For children of primary school age, L'École Française de Bristol runs two services: Français Langue Maternelle (known as FLAM) for native French speakers who attend one full day per week (who are released from their primary school on the basis of off-site education), and our French as a foreign language courses which run on Thursday afternoons and Saturday mornings. All of our classes seek to develop children’s curiosity and appreciation of the French language and to support them to express themselves with confidence at the end of their course.
For bilingual children of secondary school age, L'École Française de Bristol runs a French GCSE preparation class on Saturday morning.
Primary school years - Français Langue Maternelle
Primary classes one day per week, from Reception to Year 6, on “day release” from English primary schools
We offer “day release” classes / Français Langue Maternelle (known as FLAM) for native French speakers who attend one full day per week in an immersion programme.
In the United Kingdom, children typically attend school over a span of five days per week. Therefore, it is necessary for parents to obtain approval from the headteacher of their child's English primary school before the child can enrol in one of our classes for one day per week.
The school day at L'École Française de Bristol (EFB) runs from 9:00 am to 3:30 pm, unless exceptional circumstances arise, such as attending their primary school for part or all of the day for special events or medical appointments.
We offer an optional wraparound service, “Garderie” before class from 8.00 am until 9.00 and/or from 3.30 pm until 5.30 pm.
School catchment areas exist in Bristol and other counties, and we collaborate with approximately 70 schools. We do not provide a list of schools that accept our day release programme, as it is at the discretion of individual schools to determine if each pupil can effectively participate in our day release programme and if it aligns with their best interests. We therefore refrain from offering recommendations for specific schools.
Please ask for our “Day Release Factsheet for Expatriate Families” for information about education systems etc.
Curriculum
We offer a bespoke programme based on the French Education Nationale curriculum in the context of immersion. This unique curriculum enables bilingual children to develop competences in reading and writing in French focusing on the structured study of grammar, conjugation, and spelling.
The primary goals of our curriculum are to enhance comprehension, oral and written language skills in French, and to deepen cultural knowledge. These objectives are structured across three key stages:
Cycle des apprentissages premiers (Reception / Grande Section)
Cycle des apprentissages fondamentaux: oral language, writing, reading, comprehension, and language study (CP, CE1, and CE2 curriculum)
Cycle de consolidation de la langue: oral language, writing, reading, comprehension, and language study (vocabulary, spelling, conjugation, grammar) (CM1 to CM2 curriculum)
Students focus on developing proficiency in speaking and writing, as well as comprehension of both spoken and written French. Additionally, emphasis is placed on mastering four key tenses: imperfect, present, future, and perfect.
At the end of CM2, children should be ready for our Secondary/GCSE classes.
With a greater understanding of the culture of a language comes the ability to communicate across cultures. We choose our resources carefully and develop activities around major cultural events in France and French-speaking countries throughout the year.
We will organise a visit to make sure our offer matches the needs of your child. The team will be liaising regularly and closely with your family and partner schools about your child’s progress and welfare.
Class sizes
Class sizes vary from year to year, but our aim is to maintain small class sizes to facilitate optimal progress for each student.
Staff
All our teachers hold the Qualified Teacher Status. They are supported by a team of classroom assistants for all or part of the school day.
Information and fees for 2024-2025
Parent testimonial:
"For us the day release system in the French school is the perfect balance to progress both reading and writing in French, in parallel to an English education. The teaching methods of L'École Française de Bristol are closely allied to the English teaching methods, which allows the children to progress fluently in both without different styles contradicting each other. To allow out-of-school parental support, the lesson content is provided each week and keeps us up to date with aspects of the language that are worthwhile practising. The teachers are good at motivating the children with weekly book lending, themed exercises, exchanges with schools in France, regular visits by parents to discuss culture and books…"
Virginie B.
Primary school years - French as a foreign language
If you are looking to introduce your primary school-aged child to the French language, L'École Française de Bristol provides fun, interactive French courses. For those in Reception to Year 2, we run a club on Saturday mornings and for children in Years 3 to 6, we run an after-school club on Thursdays.
Our Saturday club is held every Saturday morning during term time from 9:30 am to 11:15 am. In a small group, your child will explore the French language by theme through a variety of activities such as cookery, crafts and games. Led by a native French speaker, the sessions are designed to ignite children’s curiosity and foster a sense of achievement from learning new words and phrases.
Our Thursday after-school club takes place every Thursday during term time from 4:45 pm to 5:45 pm. Your child will be supported to speak and start writing in French through games and fun exercises such as learning the vocabulary of the body by drawing around classmates on large sheets of paper and labelling the body with the equivalent French words.
Secondary school years - French GCSE preparation class
L'École Française de Bristol continues to support its French-speaking pupils, and other fully bilingual children, during secondary school through its Saturday morning class: Français Langue Maternelle Secondaire. The class is also an opportunity for pupils to renew ties with their former classmates and our school community.
Our Year 7 and Year 8 pupils continue to develop their speaking and writing skills, deepening their knowledge of French grammar, conjugation and vocabulary as well as their listening and reading comprehension. When pupils are ready (between Years 9 and 11) and in agreement with their secondary school, they have the opportunity to prepare for French GCSE exams.
Taught by a native-speaking French teacher, the class runs every Saturday in term time from 9:30 am to 11:30 am.
"I really enjoyed my time at the Saturday morning class. It helped expand my vocabulary and improved my grammar, which resulted in getting a better grade on my French GCSE results. It was also nice to reconnect with some old classmates from previous years of attending the school."
Luc