french american

French American International School is fully accredited by the following:

Guided by the principles of academic rigor and

diversity, the French American International School

offers programs of study in French and English to

prepare its graduates for a world in which the ability

to think critically and to communicate across

cultures is of paramount importance.

mission

values

RespectIntegrityInclusion

CollaborationCuriosity

Guidé par des principes de rigueur académique

et de diversité, le Lycée International Franco-Américain

propose des programmes en français et en anglais,

pour assurer la réussite de ses diplômés dans un monde

dans lequel la pensée critique et la communication

interculturelle seront déterminantes.

Our international community brings together

people from many backgrounds. Together we

strive to create a shared culture that develops

compassionate, confident and principled people

who will make the world better. We base our

community on these values:

RespectIntégritéInclusion

CollaborationCuriosité

Notre communauté internationale rassemble des

personnes de toutes origines. Ensemble, nous

contribuons à créer une culture qui forme des êtres

altruistes et déterminés. Dotés d’un sens moral, ils

œuvrent à un monde meilleur. Notre communauté

repose sur les valeurs suivantes :

mission

values

THE GIFT OF A BILINGUAL EDUCATION IN FRENCH AND ENGLISH FOR YOUR CHILD

Our youngest students pursue a bilingual curriculum in French and English through 8th grade. As students progress through the school, they hone their critical thinking skills, communicate in at least three languages, and participate in a rich array of arts, athletics, service learning, and travel programs.

We are the only Bay Area school offering a truly multilingual, multicultural education that culminates in either a French Bac or International Baccalaureate program in our High School.

Our classrooms are lively, and our school community is always engaging. Students and faculty from across the Bay Area and from around the world forge meaningful, trusting relationships as they experiment and explore, question and collaborate. Committed to the well-being and success of every student, our teachers bring global teaching experience and expertise in their disciplines into a differentiated classroom on a daily basis. Boldness is a hallmark of a French American education. Our students grapple with real issues raised in the context of a challenging curriculum. Here, students not only experience the world, but also develop a sense of autonomy, empathy, and agency. They are primed to go out into the world and make a positive difference.

There is no better way to see what we do than to visit our school. Our doors are open, and we look forward to welcoming you soon.

MELINDA BIHN, ED. D.Head of School

FIRST STEPS IN A GENTLY UNFOLDING BILINGUAL EDUCATION WITH A WORLD VIEW

Maternelle

C hildren enter at Pre-K3, Pre-K4 or Kin-dergarten. Initially children benefit from classes that are conducted in French 80% of the time. Our youngest children are already on the first rung of the academic ladder. They transition from the security of

home to begin an individual journey towards indepen-dence, in a loving and nurturing environment surrounded by a diverse group of peers.

Our program is differentiated, highly kinesthetic and child-centered—tailored to age-appropriate, biological rhythms. We recognize each child as a work in progress and we are careful not to rush or push the children beyond their natural unfolding capabilities. We build gross and fine motor skills—gently priming the children for reading, writing and numeracy skills acquisition.

As the children grow they begin to see themselves more in relation to others and think beyond their im-mediate emotional whims and needs. They learn self-suf-ficiency as well as collaboration. They are encouraged to speak up for themselves and express their own thoughts and questions logically, as well as follow directions. They learn active listening and the importance of waiting for their turn. They get used to new routines including

daily rituals around basic needs, transitioning between activities, circle time and table activities. Our six learning domains are:

Appropriating language Discovering writing Becoming a student Action and self-expression using the body Discovering the world Perceiving, feeling, imagining and creating

Through guided and free activities the children develop fine and gross motor coordination in space, as well as sensory, emotional, cognitive and relational skills. Vocabulary, syntax and the rhythm of language are built through daily verbal interactions in the classroom, in the context of physical activities and through stories, art, dance and song.

Gently, and in incremental steps, the children socialize and develop autonomy. This is the prerequisite for the critical thinking skills that will emerge in later years and is at the core of the School’s Mission.

At French American International School, our youngest minds are immersed in two languages from day one. Teachers and expert assistants pay close attention to the linguistic and socio-emotional development of each student, warmly encouraging critical thinking, active exchange, and cooperation.

Our Maternelle (Early Childhood Center) at 1155 Page Street stimulates the learning process: large, sun-drenched open classrooms along with expansive green areas blur the line between work and play.

By the time they complete the 5th grade, our seamlessly bilingual students enter Middle School with strong senses of curiosity, collaboration, and autonomy.

They have taken the first steps in a journey of lifelong learning.

MARIE-PIERRE CARLOTTI Lower School Principal

Grades 1—5GRADES 1 AND 2— BUILDING FUNDAMENTAL SKILLSWith ever increasing autonomy our students establish and consolidate their reading in both languages and hone their cursive writing skills. They continue to spend 80% of their time in French. We provide students with enough vocabulary, structure, and competency in understanding and expressing themselves in French to tackle any academic subject in Grades 3 through 5.

GRADES 3 THROUGH 5—IN DEPTH STUDIESStudents explore language arts, math, science, history, geography and the arts at a much deeper level than previously. These are the years where “balanced bilingualism” is honed. Students spend 55% of their class time in French and 45% of their time in English. Essential concepts are introduced in the third grade, reinforced in the fourth and mastered in the fifth. Experiencing two distinct national approaches to the same subject discipline can, in subtle ways, broaden students’ understanding of how another culture views the world.

In the spirit of differentiated, constructivist learning, students are encouraged to formulate their own questions collaboratively, especially at the beginning of each unit of inquiry.

Our students experience an age-appropriate apprenticeship in critical thinking. They learn to “present the process” as well as the correct answer or final draft. Through teacher feedback and peer editing they develop precision and elegance in the use of language. They recognize the importance of always backing up arguments with hard data or textual evidence.

Another factor that fosters logical, axiomatic thinking is the gentle introduction to geometry and proof—a feature of our French mathematics curriculum.

A HARMONIZED BILINGUAL CURRICULUM Accredited French schools around the world are mandated to embrace the best of the local curriculum and local approaches to teaching and learning. Over the years our teachers have crafted a harmonized curriculum in two languages without redundancy that today incorporates:

Singapore Math

The Columbia Teachers College Reading and Writing Workshop

Hands-on Science taught in a generously equipped laboratory

Design and Coding in a devoted Tinker Space

Classes, taught by specialists, in Physical Education, Visual Art, Theatre, Music, and Library

Part of educating our students to be global citizens is preparing them to have a safe and appropriate presence in the cyber world. We use the digital literacy curriculum developed by Common Sense Media.

LEARNING BEYOND THE CLASSROOMStudents in grades K through 5 take part in multiple local fieldtrips and an overnight outdoor education program that complements the taught curriculum and extends their learning in the classroom. These experiences develop a sense of belonging, responsibility, self-esteem and independence of mind. Students explore first-hand their relationship with nature and the environment, and give them varied contexts to speak French in a natural way.

A traditional rite of passage for our 5th graders is their reciprocal exchange trip to Strasbourg, France. This represents the culmination of their lower school bilingual education and primes them for extensive global travel experiences waiting for them in the Upper School.

SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL LEARNINGOur Counselors in partnership with the teaching teams facilitate the development of conflict resolution, collaboration and other social skills. We provide age-appropriate leadership and service opportunities. A team of Learning Specialists conduct screening assessments, direct instruction, and consultations with faculty, administrators, and parents to help all students recognize their particular learning modalities and develop strategies to reach their full academic potential.

Middle School

Our Middle School students make the pivotal transition from late childhood to adolescence. They acquire the study habits and organizational skills to navigate a daily menu of academic subjects taught by expert specialists.

Many of these teachers also teach at the baccalaureate levels in our High School, and request Middle School classes because they particularly enjoy the enthusiasm and special energy of the early adolescent years. We deliver the undiluted curriculum of the French Ministry of Education, taught by teachers trained in France. Our students are further challenged by program elements, taught in English, essential to a well-rounded education in an accredited California independent school.

PRIMED FOR A THIRD LANGUAGEOur students are fearless language exponents by the end of 5th Grade. They are cognitively hungry to begin a third language. We offer fast-paced, beginning courses in Spanish, Mandarin, Italian and Arabic. Students can participate in cultural and linguistic adventures in China, Guatemala, Spain, Morocco or Italy.

HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY TAUGHT TOGETHERThe famed French histoire-géographie program begins with the birth of agriculture in Mesopotamia and ends

with revolution, the Enlightenment and the seeds of modernism. The approach is a global one rather than Eurocentric. Texts are chock full of documents and period artworks. Students further their critical thinking skills and intellectual empowerment by interpreting primary and secondary source material.

EDUCATING THE WHOLE PERSONInterscholastic athletics begins in 6th Grade. We compete against peer schools in basketball, soccer, volleyball, and cross-country. Global citizenship is fostered through service learning, student governance and conference participation. Education of the whole student is rounded out by delightful and various opportunities for days in the sun in the performing and visual arts.

CLIMACTIC EXCHANGE TRIP TO PARISOur climactic exchange trip to Paris takes place just before graduation. Families will have already hosted their French “correspondents” before the entire grade embarks for Paris in May. Many of our students initiate lifelong friendships and connections during this time. The Paris Exchange truly represents the culmination of Middle School and a ten-year bilingual quest for each one of our students.

GRADES 6 THROUGH 8—MIDDLE SCHOOL ODYSSEY

Bienvenue au Collège! Our students continue their bilingual odyssey in our middle years program. By the end of Grade 8, they are totally bilingual—reading and analyzing both Victor Hugo and Shakespeare and giving fluent oral presentations in both languages.

In Middle School, our students learn a third language, study mathematics in two languages, take advantage of the many opportunities for leadership, engage in Service Learning projects in their local and global communities, and continue to develop strong critical thinking skills within a rigorous program across the disciplines.

A bridge between the Lower School and our International High School, the Middle School years are a key component of our program. Students develop citizenship, explore new things, become more independent, and learn to use technology responsibly. They understand who they are and the world they live in.

FABRICE URRIZALQUIMiddle School Principal

International High SchoolFRENCH TRACKFor Grade 9 the majority of students from French American opt to remain in our French Track to prepare for the Diplôme National du Brevet. This national examination is a satisfying rite of passage that provides official, summative recognition at the end of the French middle years experience.

After Grade 9, many of our home grown bilingual students choose to go further in the French Track. About one third of students at International High School prepare for the French Baccalaureate (Le Bac), the flagship program of the Ministère de l’Éducation nationale. Our students choose between Bac S, with a math/science emphasis; and Bac ES, with a focus on economics/social science. In continuance of the theme of critical thinking is a tradition that all Bac students undertake a philosophy class in Grade 12.

Le Bac has a long tradition and is the essential credential for entry to French national universities; and also carries great prestige for admission to the most competitive US, Canadian and British colleges. It speaks volumes for the sheer excellence of the education in our French Track—and also the camaraderie and sense of belonging—that many of our highest performing students in the French Track come from local families where French is not spoken at home.

INTERNATIONAL TRACKHigh school students can enter our parallel International Track without French in preparation for the International Baccalaureate Diploma (IB). Many of our home grown students switch out of the French track and undertake the bilingual version of the IB Diploma.

The IB Diploma is nothing less than a two-year, mini-degree program undertaken in 11th and 12th Grade. Its power lies in an integrated liberal arts experience designed to educate the whole human being. The IB was developed in Geneva in the 1960s to allow mobile students in international schools to obtain an education credential that would be recognized around the world. Today the IB Diploma is widely recognized as the most comprehensive college preparation available.

EXTRACURRICULAR DAYS IN THE SUNWe encourage students to take risks, be innovative and extend themselves beyond their zones of comfort.

Student-athletes have the opportunity to participate in competitive team sports, developing healthy practices of mind, body and character. We foster skill, fitness, intelligence, strategy, passion and above all, heart. Our student-athletes play because they love the game, value their teammates, and take pride in a sense of belonging and representing something bigger than themselves.

Extracurricular performing arts are the heart and soul of our community. Our arts calendar is second to none. It includes three major productions, concerts, screenings, art shows, artists-in-residence, and a Spring Arts Festival.

Student leadership opportunities include: Student Council, Service Learning Steering Committee, POCIS (People of Color in Independent Schools) Conference, TEDx, GIN (Global Issues Network), GSA (Gay/Straight Alliance), MUN (Model United Nations), and Student Ambassador Program.

Our International Travel Program is unparalleled. We offer a range of linguistic trips, exchange programs, and intense cultural adventures in far-flung places that incorporate meaningful service learning and, in some instances, provide opportunities for geographic and scientific fieldwork. The trips usually last about two weeks. Recent destinations have included Tahiti, India, Galapagos Islands, Jordan, Laos, Tanzania, Senegal, China, Ethiopia, Austria, Italy, Brazil, Guatemala, France and Malawi.

COLLEGE ENDGAMEColleges love the IB and Le Bac. Our recent college placements are laid out in detail on our website and in International High School publications. Matriculations always include multiple students going to Ivy League schools, Stanford, Berkeley, UCLA and other UC campuses, as well as elite colleges in France, Canada and the UK.

Our number one priority is to cultivate in all students the simple and profound pleasure of learning. Our students thrive because they are engaged, open-minded, creative, curious, and caring. They understand the importance of community and placing everything they learn in a global perspective.

At International High School we use an inspiring mix of proven traditional teaching methods and cutting-edge modern learning strategies using the latest technology. We prepare our students for a fast-changing world, providing them with the essential critical thinking skills needed to sort through, understand, and synthesize the ever-increasing amount of information and data that surround us.

JOEL COHEN International High School Principal

FAQs FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Q1 How can we support our child at French American if we have no French at home?

70% of our families have no French at home. There is much that monolingual parents can do to support the efforts of their bilingual children. Parents should serve as appropriate and correct language models in their own languages. Due to the natural transfer of competencies, this automatically supports learning in French. Bilingual acquisition is optimal when children have meaningful and varied reinforcement in all their languages.

Parental buy-in is another essential thing. The motivation to communicate in French is driven in part by the school routine and the fact that the children are all in it together with their peers in a loving and supportive immersion environment. For parents it is important to support and validate their child’s bilingual quest over time. The best way to achieve this is by direct parental involvement in the school. We need field trip chaperones, room parents, event chairs, Admissions Ambassadors and Parent Association representatives, to name just a few volunteer opportunities. There is a direct correlation between parental involvement and the success of the child.

Q2 Is our child entering Kindergarten without French at a significant disadvantage?

Our French immersion teaching approaches have proven highly successful for students entering without French

through Kindergarten. We have found no discernable correlation with entry grade and future academic success in later years. The presence of a majority of students in Kindergarten classes who joined us in PK-3 or PK-4 (with newly minted pure accents and age-appropriate child vocabularies) only enriches the bilingual environment for the newcomers.

Children joining in Kindergarten soon feel at ease and, after a short “silent period,” begin speaking French in full sentences. Without physically separating them from the rest of the class, an additional specialist teacher scaffolds small groups of the children who are new to French as they work on the regular class workshops and activities. Especially during the first few weeks, our bilingual assistants provide simultaneous translations so that every child is comfortable and knows what is going on. Homework does not start until 1st Grade.

Q3 Will bilingual immersion sabotage my child’s learning in English?

The cognitive advantages of bilingualism become apparent only when a threshold of high competence is reached. There is an all or nothing aspect to the quest. There may be some initial lags in reading scores and other measurable skills in early elementary. This is temporary. The “transfer of competencies” works in both directions. Just as English reinforcement at

home unwittingly supports French, so do the skills and concepts learned in a French classroom enhance learning in English. By third grade, when our students are spending around half their time in each language, there is little interference or confusion between languages. They are able to thrive studying a single curriculum taught in their two languages.

Q4 Do boys and girls acquire language differently?

Language acquisition is as natural as breathing. There is no empirical research that supports the notion that boys and girls acquire their first language differently. However, later in a school setting, motivation and confidence are central for successful second language acquisition. In this regard it is not difficult to imagine marginal statistical gender-sensitive differences.

San Francisco boasts several first-rate single sex schools which, legitimately, claim certain advantages for children of a chosen gender. Boys’ schools are able to cater to “boy energy” and “boy attention spans” by changing classroom tasks frequently and providing plenty of outlets for physical activity. In girls’ schools the high achieving student role models are all female and the girls learn in a haven free of perceived complications associated with learning alongside boys. These incremental advantages are palpable, but should be weighed against the major, cognitive and life-changing social advantages that correlate with attaining balanced bilingualism in a diverse, international setting.

At French American we emphasize diversity and understanding the other. Our students rub shoulders

with peers of widely varying national, ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. For us the elimination of an entire gender would seem quite odd and detrimental to our Mission.

Our teachers are mindful of gender issues but place greater importance on really getting to know individual students and their families. In common with good practice the world over, they adopt a variety of teaching strategies to differentiate for various learning modalities.

Q5 What happens if it emerges that our child has a documentable learning difference in a bilingual setting?

The natural process of language acquisition does not itself correlate with academic proficiency. A child with an emergent learning difference simply has that learning difference in her two languages. Navigating learning differences in a bilingual setting merits care and attention. At French American students who have learning differences work with our Counselors and Learning Specialists to develop personalized strategies. They are later allocated extra time on standardized tests. Only very rarely do parents of students in extremis opt to leave the school.

Q6 How does French American approach social and emotional learning?

We care deeply about the social and emotional well being of our students and place high value on the joy and pleasure of learning. We are very nurturing and

Academic RoadmapChildren enter at Pre-K3, Pre-K4, or Kindergarten. Initially children benefit from classes that are conducted in French 80% of the time. After second grade we switch to approximately 55% French and 45% English in order to capitalize on the “transfer of competencies” between the two languages. By Middle School the students are competent, balanced bilinguals.

The International High School curriculum consists of two parallel tracks. The Pre-K through 12 bilingual journey continues in our French Track which culminates in either a scientific Bac S, or a Bac ES, with a humanities emphasis. Previous knowledge of French is not necessarily required for admission to the International High School.

Non-bilingual students can enter our International Track leading to an International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma. Bilingual students may opt to switch from the French Track in order to take a Bilingual IB Diploma.

loving, but we tend not to hover or coddle. This is a delicate balance analogous to good parenting. We have high expectations for our students because we think them capable. From the earliest years we aim to instill a sense of autonomy and responsibility.

We hold that we cannot give self-esteem to a child. A true self-esteem is an emergent property of objective achievement and growing autonomy. We look our students in the eye and take them seriously. In an age-appropriate fashion, our teachers provide meaningful critique as well as positive encouragement. We feel that our approach is honest, respectful and, ultimately, truly student–centered. Our graduates are articulate and confident because, always age-appropriately, and according to their own readiness, they focused and did substantial academic work.

Q7 Why French rather than Spanish or Chinese?

We have not selected the French language and culture as somehow uniquely superior. However, we do consider the French educational tradition to be one of the very best.

Our reasons for choosing to align with the French ministry of education is just matters of historic contingency. The French Baccalaureate has an uninterrupted pedigree dating back to the Napoleonic reforms of 1808. French education is highly rigorous and maintains its standards by a high degree of direct control from the Ministry of Education. The success of the French school system in France is based on national buy-in. French citizens place a very high priority on the role of education and educators in society.

France is unique in its willingness to spend taxpayers’ money to provide quality French education abroad. Since the historic contingence of our founding in 1962, we have been proud to be a part of the global network of French schools abroad.

Q8 What does French American mean by diversity and why is it so important?

Every one of our students benefits from interactions, discussions and shared activities with other students from various backgrounds, including: countries of origin; cultures and religions; ethnicities and races; family structures; income levels; learning styles; native languages; physical abilities; political beliefs; and sexual orientations.

Our students are immersed in diversity. It is not something that can be taught. It is learned by living it. Immersion in a diverse setting is about how we think, accept, love and appreciate different ways of living. It is not just tolerance. Our children are being “immersed”—psychologically and emotionally—in diversity. We can compare this to being immersed in a language or being immersed in a culture.

For us, bilingualism, internationalism, and an early appreciation for diversity in all its forms are keys to understanding, and communicating across, other cultures. We engineer this quite deliberately. We bring together families and educators from a wide range of backgrounds. Together we strive to create a shared culture that develops compassionate, confident and principled graduates who will make the world better.

Engaged Community

Visitors walking our hallways and touring classrooms remark that our students are overtly engaged and seem delighted to be at school. This is true for all age levels and it does not happen by itself. Fundamentally it all hinges on forging relationships. Our bilingual curriculum truly comes

alive in the daily learning interactions between faculty and students, school and families. It is as much about smart, interesting people and their values as the cur-riculum itself.

In our classrooms it begins with our teachers taking pride in really getting to know every single student and their families. On a larger scale it is about engineering a dynamic school community that brings together folks from many backgrounds, cultures and countries. From the outset parents meet kindred spirits and, like their children, build lifelong friendships around the French American experience.

As we say to all parents when they first visit the school: “philanthropic involvement and being physically present at the school are the very best ways of sup-porting your child in their bilingual quest!” At French American there are myriad opportunities for niche volunteerism, and diverse ways for families to personal-ize their financial contributions that ultimately sustain our mission-driven programs and ensure that we attain our strategic goals.

Our parent volunteers can choose from a menu of different roles that entail varying levels of commitment. We want to include willing but time constrained parents working and traveling in busy corporate careers as well as those with much more flexible schedules.

An enjoyable way for potential parents to get to know us—socially and gustatorily—is attendance at one of our community building/fundraising events. The Soirée des Vins offers an opportunity at the beginning of the admission season. Our themed Auction in the spring semester provides a more formal second opportunity.

"We are very fortunate to have a wealth of passion and expertise among our parent community. For our Earth Day celebration and Design Faire, we wanted to capitalize on this and bring

awareness to the largest environmental issues of our time in a way that educated and encouraged action one child, adult, and family at a time."

ELLEN BURDGE, DIRECTOR OF TEACHING AND LEARNING

After School ProgramA SCHOOL WITHIN A SCHOOL

On any given evening as many as 350 students attend the After School Program (which is available before school at 7:30am, and after school until 6pm). The Program has its own Director and its own staff. Children can play, learn and create through diverse extra-curricular activities such as science, robotics, tinkering, sports, arts, music, dance and Study Hall.

Our After School program defines itself as a community:

that is safe and secure

where kids can be kids

that values creative and artistic expression

containing well-adjusted kids who are stimulated and expend their energies

where physical and cognitive growth are encouraged

where parents know their children are safe and happy

FRENCH AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL | LYCÉE INTERNATIONAL FRANCO-AMÉRICAIN INTERNATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

OFFICE OF ADMISSION 150 OAK STREET, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102 | 415-558-2060

coumbad@frenchamericansf.org www.frenchamericansf.org

Future fearless polyglots—with more on their minds than themselves—poised to make the world better.

www.frenchamericansf.org