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This is a foreign language program the whole family can use! Written so that it can be easily adapted for younger students, middle students, independent learners or as a high school course, this program is laid out into 36 lessons that can be completed in 1, 2, or 3 years depending on the age and goals of the individual student. The programs employ the Charlotte Mason method of learning language in a natural way. Each lesson contains several different parts, starting with a short conversational story, with words in both English and the language being studied so students will be able to figure out through context what the foreign words mean. A short vocabulary section follows containing the foreign words in the story and giving the English translations. An activity section comes next, containing several different activities such as creating English-foreign language flash cards, having mock conversations, gradually using common expressions in the foreign language instead of English throughout the week, reading books, doing research projects, and much more. Lessons also contain scripture verse memorization in the foreign language, teacher helps, cultural notes, some trivia, and instructions for completing a page in their notebook. The notebook is a binder that you add pages to after every lesson and will show what you’ve completed throughout the program. Different sections are completed somewhat differently, depending on the age and level of the student, and all of the adaptations for different levels are included in the beginning with the plans laid out for finishing the program in a timely fashion. A younger child will spend approximately 45-60 minutes per week on their lessons, and the independent or older learner will spend approximately 1 ½ to 2 hours per week. Audio CDs are included to aid in pronunciation and learning, and they go along with each story and the vocabulary sections. If you prefer to break your foreign language study up into one-year increments, consider the 1A and 1B programs. These are basically the first and second halves of the full programs, given a few tweaks to appeal more to an older audience (grades 7 and up). The font is more formal, the stories are slightly different, and the grammar and other worksheets have been integrated into the textbook instead of being located on a separate CD. The two CDs included hold the audio portion of the program and answers to the activity sheets. The phonogram cards are not included in 1A or 1B, so you will need to purchase those separately.

Test books and keys are available separately for French IA and IB. The non-reproducible test books include a test for each lesson (no cumulative tests), which are mostly fill-in-the-blank and short answer questions with a few oral exercises thrown in. Test books do not include an answer key – these are available separately. Keys include all test content, with answers filled in. Although not required, these resources are available if you feel you need assessments. ~ Megan