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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

to ask for bilingual DC to do something else during French lessons?

92 replies

StarlingBirdsong · 15/09/2016 10:58

DC in question is year 2, age 6. We are a bilingual family (French/English). DC has come home saying they've had french lessons, this is the second week so looks like its going to be a regular thing one afternoon a week.

DC is complaining that he bored (understandable) and that the teacher says some of it wrong (it's not a native french speaker so the 'r' letter in particular is likely not to sound correct to him).

WIBU to ask that DC is either set a different task, or that i can send him in with a book and he can do quiet reading for this lesson? (He is a free reader and would sit in silence with his book, no issue).

I'm worried that his boredom will soon turn into disruptive behaviour - and i wouldn't blame him, they are literally learning the basics 'bonjour, comment ca va' etc - DC is fluent!

DO i approach his class teacher? or the actual french teacher?

OP posts:

BluishSky · 15/09/2016 13:22

Foreign language teaching is awful in many cases.

I'm supposed to teach a language (primary) I do not speak. But they gave me half a day of training. So now I'm not allowed to complain. Because I should be able to teach it. Perfectly.

Go figure!

Marsaday · 15/09/2016 13:22

derxa surely the OPs dc has the same right to be differentiated for during French lessons as in any other subject, eg maths where students get different work according to ability.

My dc are also bilingual french (OH is french but I am also fluent and French is main language at home) and I will be mightily cross if they are expected to sit through hours of bonjour, ca va. Being a helper is all very well but it won't be teaching the child anything.

OP in our secondary school there are some German bilingual students in y8. They still attend German lessons but are working with GCSE materials on the same topic as whatever the rest of the class are studying.

arethereanyleftatall · 15/09/2016 13:23

Agree with those who've said he could help out in class.

arranged · 15/09/2016 13:24

Why should he help out? It's not his problem!

arethereanyleftatall · 15/09/2016 13:25

Marsaday - yes it will be teaching the child something - it will teach them to be kind to others, and to help those less fortunate than themselves. Or is that not as important as extra maths practise?!

Marsaday · 15/09/2016 13:25

blusish sky my mum was a primary teacher. She got told to teach German even though she didn't speak a word of it.
She could have taught French, having studied it to degree level, but that would have been far too sensible

arranged · 15/09/2016 13:26

If a child was gifted at maths, would he be expected to sit through years of 2 plus 2, and "help the others" if he was in fact GCSE level?

No he fucking wouldn't!

arranged · 15/09/2016 13:28

it will teach them to be kind to others, and to help those less fortunate than themselves

I'm getting cross now. Does he not learn that at the same time that the other kids learn it? Why does he have to have extra "being kind" practice because he's gifted at French?

Thank God OFSTED don't think like that....

What a bunch of namby pamby bullshit

arethereanyleftatall · 15/09/2016 13:28

Arranged - my dd does, and I'm glad because it teaches her to help others. She doesn't help all the time, but there's plenty of time to help others and to stretch yourself.

Marsaday · 15/09/2016 13:29

arethereany I would have HATED being the helper as a kid. Not because I'm not kind or helpful, just because of a lack of confidence.
Ops DC should be able to learn French at their own level during the French lesson.
After all, he's going to have 4 more years of primary languages, surely you can't expect him to just be a helper for 4 years???
Ofsted might also take a rather dim view since they expect every child to make progress.

derxa · 15/09/2016 13:29

derxa surely the OPs dc has the same right to be differentiated for during French lessons as in any other subject I agree. Surely it would have taken the teacher 5 secs to find out that the OPs DS has a good French accent.

arethereanyleftatall · 15/09/2016 13:29

Because it's a nice thing to do!!

derxa · 15/09/2016 13:32

I think the key here is work with the teacher. I was not suggesting that the OP's son should be a sort of performing seal either

arranged · 15/09/2016 13:33

Well it would be nice for the kid at the bottom of the class in maths to sweep the floor and tidy the books for the others every lesson.

Fuck it, if they're not going to pass anyway they may as well learn kindness instead....

derxa · 15/09/2016 13:35

discovered that we were all speaking with the French equivalent of a thick Glaswegian accent Parisian snobbery

monkeymamma · 15/09/2016 13:35

Think your dc needs to learn that sometimes other people don't know the stuff we do, it's about joining in, being patient and having fun. My 4yr old know his times tables up to 15 X 15 and can format in excel, but he's going to have to sit and 'learn' counting 1-10 with the rest of reception and jolly well should IMO! The idea of school is learning to join in sometimes and go with the flow. Im sure your dc will have fun in these lessons.

Marsaday · 15/09/2016 13:37

derxa since the primary teacher may not speak proper French themself it may be the case that they wouldn't recognise a good accent if it bit them on the backside.
Plus at this level kids often do group repetition so it's possible that after only 1 or 2 sessions the teacher hasn't yet heard the dc speak on their own.

arethereanyleftatall · 15/09/2016 13:37

Arranged. Don't be ridiculous. You carry on with your competitive way of thinking, and I'll carry on with mine thanks.

Marsaday - I guess the flip side of the confidence thing, is that this sort of helping role could do wonders for a child's confidence, depending on the child.

Original poster

StarlingBirdsong · 15/09/2016 13:39

DH may be able to do a one off session but his work is manic so he cant do it regularly.

DC would enjoy being a class helper but it does run the risk of him being a bit superior and thinking he's right and his teacher is wrong, which is a dangerous precedent. As others have said - would you like your 10 year old to be sat in a class learning 2 +2 = 4? because that is about the equivalent difference in ability between fluent household conversations and learning numbers and colours and how to say hello.

I'm not wanting to be difficult but i'd rather we got a plan in place before DC starts acting out through boredom - he is only 6!

OP posts:

lifeistooshort · 15/09/2016 13:40

Our school has been brilliant. With my daughter and her friend, they got an other teacher in to get them to do more challenging work in French (like presentations, researching topics etc).

For my son, he is the teacher's helper. A good way to get him on board and for everyone to benefit

arranged · 15/09/2016 13:41

monkeymama a good school wouldn't make your son sit and learn numbers to ten with everyone else if he is so gifted.

Original poster

StarlingBirdsong · 15/09/2016 13:43

monkey DC has already said he's bored and not having fun. i'd be interested to see how well your DC gets on if they are that far ahead tbh, mine would be bored witless and be looking for ways to entertain themselves.

OP posts:

JudyCoolibar · 15/09/2016 13:43

yes it will be teaching the child something - it will teach them to be kind to others, and to help those less fortunate than themselves. Or is that not as important as extra maths practise?!

They should be learning that throughout the curriculum. It would be a pretty shit school if that is not the case. If the curriculum requires children to be taught French, then they should be taught, not expected to teach others. If that means differentiating in the same way as every other subject is differentiated, so be it.

JudyCoolibar · 15/09/2016 13:45

My 4yr old know his times tables up to 15 X 15 and can format in excel, but he's going to have to sit and 'learn' counting 1-10 with the rest of reception and jolly well should IMO! The idea of school is learning to join in sometimes and go with the flow.

Monkeymamma, your son can surely learn to join in and go with the flow in every other subject. They spend a lot of time on numeracy in Reception, do you really want him sitting there day after day bored out of his mind?

Marsaday · 15/09/2016 13:46

starling if the teacher themself doesn't have sufficient French to provide work at your DCs level ask if they are able to liase with the secondary that they feed into. They may be able to lend some resources.

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