comme ca tu ne tacheras pas les doigts |
|
squeeze the bottle. |
presse sur la bouteille. |
|
stir |
remuer |
|
check to see how bright the colors are. |
vérifier pour voir combien les couleurs sont vives |
|
look! the cracks look like a spiderweb! |
Regarde! les fissures ressemblent à une toile d'araignée! |
|
that egg is cracked. |
cet œuf est fissuré. |
|
do you want the color to be darker? |
Tu veux que la couleur soit plus foncée? |
|
you want light-orange or dark orange? |
Tu veux l'orange clair ou foncé? |
|
very clever! |
très intelligent! |
|
Why don't you just experiment with that one and leave the rest the way they are? |
Pourquoi ne pas experimenter avec celui-là et laisser le reste comme ils sont? |
|
it turned brown. |
il est devenu marron. |
|
try not to spill on the carpet. |
Essaies de ne pas en renverser sur la moquette. |
|
Uh-oh can you please hand me a paper towel. |
Oh-oh – s’il te plait donne-moi une serviette en papier. |
|
what a pretty color pink! let's check if the eggs are dry. what stickers do you want to put on them? we'll need scissors and glue. do you want to put some glitter?
|
quelle jolie couleur rose! On va voir si les oeufs sont secs. Quels autocollants veux-tu mettre? On aura besoin de ciseaux et de la colle. Est-ce que tu veux mettre des paillettes? |
|
I can’t wait for the Easter Bunny to come! |
J’ai hate que le Lapin de Pacques arrive! |
*"disclaimer": as a non-native speaker, I don't guarantee perfect translations! To look up words here and there, go to www.wordreference.com --I use it constantly -- or for detailed egg-dying insructions in French, go here:) Please feel free to correct any mistakes in the comments section below!
Read Frisson l'Ecureuil (the first Frisson book). Zach loves him so much, he has begun quoting one of Frisson's mantras: si rien ne fonctionne, fait le mort (if all else fails, play dead). If you have the book (which, by the way is available on Bonjour! Books! :-)) make sure to print out the complementary (and complimentary!) activity sheet on the Scholastic web site here
Plan a playdate with other French-speaking parents and kids! If you are in the DC Metro area, join or suggest an event on Bonjour Mama’s facebook page!
P.S. The DC Grande Fête de la Francophonie 2013 is officially underway! (March 1-April 13). Check out the web site for tons of upcoming French cultural events and activities throughout the DC area for all ages.