A B C D Sing Along

We do a ton of song a dance in class, and we have a blast doing it! Courtesy of mamalisa.com, A B C D, Some Carrots and Some Turnips is a fun, simple song you can teach your kids to sing along with! Try using this Midi tone to sing with! Enjoy!

French Version:

A B C D,
Des carottes et des navets
Mon grand-père est enterré
Dans le trou de la cheminée.
Si la cheminée tombe
Ce sera sa tombe
Si la cheminée tombe pas
Ce sera sa croix.

Spanish Version:

A B C D
Zanahorias y nabos
Enterraron a mi abuelo
En el hueco de la chimenea.
Si la chimenea cae
Pues su tumba será
Si la chimenea no cae
Pues su cruz será.

English Version:

A B C D
Some carrots and some turnips
My grandfather has been buried
In the hole of the chimney.
If the chimney falls down
It will be his grave,
If the chimney doesn't
It will be his burden.

Virtual Field Trips

Traveling to different countries isn't always the easiest task, but we do want our kids to be exposed to various cultures and traditions in order to make them more well rounded, educated individuals. Virtual Field Trips are being used more and more in classrooms today as a way for our students to safely explore the internet and get a taste of different experiences without ever leaving the classroom.

Check out this Virtual Field Trip of France with your kids, courtesy of oxfam.org

Check out this Virtual Field Trip of Spain with your kids, courtesy of oxfam.org

French Boulangerie Opening!

A new French boulangerie is opening in Charleston!

Baguette Magic is opening for business this wednesday, Nov 23rd at 792 Folly Road.

Come in to buy your Thanksgiving bread (baguettes, loaves, and rolls) and to see our new space.

Wednesday, Nov 23rd: 2 - 7pm

Thursday, Nov 24th: 8am - 2pm

Baguette Magic will serve breakfast and lunch and bake fresh bread

daily Tuesday - Saturday.

Visit www.baguettemagic.com for information.

If the French Bakery isn't for you, their are multiple tapas restaurants around Charleston. If you are unfamiliar with tapas, it is a Spanish snack often served with and alcoholic drink. Check out Charlestoncocktail.com for a list of some in the Charleston area!

J Paul'Z 1739 Maybank Highway Charleston, SC 29412 (843) 795-6995 The Porch 11 Center St. (upstairs) Folly Beach, SC 29439 (843) 588-2736‎

Hatchell's American Tapas Tavern 1324 Theatre Drive Mount Pleasant, SC 29464 (843) 884-6455

French & Spanish Recipes

Since we are in the eating spirit, I found some delicious traditional French and Spanish dished that i'm sure you will love, courtesy of about.com!

Poached Pears in White Wine Recipe (French)

Poached fruit is a mainstay on nearly every French restaurant’s menu. Easy to make and absolutely delicious, this special dessert is healthy and low fat, so anyone can order it. Try this recipe for poached pears in white wine at home and you’ll be adding it to your kitchen repertoire, too. Serve it with a bit of crème patisserie or almond glace for richer treat – the cream perfectly accents the spiced wine syrup and sweetness of the pears.

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 cups sweet white wine
• 3 1/2 cups water
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 vanilla bean (substitute 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract)
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 4 pears, peeled with stems left intact
• 2 cups granulated sugar

Preparation:

Stir together the white wine, water, cinnamon stick, vanilla bean, lemon zest, and lemon juice in a large saucepan. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-high heat and add the prepared pears. Poach the pears, uncovered, for 7 to 9 minutes, until they turn tender, but not mushy.

Use a large slotted spoon to transfer the pears onto a serving plate. Return the poaching liquid to a simmer, add the sugar, and allow the mixture to reduce by half in volume, about 6 to 8 minutes. The syrup is ready when it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Remove the cinnamon stick and vanilla bean from the syrup

Arrange the pears on individual serving plates and drizzle with the wine syrup.

This poached pears in white wine recipe makes 4 servings.

Creamy Apple Tart Recipe - Tartas de Manzana Individuales (Spanish)

These individual apple tarts have a light, flaky crust and an apple filling that is creamy, fresh and not too sweet. They make a good dessert for a festive occasion. Bake them in the morning and refrigerate until dinner. Warm them just before serving. Use individual china or metal dishes for baking.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes

Yield: 4 Servings

Ingredients:

• 3-4 Granny Smith apples (medium)
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 6-8 Tbsp granulated sugar
• vegetable oil or shortening to coat pans
• 1 pkg (16 oz) frozen puff pastry
• 1 cup whipping cream or half-and-half
• 1 large egg
• 1 Tbsp cinnamon (optional)

Preparation:

To make individual tarts, use 5-inch round china or metal pans, as pictured.

Tip: Peeling, coring and slicing of the apples can be done in about 5 minutes using a peeler/corer/slicer that clamps to a table.

Preheat oven to 300F degrees on bake setting. Remove the puff pastry package from the freezer. Open and set each folded sheet on a platter or cutting board to thaw while you prepare the apples.

Peel, core and slice the apples. Sprinkle with lemon juice and cover tightly, so that they do not turn brown.

Puff pastry should have thawed enough so that you can carefully unfold it onto a cutting board. Using the individual tart pans as guides, cut circles in the pastry. Place the pastry circles in the bottom of each tart pan.

There should be enough pastry left to cut narrow strips to line the sides of the tart pans. Press the pastry into the sides of pans. Prick pastry with fork. If you have used a “apple, peeler, corer, slicer,” your apples will be sliced in a spiral. Cut them in half. Place apple slices in a circle around each tart pan. Sprinkle 1 Tbsp of sugar over the top of each tart. Sprinkle cinnamon over apples if desired.

Place tart pans on a cookie sheet and place in oven on middle rack for about 10 minutes, or until apples brown a bit. Remove from oven and place on counter. Turn up oven temperature to 350F degrees.

Beat the egg in a medium mixing bowl, then add the heavy cream and 4 tablespoons of sugar. Beat until thoroughly mixed.

Pour the cream and egg mixture into each tart pan, covering the apple. Return tarts to oven and bake for approximately 45 minutes. If a knife is inserted into the tart and it comes out clean, it is done.

Enjoy!

Beuajoulais Nouveau Festival

This Thursday is the Beuajoulais Nouveau Festival. Traditionally, the festival is the 3rd Thursday of every November which is when this red wine is in stores. Beaujolais nouveau is made from Gamay grapes which are produced in the Beaujolais region of France. It is fermented for just a few weeks and bottled only 6-8 weeks after harvest, before being released put on sale. It is a purple-pink wine which reflects its youth. This "Beaujolais Nouveau Day" sees heavy marketing including being promoted as a drink for Thanksgiving; the traditional slogan was “Le Beaujolais nouveau est arrivé!” which translates to "The new Beaujolais has arrived!", but in 2005 it was changed to "It's Beaujolais Nouveau Time!". So enjoy your Beujolais Nouveau Time!

Alliance Française of Charleston Francophone Film Festival

If you're available, check out these inexpensive films at MUSC!

Alliance Française of Charleston would like to invite you and your friends to attend their fifth annual Francophone Film Festival to take place November 11-13 at the MUSC Auditorium of the Institute of Psychiatry.

Two of the films, My Afternoons with Margueritte (2010) with Gérard Depardieu and The Women of the Sixth Floor (2010) are now being shown in New York, The Names of Love (2010), Best French Film of the Year Nominee won two Césars (French Oscars) in 2011, Farewell (2009) is a true thriller of espionage, Incendies (2010) won an Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Film of the Year, and Noémie (2009) is in the vein of Le Petit Nicolas a film for all children.

All films are in French with English subtitles. Admission is $3.00 for AF members & students and $5.00 for the general public.

Coming Nov. 11, 12 and 13 during National French Week

ALLIANCE FRANÇAISE OF CHARLESTON Francophone Film Festival- Six award winning films

Turkey Puppet

Research shows that the best forms of teaching with the highest retention rate is by teaching others/immediate use and practicing by doing. With anywhere from 75% to 80% of the information being retained rather than 5% to 10% if a student is just being lectured or simply reading.

With that being said, check out activitytv.com (linked) for a fun activity for you and you your child to make a finger puppet of a turkey. The site has a tutorial video as well as well as a written-out procedure. While making your finger puppets be sure to incorporate some French vocabulary or Spanish vocabulary (both are linked to a short list of terms for you to use). ENJOY!

Thanksgiving Turkey Song

Continuing with the Thanksgiving trend, check out this fun video by foreignlanguagehouse.com in French. Try having your kids sing along! Repetition is key for increasing your children's familiarity of new vocabulary. Hope this helped get you in the holiday season!

Also, check out this cute video in Spanish "I am a Turkey"

Color and Coloring Practice

Now that your kids have enough candy for the next month, it's time to start getting ready for Thanksgiving! Below is a cute video that incorporates the Fall with some of our colors we've learned recently in Spanish!

And a little less Fall oriented, but below is a good song to practice colors in French

Just for fun, I attached two printable pictures of France and Spain for your kids to color! Enjoy!