FLE Activities and Student Work

Feel free to print, download, or link to any of the materials on this website. I ask only that you give me credit (a simple mention of my name or link to this website is sufficient) should you post or otherwise display any of them. Enjoy!
Newsletters
A semester-long group newsletter project is one of the very best exercises for development of writing skills and critical thinking in the target language/culture. I have used different versions with beginning, intermediate, and advanced courses. Below you will find examples of some recent student work. Please be advised that the work you will see has not been retouched since its final submission and may therefore (despite several drafts) contain some grammatical errors, misspellings, etc.- Sample Newsletter nº 1 - (Requires Acrobat Reader)
- More coming soon!
Student Slideshow Presentations
The majority of these presentations were given by students as a means of sharing their research and conclusions with their fellows. Please be advised that the work you will see has not been retouched since its final submission and may therefore (despite several drafts) contain some grammatical errors, misspellings, etc.- Tahar Ben Jelloun - Lindsey King
- Maryse Condé - Lizzie Ekeberg
- Raphaël Confiant - Daphne Ho
- More coming soon!
Calligrammes
Excellent for small-group work in class, a lesson on Appolinaire's Calligrammes may be tailored to meet specific cultural, grammatical, and/or lexical objectives. Recently, I have used them effectively as preparation for the study of more advanced poetry as well as the poetic value of the blank page. Though students may have a hard time understanding why words might be dispersed in the work of Glissant or Ginsberg, Appolinaire's motivations are much easier to surmise. As a student-centered expansion on the lesson, I often ask small groups to generate their own calligrammes, a challenge that often generates a great deal of enjoyment and participation (once the initial groans have subsided).- Samples coming soon!