French Classes
Commited to pedagogical excellence, the Alliance Française de Washington participates in the AF Frames Project.
Classes Overview
At the Alliance Francaise there is more than one way to learn French. Depending on your level, you can decide to enroll in formal language classes, language workshops, literature groups or...why not have your children learn the language for you? At the Alliance Francaise de Washington, you not only learn French grammer and vocabulary, you also learn how to do things in French through practical use of the language.
Class size is 5 to 12 students. All of our instructors are conducted by highly qualified instructors who are certified in teaching French as a Foreign Language and who provide an emphasis on a conversational and contextual approach to language learning.
Our curriculum targets systematic acquisition of grammar skills as a way to ensure long term profit from language learning. While following this step-by-step approach, our skilled teachers make a point of creating a lively atmosphere in the classroom in order to encourage communication in the target language. While seriously tackling basics that will last, our students find themselves exchanging in French with the teacher from day one, even at the beginner level.
- Formal Language Acquisition Classes: These are the perfect fit for the basic user or the student aiming at becoming an independent user. There are two formulas for these classes: once or twice a week for eight weeks or 30 hours of intensive class time over 10 days.
- Language Workshops: For the students in need of a brush-up or for those who want to learn French with specific objectives in mind such as business, written skills, etc.
- Literature and Conversation Groups: For the adventurous student, an exploration of French literature can be quite revealing. Conversation groups are also very popular and returning students get to know each other in and out of the Alliance!
- Children’s Corner: Classes for Francophone children, story time for little ones, classes for French as a Foreign Language for children ages 14 months to 12.
Personalized Solutions
Corporate Classes Private Classes
About the Language Curriculum
Language classes at the Alliance cover 4 levels: Beginners, Intermediate, Intermediate Advanced and Advanced. These 4 levels follow the CEF Global Scale (Common European Framework for the Learning of Foreign Languages): Basic User Levels A1 and A2; Independent User Levels B1 and B2 and Proficient User Levels C1 and C2.
Our placement test allows us to accommodate new students with prior knowledge of French. Although the progression of the curriculum is very systematic, we sometimes recommend skipping steps when the student obviously progresses at a higher speed than expected. More about the placement test
Our curriculum targets systematic acquisition of grammar skills as a way to ensure long term profit from language learning. While following this step-by-step approach, our skilled teachers make a point of encouraging communication in the target language as well as creating a lively atmosphere in the classroom. While seriously tackling basics that will last, our students at beginners level also find themselves exchanging in French with the teacher from day 1.
