What is in the menu?

The program of the blog "French Classes Vancouver"

So what will you find inside the blog of a French Teacher?

Well there will be anything that will serve the purposes of its existence.

1. Sharing my interest for the language.  So you will find posts about any grammar, conjugation, expression, pronunciation,... difficulties or simple concepts but explained in an easy way with links to exercises to practice them.


2. Communicate about France and French speaking coutries. Associated to the language, there is very specific cultures, histories, traditions, people, place, news, ... that are worth exploring.


3.  Sharing ideas. The world is a really interesting place. So are people and their ideas.

I found the main difficulty of such medias of communication is being consistent with the posts while keeping the interest alive. For this reason, the same way I build my classes, I would like to propose a little program, something that might change and evolve but a base for "learning appointments".

The grammar point starting a week will be emphasized throughout the different posts during this week in order to study it in different context.

I will also always keep the length of the posts "bite sized" so that you can have your daily amount of French without being overwhelmed.

Enjoy!
 

French Classes in Vancouver

What French program can you follow in Vancouver?

Canada's official languages are English and French.
However as this document shows, less than 1% of the British Columbia population is francophone.
Lack of interest or purpose? Definitely not!
But think about it, what options do you have for quality private tutoring here in Vancouver?
There is no many answers really. This why I am here offering my services. 

One to one

All ages, all levels are welcome

• Conversation
• School tutoring (Immersion, University, K-12,...)
• Governmental tests (DELF, TCF, SLE, TEF,...)
• Progressive classes: from Beginner to Expert
• Business French

I usually focus on communication, encouraging conversation. But let's keep in mind that to master this subtle language all aspects needs to be explored. For this reason I build my programs on the five major skills reflected in the Common European Framework of Reference:

                                           1.   Listening                     2.   Reading and Viewing
                                           3.   Spoken Interaction    4.   Spoken Production
                                           5.   Writing 

You will be in control of your classes, and any suggestions and wishes are always considered, and classes adapt accordingly.

Group Classes

Come with a friend, your partner, or join a group.
From 2 to 8, group classes are usually perfect for beginners. Learning with someone else is a really good way to get some extra motivation. In addition of having another perspective on the learning process of the language, it also creates a rich group energy increasing the fun factor, it multiplies the options for interaction and by adding these extra possibilities of communication it allows you to get even more comfortable using your French in front of anyone and in any situation.
 
Immersion

"How many of us have taken language courses over years and not learned as much as when we went to the country and «immersed» ourselves in the language for a far shorter period?"
(Psychoanalyst Norman Doidge talking about massive learning through immersion, «The Brain that Changes Itself »)

My own experience as a traveller as well as the numerous requests from students for an immersion option, I am proudly offering this program:

Immerse yourself in Vancouver's French community: improve your vocabulary and enjoy great visits (markets, restaurants, bakeries, museums, stores, ...), learn and exchange about french culture through music, movies, art... meet other francophones and practice your french in many situations, role play everyday situations (at the: hairdresser, bank, tourist office, restaurant, hotel, etc...), develop your skills and learn how to cook wonderful traditional French dishes...
Everything is possible, this will be tailored journey and will taste like if you were in Paris.

The concept is a massive immersion and based on a weekly practice but again, everything can be adapted. Here are the standard formulas:

15h/week (3h/day)
20h/week (4h/day)
30h/week (6h/day)
 For one week or more

Skype 

The world is a big place, Vancouver a extensive city. It could sometimes be complicated and discouraging to spend as much time in transit as in class, or just frustrating to have to pause your learning momentum because of a trip abroad. With the help of many digital materials and well-organized classes, enjoy the comfort of your home and get easily connected with your favourite teacher :)

I am also happily taking any motivated student located in any part of the world.

Translation / Proof reading

 Academic/professional/personal paper: I can translate, edit and/or proofread any of your documents.

For French classes in Vancouver please contact me: rholivier[at]hotmail.fr

Who is Olivier?

Meet your French Teacher. Experienced, friendly and reliable you will enjoy learning French with him.

Bonjour tout le monde,

Almost 3 years in Vancouver! Time flies...

I thought it was finally time to introduce myself as a French Teacher to the World Wide Web, and communicate more about my services in the Vancouver area.

But first let me introduce myself as a French Teacher and as a French immigrant in Vancouver.

My name is Olivier and I am a young French man from Angers, a little city 1 hour away from Paris (by train) located in an area renowned for having the most pure French accent (French Embassy source) ^_^
Teaching/Tutoring entered my life at the early age of 14 when I started babysitting children, and became more significant during my high-school and university years.

At this time I was also studying to get my carrier started as a industrial manager, and I didn't realize I was already doing what today I consider an ideal job.

Having meaningful interactions/connections, exchanging knowledge/ideas, being supportive to my students and coaching them in through learning process, being creative in order to teach in a pleasant/fun way while adapting to the needs and wants of each person: these are only a few reasons among hundreds why I decided to dedicate myself fully to teaching French during a year-long trip around Australia and Asia.

Although passing on knowledge is to me one of the most beautiful experiences, being a good teacher is not something you improvise. For this reason I had to develop many skills beside my unerring passion.
I started exploring language education throughout history (Europe has a fascinating past in this matter and is a perfect source of examples for what to do and not), I studied the process of learning through neuroscience in order to understand better the mechanisms of the learning process (especially with languages), I got trained by different language schools and looked in detail into the most common practices, I took a program from the Alliance Francaise for teaching French abroad (DAEFLE) and learnt the most updated language teaching strategies. I have plenty of experience with dozens of students, each one with a very diverse education background, culture, goals, dedication, personality, age..., I have observed, listened and worked toward always improving myself as a teacher.

In my everyday life I am also a passionate juggler and snowboarder, and I also eagerly explore climbing, dance, puppetry, playing with instruments, arts, props, friends and everything that makes life happier and more colourful... All these activities relate in a way to teaching and learning, and they have tremendously developed my teaching abilities. But mostly they are the things I enjoy the most about Vancouver.
As you can guess I am a really energetic person who likes to always do and learn more.

For French classes in Vancouver please contact me: rholivier[at]hotmail.fr