Getting involve .
in your children’s education

Source: Glen Taylor, I'm with you! Exogamous families’ guide to the world of francophone education, 2002, pages 59-82.

Have you decided to send your children to
a francophone school? If so, there's a lot
you can do to help make the experience
meaningful. Reading, volunteering at school,
attending cultural events - there’s always a
place for non-French-speaking parents! In
the following pages, we'll look at how you
and your francophone spouse can get invol-
ved at home, in the community and in your
children’s school.

Home life

Parents are the first and primary educators-
that's a fact. From the moment our children
are born, we help them discover the world in
all its wonders. We nurture, teach and guide
them as they grow, forming lifelong bonds in
the process. It’s not surprising that the chil-
dren of all ages thrive on their parents’ en-
couragement and prise. That's why it's so
crucial to show an interest in everything they
do, from taking their first steps to studying for
final exams.

Language use

One of the most far-reaching decisions an exo-
gamous couple can make concern language
use at home. If you want to promote French in
an English setting, it's important that fhe lan-
guage be spoken freely and associated with
enjoyable activities. After all, you don't want
your kids to feel obliged to speak French when
they'd rather be speaking English!

Children will value both parents’ languages
if they associate them equally with pastimes
they enjoy, such as playing, reading and wat-
ching TV.

This means encouraging French-language
activities such as listening to French radio
and music, watching TV and video in French,
playing French board games and visiting
French websites.

Fortunately, technology has mage if much
easier to bring bilingual entertainment into
Canadian homes: DVDs allow you to choose
the language you want to watch a movie in.
[...] And since children's movies use visuals
more than dialogue to convey meaning,
it's easy for non-French-speaking parents to
watch them with their youngsters.

Reading is particularly important. How about
mealtimes? Some families alternate between
English and French suppers, when all conver-
sation takes places in one language, while
others have a French meal on specific days.
[...] Whatever course (forgive the pun) you
choose, meals provide an excellent occasion
for families to practice their French.

Oh, and whenever you and your spouse de-
cide to take a break from all this domestic
bliss, why not hire a French-speaking babysit-
ter to take care of your youngsters?

Homework

When asked about challenges of having their
children attend a francophone school, many
non-French-speaking parent immediately
answer “Homework” — as in, “! can't really
help my kids with their homework.” There's
not denying that French-speaking spouse are
generally better able to help with homework.
Indeed, this is something both parents should
be aware of before enrolling their children in
a francophone school.

Yet non-francophone spouses can help with
some homework, such as math and English.
This may mean learning the French numbers
and certain mathematical operations, but if
you start early enough, it won't be that dif-
ficult and you'll be able fo keep up as your
children progress.

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The exogamous families page Parenthése

Be sure to pay special attention to their En-
glish studies. This is your language - and one
of theirs - and they'll be more than happy to
show you what they're learning.

Even if you feel you can't help out with ho-
mework, ask your children to show you what
they're doing. Get them to explain the nature
of the tasks and their solutions. Above all, de-
monstrate that you're interested in all their
schoolwork and proud of what they can do!

Your interest in vital: one of the key findings of
arecent international study in that, across so-
cio-economic lines, the more interest parent
show in their children’s education, the more
their children will gain from schooling.

Some school have after-hours homework
clubs that allow student to do their homework
under supervision. Depending on your family
circumstances, this could be a valid option
for your children. [...]

Finally, older students often enjoy helping their
younger sisters and brothers, especially if their
efforts are recognized in some meaningful
way. If there are no older siblings in your fa-
mily, perhaps your friends (or “buddies” if your
school has a buddy system) have older French-
speaking children who would like to help.