French Classes for Cadets (Grades 6–8)

Location: In Person at FIAF Montclair
Level: French as a Second Language, French for Native Speakers
Spring Apr 3–Jun 17

Grades 6–8 / Ages 11–14
11 weeks, once per week, 90 mins, $449

Start your child in a new language or boost their scholastic performance in French with FIAF’s Cadets!

Small classes with strict safety guidelines are offered in person at FIAF to meet the needs of parents and children.

Our multidisciplinary approach encourages interactions in French with role playing everyday tasks to awaken young teens’ interest and imaginations. FIAF’s Cadets focus on developing oral communication, including both listening comprehension and speaking skills. Teens will additionally build a solid foundation in reading and writing in French at a beginner, intermediate, and advanced level while learning strategies to become a more independent foreign language learner. The Cadets curriculum integrates preparation for the DELF JUNIOR exams.

Our curriculum consists of sixteen consecutive tiers from Beginner to Advanced level: 101, 102, 103, 104, 201, 202, 203, 204, 301, 302, 303, 304, 401, 402, 403, 404.

  • Cadets Beginner: 101–104

    Upon completion of levels 101 to 104, students will know salutations and introductions, describe a person and members of their families and express their tastes. They will be proficient in discussing their immediate environment, having a conversation about sports, and making vacation plans. Children will learn how to have a conversation on the phone, In grammar, teens will learn the verbs “être” (to be), “avoir” (to have), “aller” (to go) and “faire” (to do) and all verbs ending in “er”. Negative sentences and simple question structures will be studied. The future tense and the imperative form will also be covered.

  • Cadets Advanced Beginner: 201–204

    Upon completion of levels 201 to 204, children will know how to express their needs and feelings, describe their schedule and the personality traits of a person. They will be able to present an overview of their home, make a purchase and talk about their eating habits. In grammar, they will study irregular verbs and their usage. The past and future tenses will be studied and the conditional tense will be introduced.

  • Cadets Intermediate: 301–304

    Upon completion of levels 301 to 304, young teens will have learnt how to express their opinions in numerous contexts such music, movies, food and sports. They will also express more complex feelings, describe personal goals and desires. In grammar, the program will cover the “imparfait”, “passé composé” (past tenses) and “conditionel” tenses along with the imperative form and their usage.

  • Cadets Advanced: 401–404

    Upon completion of levels 401 to 404, teens will have learnt how to organize their thoughts, express their opinion, and give structure to their oral and written speech. The topics they will cover are generation conflict, migrations, as well as social life, the arts, and the planet. They will also express more complex feelings, describe personal thoughts, and work on their persuasive writing and critical thinking skills. In grammar, the program will cover the passive, “plus-que-parfait”, and “conditionel” tenses (both present and past) along working on all the tenses previously studied.

  • Cadets Native French Speakers - Level 1

    At the Native French Speakers Level 1, teens will work to accomplish the first French intermediate primary class (CM1) goals. Over the course of the class, they will improve their ability to express themselves fluently while developing a personal project (e.g. writing a song or a recipe) that encourages both spoken and written French skills. All students will be capable of constructing both negative and interrogative sentences correctly.

  • Cadets Native French Speakers - Level 2

    At Native French Speakers Level 2, the focuse is on the goals of the second French intermediate primary class (CM2). Teens will begin to voice their opinions in French and learn to debate. The curriciulum encourages a command of abstract words and expressions (emotions, feelings, rights and duties) and an ability to articulate more complex and nuanced thoughts. Teens will also improve their grammar through a creative project (e.g. writing a comic or producing a movie) to encourage their spoken and written French.

Note About Class Formats: à petits pas Toddler and French for Benjamins courses are held entirely in person at FIAF or entirely online on Zoom. All other courses for children ages 7 and older are HyFlex with online and in-person students attending the same class via 360° cameras in the classroom.

Classroom Guidelines (as of 9/7/2022): Masks are optional and proof of Covid-19 vaccination is no longer requried to attend a class or event at any FIAF location. Read more.