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La Plage: A French Poem
By Abby Griffin, V Form
La Plage: A French Poem
Instructor Note from Dr. Downing Kress: As a class we read “Le Pont Mirabeau” by Guillaume Apollinaire. In this poem, the poet visits the Mirabeau bridge in Paris and, as he watches the Seine river flow by underneath the bridge, he is reminded of the passage of time and reflects on a love that is no more. I then asked the students to write their own poem about a special place that is significant to them – one that evokes emotion, memory, sensations, etc. Abby decided to write her poem about the beach in the form of a “calligramme,” a form of poetry often used by Apollinaire. The shape/spatial arrangement made by the poem’s text reflects the subject of the poem and plays a role in its meaning.
Commercialism Distorts Art (en français)
By Laura Drepanos, VI Form
Commercialism Distorts Art (en français)
Editor’s Note: This is a timed in-class essay in Advanced French. Following several weeks discussing the contemporary theme of aesthetics, the class was tasked with referencing texts and videos to determine whether society shapes art or art shapes society.
On doit noter que l’art joue un rôle important dans la société. Il y a des événements, des emplois, et des rapports qui sont formés par l’art. Mais, aussi, il y a un autre rapport entre l’art et la société; la société peut jouer un rôle dans la formation des arts. En considérant tous, parce qu’on ne peut pas contrôler l’interprétation de l’art, l’art est beaucoup plus une réflection d’une communauté.
La première preuve que l’art n’a pas beaucoup d’influence sur une communauté, c’est le fait que seulement 35% des canadiens visitent des musées des beaux-arts chaque année. Alors, si la plupart des gens ne regardent jamais les œuvres d’art, comment peuvent-t-ils former la société? De plus, d’après le même sondage, fait par Phoenix SPI, pas mal de gens voient l’art comme un moyen de s’exprimer, socialiser, et se sentir bien, mais pas pour communiquer un message. Alors, les arts n’ont pas un grand impact sur les croyances d’une communauté. (more…)
Language Immersion Trips: A Must-Have For A Student’s Bucket List
By Paige LaMalva, IV Form
Language Immersion Trips: A Must-Have For A Student’s Bucket List
I have loved the French language ever since I was in sixth grade. My middle school French teacher, Mrs. Okacha, made French my favorite subject because her class was both engaging and interactive. When I was in eighth grade, I helped lead one of her younger classes because I appreciated and enjoyed French so much.
After arriving at St. Mark’s and hearing about the French language trip offered every other year, I wanted to pursue it. I still loved the language, and I was to speaking a lot more French with my teacher, Ms. McColloch. I kept telling myself, “I can’t wait to be a sophomore and communicate in a real-world scenario.” I was exhilarated to find out that I got a spot on the trip. My French education would be applied in a real-world setting! Reading and speaking French was going to be challenging, but I was ready to take it on. (more…)
PSA Sur Le Changement Climatique (PSA on Climate Change in French)
By Ariah Henderson, V Form and Urgyen Wangmo, VI Form
PSA Sur Le Changement Climatique
Click on the image or here for the video!
Editors’ Note: Below are the parameters of the assignment for this French IV project.
Projet de Chapitre 10 :Vidéo
- Individually or with a partner, you will make a video (2 min / person in groups) in which you explain to the St. Mark’s community:
- the seriousness and causes of climate change
- and explain how they can make more sustainable choices (include the cost of such measures, if applicable).
- You will submit your script.
- The script/video should use:
- at least 12/24 vocabulary words from Chapter 10,
- at least 4/8 examples of le conditionnel passé,
- at least 4/8 examples of le futur antérieur,
- and examples of all three types of si clauses, plus si used to express a wish or reget (double the quantity for two person groups).
Quel rôle est-ce que la technologie joue dans la communication en 2017?
By Luc Cote, V Form
Quel rôle est-ce que la technologie joue dans la communication en 2017?
La technologie d’une génération définit comment chaque génération communique. Avant 1844 tout le monde communiquait en s’écrivant et en se parlant. En 1844, Samuel Morse a inventé le télégraphe. Pour la première fois, les gens pouvaient communiquer à tout le monde instantanément, le télégraphe a changé la façon dont les gens communiquaient. Tout le monde utilisait la nouvelle technologie de communication, c’était brilliant.
Mais, en 1876 Alexander Graham Belle a inventé le téléphone, et pour la première fois on pouvait écouter et parler en temps réel avec une personne loins de soi. Alors que la technologie facilitait la communication, la communication devenait moins officielle. (more…)
Collaborating on the Command Form in French
By Two French II Classes
Collaborating on the Command Form in French
Editor’s Note: French II students did a full class collaboration in which they made a video entitled, “How to survive at St. Mark’s: A guide for new students.” The video was designed to use the command form in French. The collaborative nature of this project meant that every student had a role in editing, filming, adding music, collecting videos, writing and revising the actual script.
Click here or above image for video by Frank Hua, Nate King, Luc Côté, Jovin Ho, William Osborne, Paige LaMalva, Emma Viens, Izzy O’Toole, Jonathan Noel, Daniela Martinez, and Julianna Gong.
Click here above image for video by Ainsley Dubose, Tucker Hartmann, Sam Leslie, Leann Li, Phoebe Macleod, Aidana Maitekova, Dom Mongillo, Edwardo Perez, Noah Robb, Robert Somme’s, Lindsay Strong, Benjamin Teixeira, Madeleine Wass, TianYu Zhao, and Lucy Zheng. (more…)
World War I Primary Sources Collection at the Library
By Marion Donovan, Assistant Librarian
World War I Primary Sources Collection at the Library
As a librarian at St. Mark’s this fall, I have begun to “weed” through our history collection and have taken a deep dive into time travel. In the past, I was a history teacher myself, so the primary sources that bring the past to life call out to me. A particular section in the library especially rich in those sources covers World War I. Both of my grandfathers fought in WWI on the Allied side, one as a doctor and the other as an engineer, so I grew up with stories and artifacts of “The Great War,” as it was first known. When I applied to graduate school for history at the University of Chicago, I discovered that La Verne Noyes, an American inventor and manufacturer of agricultural equipment, book holders, and windmills, had left the bulk of his fortune to scholarships for Allied veterans of WWI and their direct descendants. These scholarships have now expanded to include 48 colleges. April 6, 2017 will be the one-hundredth anniversary of the United States’ entry into WWI. The European side of the war began in 1914, so many newspaper and magazine articles have already examined new and old perspectives on those events. More will be coming with April 6 in view. We at St. Mark’s are lucky to have an extensive collection of first-hand material (diaries, letters, memoirs, news reports, propaganda, art, photographs) from marshals and generals to privates and civilians on wide-ranging aspects of this war. (more…)
La Crise des Réfugiés: Une Comparaison
that makes a comparison between the refugee crisis during and after the second world war and the current crisis in 2016. You may identify some guiding questions of your own.”
LEO 