Before I explain this activity, let me give credit to the person who inspired it. French teacher Tracey Ford, who happens to teach at the school where I student taught, posted a similar activity on the French Teachers in the US Facebook group, and I adapted it and made my own version of it.
It seems no matter how hard I try to convey to my students that French is spoken all over the world, some students still leave my classroom at the end of the year unsure of where French is spoken outside of France. This activity brought in a little seasonal fun and also helped them visualize how widespread the language is.
I compiled a list of over 45 countries, French overseas territories/collectivities, US states and Canadian provinces where French is widely spoken. I put them all in an envelope, and each student picked one out at random. After one class, not all the places were drawn, so I continued in the next class until every place had been drawn, then I started over. Students were given a map (see below) and had to locate and color in the location on the map. Then, they had to look up their place’s flag and draw it on the pumpkin. Some students had easy flags, such as France or Belgium, and other students had more complicated flags, which I told them to simplify if needed. The pumpkins were made of foam and purchased from Target, and unfortunately, neither markers or colored pencils were easy to use on them, but students made the best of it. While working, students watched music videos for songs from around the French-speaking world. Once they finished coloring their pumpkins, they went around the room showing them to their classmates and showing where on the map their place was located. Now, the pumpkins adorn my classroom, and serve as a daily reminder of how many places speak French. At the end of the month, I will let students take them home.
How do you reinforce geography in your classroom?
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