Mrs. Harlan, or, as I call her, Madame, teaches French levels 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and AP. She wanted to become a teacher because she wanted to show people the world the way her teachers showed her the world. She wanted to show the power language has and how it opens up the world through reading, listening, watching, and talking, and she wanted to be a part of that experience. She realized that what she loved most about French was talking to people, and she decided she wanted to share that passion with others.
Madame Harlan’s favorite part about teaching is that every day is different. At the beginning of her career, she thought that teaching French was the most important thing she did everyday. However, after a couple of years, she realized that French is secondary. While she does teach French and wants her students to feel like their time in her class is well spent, she realizes that all teachers are trying to put forth people into the world who are empathetic, kind, responsible, self-aware, curious, problem solving individuals. She believes that the relationships she forms with her students and the relationships that they form with each other are most valuable. She believes that the bigger life lessons outside of a simple French verb conjugation are really one of the greatest parts of her job. Her students keep her laughing, and while there are always new challenges, she knows her job is incredible and never boring.
She acknowledges the benefits that come with teaching each level, but she would have to say that French 2 is her least favorite to teach. While French 2 focuses a lot on important grammar skills that really help build one’s French language, it is different from the “honeymoon” that French 1 offers. French 1 is wonderful because everything is new and fun and the learning happens quickly, but French 2 really gets into the nuts and bolts of the language and is not as much as French 1 or French 3 might be.
She says that French 3 holds a special place in her heart because most of the people who take that class truly want to learn French 3 and want to build their skills in French. French 3 is an incredibly fun class due to a lot of the units. In French 3 students do an experiment where they create characters that all live together in an apartment complex in Paris. A lot of the vocabulary is focused around these storylines, and Madame Harlan recognizes how much fun her students have with this throughout the year.
She also loves her French 4 class because her students have so much vocabulary to work with and understand a lot of French grammar. Some of the units include geography, technology, language and identity, beauty, and even reading Le Petit Prince. She says that French 4 is always a fabulous year.
French AP is the toughest class that she teaches, and probably one of the toughest her students take. French AP is an incredibly demanding and rigorous class that challenges her to cheer her students on while also drilling them in preparation for the AP test. She demands a lot from her AP students and notes that there is not a lot of time for music, movie days, or food days because their class is centered around the AP test in May. Despite its challenges, French AP produces students whose growth is truly rewarding by the end of the year. She believes that anything worthwhile is tough and that French AP students bond together through their class’s rigor and demands.
The last class she teaches, French 5, is the reward for students who have taken French all the way through middle school and high school. In her French 5 class, she can use any level of French she wants with her students, and they can follow along well. The students in this class love French and have good relationships with each other. In French 5, students can learn all different types of topics they were not able to in other classes. They can dive into French music, films, slang and idioms, and culture. French 5 provides more freedom in what they learn.
If Madame Harlan could add anything to the curriculum, she would love to spend more time learning about French cinema. She understands the value of learning through listening, reading, and observing. While her upper levels of French do a good bit of reading, they do not always have as much time for film. She would like to learn more about the values, beliefs, and practices by watching movies that are made in that culture.
Madame Harlan advises her students and anyone interested in taking French to listen to as much French outside the classroom as possible. This can be accomplished through watching media, movies, and the news in French. She teaches French based on the French she knows through her experiences. The Francophone world is not limited to France and is not limited to her experiences, so she recommends that people find something they are interested in or are familiar with and listen or watch or read it in French. She wants her students to immerse themselves in the language as much as possible to better their skills.
She also wants to encourage her students to not be afraid to make mistakes. When learning a language, it is inevitable to make a mistake, and she wants her students to learn to be okay with that. Making mistakes and learning from them is a huge part of growth, and Madame Harlan wants her students to put themselves out there.
Getting to take French is a privilege, but getting to take French with Madame Harlan is a pleasure. As one of her students, I am beyond grateful for her constant guidance and encouragement throughout my journey as not only a French student, but also as a person. Her kindness and ability to build relationships with her students is inspiring. She is exciting and fun and always knows how to make her students feel comfortable. With every lesson plan and joke she shares with her students, Madame Harlan teaches her students to be themselves and to go after every opportunity presented to them. Madame Harlan is a joy to be around, and I believe any student that gets the opportunity to take French will more than enjoy having her as their teacher.
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