Bon Appètit!

Ratatouille, Chicken Cordon Bleu, French Onion Soup, Crème Brulee. Every year the French I and II students make cuisine from France as a project for the food unit.

“I think they not only learn words in French but also when they pick something they want to try then they are more motivated to try to cook other things and to try to learn about French cuisines,” French teacher Johanna Kuwajima said. “You can learn a lot about another culture through their food and through their eating habits and how some of these dishes developed.”

The students bring in entrees, desserts or appetizers for the class to try as they explain what ingredients go into making the food, how it’s done, and some facts about their dish.

“This project really allows them to appreciate why these dishes are famous for their taste,” Kuwajima said. “But also all the effort that goes into making them.”

French II, only presents two dishes a day because they demo the food with pictures or a video that they took and also generally explaining more than French I. French II has to pick a main dish, not just a dessert or appetizer.

“You really learn how to do something when you teach, so teaching their classmates how to do something in French is the ultimate way for them to learn how to do it them self,” Kuwajima said. “And a lot of the time the students will add input about what to do different or how to make it better.”

Sophomore Keri Szeklinski is taking Pre-AP French II and chose to make ratatouille as her main dish.

“It’s definitely my most favorite project that we do the whole year, because everyone brings in food and we get to eat in class which is fun plus we get to learn about the culture along the way,” Szeklinski said. “It’s not just learning grammar and boring stuff like that.”

Another way the French classes learns is by sending letters through a pen pal program with a French school. Last week, assistant principal Joel Colin and History/Geography teacher Silvio Fantini flew to America to visit Rouse answer some of the questions the French students had in person.

“At the very beginning, I really wanted to share the experience of your country with my students,” Fantini said. “We were able to come over and really to make relationships, to find mutual trust. I think it’s on the way.”

The French classes write letters and mail it to Lycée Corot, the school in France where they read them and write back.

“It’s very old school to write letters with the stamps but they like it very much,” Fantini said. “They are very excited when the letters come and they really enjoy it.”