Haricots Verts (French Green Immersion Charter)

[Anonymous]

My child is enrolled at Stokes, so I won't be joining the party.

However, if we hadn't gotten in there (which of course was a very real possibility) I would be all over this like green on a bean. And I want to say, don't think that starting at K or 1st or 2nd will lose you potential students and early parental buy-in. There are LOTS of families for whom the neighborhood school is "good enough" at the very early levels, but who will be wanting something different once the real academics begin. These folks, who have a preschooler at one of the ok-for-now EotP elementary schools, will move heaven and earth to make a good place for their eventual 2nd grader. I know, I WAS one of those people last year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I'd be much more interested in a school that celebrated all Francophone heritage. Where students studied about, and read literature from Mali and Togo and Benin, as well as France and Belgium and Switzerland, and where students looked at issues that faced those countries. I'd also be much more interested in a school that did a lot of outreach of French speaking African families in the area.

If it's really going to be French/Green focused, another advantage of PK-8 is the opportunity to build the green focus/issues/history etc of environmental issues in all of those countries and others (Senegal, Cote D'Ivoire, etc). There could be a whole avenue of learning history, science, world economics, math, agriculture, nutrition, health... with this French Green focus. The older the kids get, the more they can engage these topics through these lenses (as well as so many other lenses that have nothing to do with French or green).

We can do this, I can already see us fighting here on DCUM about the 5th grade trip to Mali and Switzerland!!! (Affectionate YY reference, and I really mean it, it is affectionate! )

Just about the only French-speakers I haven't seen anyone mention are the French Canadians. It would be a mistake to ignore them - they practically invented immersion schools.

I'm the PP you quoted and I agree 100%. Canada is also probably a great place to look for curriculum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I'd be much more interested in a school that celebrated all Francophone heritage. Where students studied about, and read literature from Mali and Togo and Benin, as well as France and Belgium and Switzerland, and where students looked at issues that faced those countries. I'd also be much more interested in a school that did a lot of outreach of French speaking African families in the area.

If it's really going to be French/Green focused, another advantage of PK-8 is the opportunity to build the green focus/issues/history etc of environmental issues in all of those countries and others (Senegal, Cote D'Ivoire, etc). There could be a whole avenue of learning history, science, world economics, math, agriculture, nutrition, health... with this French Green focus. The older the kids get, the more they can engage these topics through these lenses (as well as so many other lenses that have nothing to do with French or green).

We can do this, I can already see us fighting here on DCUM about the 5th grade trip to Mali and Switzerland!!! (Affectionate YY reference, and I really mean it, it is affectionate! )

Just about the only French-speakers I haven't seen anyone mention are the French Canadians. It would be a mistake to ignore them - they practically invented immersion schools.

I'm the PP you quoted and I agree 100%. Canada is also probably a great place to look for curriculum.

I think we can say Canada is officially added!

[Anonymous]

My suggestion would be to consider PK-12 and focus on an IB curriculum. The reason why I say all the way to 12 is so one day it could join DCI at the Walter Reed campus. I have done a lot of researchon starting a charter and will ddefinitely share. I have already emailed as well.

[Anonymous]

Ok, correct me if I am wrong, but this whole thread is a total joke, right? Please tell me it’s a joke. It sounds to me like one or a couple people are sock-puppeting to keep the joke going.

If it’s not a joke, you sound like a bunch of 10 year olds talking about forming a book club.

Hey, if it’s real, don’t forget to include Djibouti and French Guiana with the populations you’re focusing on, ok????? This is going to be AWESOME!!!!!!!!

I don’t have any time to help form it, but I can distribute flyers, and it will be so great to have it up and running in a year or so.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ok, correct me if I am wrong, but this whole thread is a total joke, right? Please tell me it’s a joke. It sounds to me like one or a couple people are sock-puppeting to keep the joke going.

If it’s not a joke, you sound like a bunch of 10 year olds talking about forming a book club.

Hey, if it’s real, don’t forget to include Djibouti and French Guiana with the populations you’re focusing on, ok????? This is going to be AWESOME!!!!!!!!

I don’t have any time to help form it, but I can distribute flyers, and it will be so great to have it up and running in a year or so.

Yes, it's all a joke. So please do us a favor, report to Jeff if you must, exit the thread, and please don't click on it again. You are so... Astute... Way too astute for us, so please go join a thread that is not a joke and worthy of your mighty, ever mature presence.

To anyone else reading, if you think this sounds like a good idea in all seriousness, the "joke email" now has a very real group figuring out just how serious the energy for this is. Enjoyed flipping through the "2013 Application Guidelines for New Charter School Start Ups" on the metro on the way home earlier today. Excellent move, email coordinator, sending that out, to give interested folks a starting hint of what would lie ahead.

Hey, we must be onto something, we already have our first basher! Guess what, IT'S ON!!

[Anonymous]

So excited about the momentum thus far. Thanks to everyone contributing positive helpful info. Today I'll be reading through some of the charters of Yu Ying and some other language immersion schools. Sure hope some native Francophones will come on board. Research shows that kids have better acquisition when some of the kids are already native speakers. If you're a francophone, please email our coordinator and join our group! If you have inside knowledge of the francophone world- please join us! Let's give our kids a really unique learning experience while we can. We all know that charters will continue to grow because of the demand. Let's get this ball rolling.

[Anonymous]

OP, do you speak fluent French?

Have you ever lived in a francophone country, or do you have a significant knowledge of francophone culture? I'd just like to get a sense of your experience with this. thanks

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't think a curriculum focused on France would be as popular. I'd go for either the International Bac. or the US curriculum, just taught in French. Look at what WIS are doing (not saying we have to copy them, but it is almost the only French immersion program in DC).

You cannot go wrong by studying the Lebanese Bacc, a modified version of the French curriculum (language of instruction being French or English, with very limited courses taught in Arabic).
Even in schools who hire teachers from overseas (IC) the program is rigorous but does not overwhelm students. Three hours of homework for middle and high school is enough for most students because a lot of actual learning happens inside the classrooms.

[Anonymous]

I'm the charter school employee from higher up on this thread.

I don't think that people are "faking" this, or that this is a joke. I do think that people are understimating what it takes to start a charter school. The task that people are talking about is enormous, and complex, and requires a great deal of expertise, a great deal of money, and a great deal of time.

I wish you all luck, and will be curious how this turns out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm the charter school employee from higher up on this thread.

I don't think that people are "faking" this, or that this is a joke. I do think that people are understimating what it takes to start a charter school. The task that people are talking about is enormous, and complex, and requires a great deal of expertise, a great deal of money, and a great deal of time.

I wish you all luck, and will be curious how this turns out.

Hi! Could you enlighten us on what we could say to indicate we are not "underestimating what it takes to start a charter school". I'm just not understanding what posts thus far give you impression that we've underestimated the undertaking. This idea was conceived just yesterday. Should we have a charter penned by now. Somehow, I'm not too sure you're really a charter employee. To be so short-sighted and negative for the sole purpose of discouraging a very energized group, I have a hard time believing your negative energy is directed towards children. If it is, God help them! Anyways, if you have something positive to add, like a realistic picture of the realities we'll likely face, we'd love your constructive feedback. TIA

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, do you speak fluent French?

Have you ever lived in a francophone country, or do you have a significant knowledge of francophone culture? I'd just like to get a sense of your experience with this. thanks

Hi, I'm not the OP, but I am one of the original people who expressed support for the endeavor. I speak no french whatsoever. Just so happens that someone we all know who started a very successful spanish/french immersion school doesn't speak either language- Linda Moore at Stokes. She was passionate about learning about both languages, their mother cultures and the people. This curiosity lead her to find people with the expertise in the target languages and culture. Those people created the framework for the school and if you've ever been there you'll be quite impressed with how culturally and linguistically competent and accurate the school is. Kudos to Ms. Moore. I hope we can get some info. from her and build upon what she started. Excellent bilingual multicultural education for ALL children.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm the charter school employee from higher up on this thread.

I don't think that people are "faking" this, or that this is a joke. I do think that people are understimating what it takes to start a charter school. The task that people are talking about is enormous, and complex, and requires a great deal of expertise, a great deal of money, and a great deal of time.

I wish you all luck, and will be curious how this turns out.

Hi! Could you enlighten us on what we could say to indicate we are not "underestimating what it takes to start a charter school". I'm just not understanding what posts thus far give you impression that we've underestimated the undertaking. This idea was conceived just yesterday. Should we have a charter penned by now. Somehow, I'm not too sure you're really a charter employee. To be so short-sighted and negative for the sole purpose of discouraging a very energized group, I have a hard time believing your negative energy is directed towards children. If it is, God help them! Anyways, if you have something positive to add, like a realistic picture of the realities we'll likely face, we'd love your constructive feedback. TIA

I'm on the email list, and I don't think that anyone's underestimating that it will be a lot of work. None of the schools everyone (including me) raves about on this board would have gotten started if people hadn't seen a need for that kind of program and been willing to do the work to put something together.

I agree that such an endeavor will require a lot of investment (both in terms of time and money) from the founders - that sort of investment is the reason that founders get preference at the schools they create. My child will likely be too old for Haricots Verts by the time it gets off the ground, but that wouldn't stop me from being willing to put in the work to make it a reality.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, do you speak fluent French?

Have you ever lived in a francophone country, or do you have a significant knowledge of francophone culture? I'd just like to get a sense of your experience with this. thanks

Not OP, but curious why you're singling this OP out when this idea was hatched yesterday and no one is claiming leadership yet? If you're asking because you may want to help, join us and see how you feel when you see who's in the group so far. If you're asking becausebecause you want to be judgemental of an idea that is less than a week old, that's not helpful and no single pister is obligated to defend their credentials to you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ok, correct me if I am wrong, but this whole thread is a total joke, right? Please tell me it’s a joke. It sounds to me like one or a couple people are sock-puppeting to keep the joke going.

If it’s not a joke, you sound like a bunch of 10 year olds talking about forming a book club.

Hey, if it’s real, don’t forget to include Djibouti and French Guiana with the populations you’re focusing on, ok????? This is going to be AWESOME!!!!!!!!

I don’t have any time to help form it, but I can distribute flyers, and it will be so great to have it up and running in a year or so.

Out of curiosity, if you were looking to connect a group of people interested in a common goal, what forum would you choose to advertise that people join a newly started Yahoo group? Craigslist? And how would that be superior to DCUM?

If you read the thread, you'd see that they're actually hoping to do planning elsewhere, but DCUM is the vehicle for getting attention and interest. Do you suppose that people interested in a new French immersion school in DC random search for them on Yahoo groups? Do you think advertising on Craigslist wouldn't attract some weirdos?

This is as good a place as any for their purposes. This time of year there's a lot of anxiety about schools, why not channel that energy into something positive and try to move forward? They wouldn't be the first collection of parents to start a charter school. Bridges was started by parents, and so was Cap City.

Good for them, I say. It's a completely possible goal and they are in good company. If all you want to do is pop balloons there are plenty of other negative threads to choose from.

Go Green Beans!