Tag Archives: French language
Follow the leader Posted by Tim Hildreth on Aug 21, 2018
This is the fourth post in my on-going series of lessons for young people from the depths of the 19th century. The French aren’t the only ones to have had interesting ideas about the roles of les garçons et les filles (boys and girls) or about how les enfants (children/kids) should behave, but these stories give us…
Time for another nap Posted by Tim Hildreth on Aug 7, 2018
John recently wrote about mixing up words when speaking French. It’s a common occurrence for those of us using multiple languages to communicate… And a story that reminded me of a funny error from my own past! I was just 16 years old when I went to France the first time. I was fortunate to…
On a wing and a prayer Posted by Tim Hildreth on Jul 31, 2018
A few weeks ago I wrote a post about contemporary musicals in France. One of the songs featured got me thinking about the word ailes (wings) and all the things that fly – or don’t! – with wings. Aile (wing) Before we get to the song, a few examples of the different ways the word aile can be…
Ticket Chic No More Posted by Tim Hildreth on Jul 24, 2018
From its rubber tires to its station signs and art deco entrance-ways, the Paris Metro is one of the oldest, one of the busiest, and perhaps one of the most recognized public transportation systems in the world. In a city of so many iconic sights, it might seem strange that one of the most iconic is…
French Culture – The Modern Musical Posted by Tim Hildreth on Jul 17, 2018
A few years ago I wrote a post about my favorite comédie* musicale française (French musical), Starmania. At the time I alluded to the fact that, after years of all but ignoring the art form, France had a bit of a resurgence of modern comédies musicales over the past decade. As recently as 2013, there were no less…
French Vocabulary – Time to Take Off Posted by Tim Hildreth on Jul 10, 2018
In just under a month, my son and I are going to décoller vers la France (take off for France) for a sort of father-son pilgrimage. We had such a great time last year that we’re going back! Décoller is the French verb for un avion (an airplane) that is taking off. The actual moment of lift off is…
Time to wake up Posted by Tim Hildreth on Jun 26, 2018
Summer has arrived and for most kids getting up early, getting ready for school, and homework are all in the past (for now at least until that oh-so-distant mythical future that is la rentrée de septembre / September’s return to school!) As a result, this week’s song might seem a bit better suited to the fall, but I’ve…