French Learning for High School Students
As children grow up to high school age, a lot of them stop their French education, seeing it as a difficult endeavor that cuts into their time for other classes, their social life, and their ability to work.
At Camp Tournesol, we make it our mission to help budding French speakers to continue their second language education, with lots of paid and volunteer opportunities to improve their French while also practicing and building important leadership skills.
It’s not just jobs that we provide, however, we also love to help a wider range of people find the French resources they need to continue their education. We know loads of great French resources for high school age students! We’re sharing them here so that anyone who needs French resources for ages 13 and up has what they need to succeed.
The Best French Apps For Grades 9 to 12
1. Duolingo
It’s got a wonderful variety of different types of exercises to help tighten your grasp on the French language, and the app itself has a very positive, upbeat vibe about it. Who doesn’t love that little owl?
2. Words With Friends 2
Teenagers thought playing Scrabble with the family was less than cool, but playing Words With Friends with their friends through their phones was definitely a fun and cool thing to do. Playing the game in French can help immensely to learn new words and strengthen their knowledge of the French vocabulary they already have.
3. 24 Hours Learn French
It’s not quite as cutesy and fun as DuoLingo, but it gets the job done. Instead of using direct translations, this app gives learners the proper translation based on context and how local speakers would express themselves.
4. HeadsUp!
A player puts the phone facing out on their forehead and their teammates will have to describe the word on the phone so that the person holding the phone can guess it. Whether you’re doing the guessing or the explaining, it’s a great French resource for high school kids because it allows them to practice their French while having fun and playing a game.
The Best French Books For Grades 9 to 12
While we’ve got all sorts of fancy gadgets and strategies now, reading a book is still one of the best ways to learn or practice a language. It especially helps with high school age students if that book is something they enjoy reading, an engrossing story that makes them forget that they’re learning at all.
With that in mind, we’ve cobbled together a shortlist of some of the most popular young adult novels that will intrigue and interest teenagers.
1. Amos Daragon
A hugely popular young adult series from author Bryan Perro, a Quebec native. It follows the eponymous main character as he goes on a fantastical and magical quest to acquire all of the different masks to harness the strength of wind, water, fire, and earth.
2. Divergence
This series follows Tris as she navigates a futuristic world made up of five factions. When Tris comes to the age where she must choose a faction for life, she learns that she’s a Divergent who will never fit into one faction.
3. Tara Duncan
Written by French novelist Sophie Andouin-Mamikonian, this series tells the story of the eponymous hero as she learns that she’s a magical being called a spellbinder born on Otherworld but raised on Earth as a regular human.
4. Harry Potter
A classic story of magic with lots of material to read through, this series is great because most teenagers are already aware of the story, which will make the translation in their mind that much easier.
5. Hunger Games
- Another well-known young adult series written in English and turned into a blockbuster movie franchise, no one will have any trouble finding these best-selling books in French.
The Best French Movies For Grades 9 to 12
Watching movies may seem like something to do in your down time, but they’re also a great French resource for ages 13 and up. It’s easier to get teenagers to engage in a French movie to help them learn and strengthen their knowledge of a second language than a novel or exercise book.
Enjoying language learning is a huge and underappreciated part of getting kids to maintain and continue their French education.
1. À Vos Marques Party!
A lovely story about a shy introvert who is charged with helping the new girl in town to get to know the school, city, and her other classmates.
2. Les Boys
The most successful film series Quebec has ever produced, this comedy follows the players on an amateur hockey team.
3.Babine
A fantasy film that follows the supposed ‘village idiot’ as he must prove his innocence in the burning of the township’s church.
4. Le Papillon Bleu
Another Canadian film, this one follows a young cancer patient whose final wish is to find the elusive blue morpho butterfly.
5. La Grande Séduction
A classic comedy film from Quebec, this is a tale about a small declining fishing village that tries to trick a doctor into staying there so that a company will build a factory in the town and help the residents get off welfare.
6. Dans Une Galaxie
This sci-fi comedy follows a team that is sent to find another planet for people to live on as the destruction of the ozone layer nears completion on Earth.
Looking for more ways to help your students practice their French?
Check out our sister company, the Brouillet Academy, as they offer French after-school support for all ages! Their programs include: virtual tutoring, virtual French classes, and French workshops for schools!
