Supporting Students at Home

In all of our French programs, there is no need or expectation for parents, caregivers or families to speak French. A parent, caregiver or family member may support the child at home in much the same way they would in the English program. For example, you may:

• demonstrate interest
• ask questions and discuss their learning
• read in your home language
• play games and engage students in activities with family and friends
• let your child know and see that you value the work they are doing at school
• establish regular times and routines for reading and homework 

http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/literacynumeracy/parentguidefrench.pdf

Resources for Families in French Programs Google Site

Check out the Resources for Families in French Programs Google site link on this page to access information about how to support your child(ren) during Remote Learning including guiding principles, considerations for remote learning in French programs, links to resources, how to support at home, and much more.

Students in the TDSB have free access to a variety of digital tools to support their learning in French and in English. Students can access all of these tools anywhere where there is an internet connection by using their TDSB account.

TDSB Virtual Library

The TDSB Virtual Library provides students from K-12 with tools for online research, ebooks, videos, databases and more. All students have access to the tools from home, school or another location by logging in through their AW accounts. Each year, the school librarian sends home a "learnmark" with any necessary username and passwords that may be requested for some tools.

Some tools for French include Idéllo for videos, Universalis Junior, Big Timber Media, and TFO/MiniTFO.

Google Apps for Education

All students from Grades 1-12 in the TDSB have G-Suite accounts. Students can change the language to French within each app. These apps foster students' global competencies and the skills that are needed of 21st century learners, such as collaboration, creativity, critical thinking, global citizenship, and communication. To access these tools, students must log in to Google Chrome using their TDSB account.

Popular apps used in French classrooms include:

• Docs
• Slides
• Forms
• Drawings
• Classroom

In the early grades, homework shall more often take the form of reading, playing a variety of games, having discussions and interactive activities such as building and cooking with the family. 

The TDSB Homework Policy states that homework may begin to take the form of written work towards the end of Grade 3. Once independent work begins coming home, this work is meant to be reinforcement or practice of concepts mastered already at school. 

With that in mind, the best way for a parent, caregiver or family member to support their child with their homework would be to demonstrate an interest in the child’s schoolwork by:

• asking questions about it;
• setting up a space at home and a routine for homework completion;
• monitoring the child's efforts to complete the homework and setting a reasonable cut off time.

Teachers carefully plan and assign homework that is appropriate for the child and has a clear purpose. If a child is struggling with a particular task, a parent/caregiver is advised let the teacher know that the child made an attempt to complete the homework but requires additional follow-up at school to master the concept. This advice would apply in both the English and the French Immersion programs.

 TDSB Resources for Parents

Community Links & Supports