This year at the Ontario Modern Language Teachers' Association spring conference, I had the pleasure of sharing some G Suite for Education tools that could be used in the FSL classroom. While many of the tools I shared were geared towards Google Docs, tools such as Explore, Read&Write, French Conjugation, and Easy Accents, I also shared a French version of the HyperDocs template, how I've used the Screencastify extension with Google Slides, a fun "Build Your Own Snowman" activity from ControlAltAchieve.com, and how I converted videos, Quizlets and other websites that I had bookmarked in Google Chrome into a Symbaloo web mix that I share with my students.

During the workshop, a couple of really good questions were raised by the attendees. When first installing the French Conjugation Chrome extension, which I recommend as a free alternative to the Bescherelle, attendees were unable to see the "Exercice" feature where students can test themselves on verb tenses and modes.

Luckily, someone quickly figured out that, by right clicking on the  extension icon next to the omnibox, you can access Options and will need to select "3 Colonnes".

Once selected, you will then be able to access the "Exercice" feature. You only have to do this once since it will remember your settings. Un gros merci to the attendee who reminded me of this necessary step!

Another question was brought up by a teacher who was eager to use some of the tools I shared and whose school uses iPads only. Unfortunately, add-ons and extensions such as French Conjugation are only available on the desktop version for G Suite at this time. 

Finally, another question came up regarding the one-year premium teacher account with Read&Write. This is for a FREE one-year premium subscription which they will receive once they register with Read&Write. My school board recently launched the premium version this past January and, after asking around, it seems more school boards are going that route as a replacement for Premier and other similar assistive technologies.

For those who would like to view my presentation, I have embedded it below. You can also view here bit.ly/gsuiteFSL and, because I have enabled the comment feature, you can comment directly on any of the slides if you have any questions or would like to share any comments. Or feel free to leave a comment on this blog post.

At this year's OMLTA Spring Conference, I met a gentleman named Jay Bailey who has traveled across Canada living the life of les voyageurs. I was drawn to his booth when I heard him playing the spoons and wasn't prepared to see the number of spoons he had collected during his travels. It really was an impressive collection and I soon realized that not all spoons are created equal. I ended up buying my first pair of Richard Cyr wooden spoons called the boîte à boîte at the One of a Kind Show here in Toronto but they cost a pretty penny. If you want an inexpensive alternative, Jay showed me how you can make your own set of spoons by purchasing a cheap pair from the dollar store, separate them with a wooden dowel and secure them with duct tape. You can see the metal spoons in the middle of the photo above. I think you could even use a wine cork if you don't have a wooden dowel. It would be fun to experiment with all the different sounds you can make. Thanks for the mini lesson on spoons, Jay!

Update: Voyageur Jay has recently created a video that demonstrates the different types of spoons and some of the basics for how to play. Check it out below!

On Friday, I attended the OMLTA Conference held right here in Toronto. While I was a little disappointed about the new setup and the apparent decrease in the number of exhibitors, I was lucky enough to attend a number of very interesting and informative workshops. One such workshop was called, "I know about the CEFR - now give me some strategies!!" This session was presented by Susanna Gojsic, Alfreda Le Donne and Carole Knezevic from my hometown of Hamilton. During the session, I learned some interesting strategies that I am excited to implement, one of which involves the use of videos. 

As a French teacher, I cringe each time a student prepares a written assignment in English and then plops it into Google Translate. They never seem to realize that the end result could be a completely erroneous interpretation. After watching the video below during the workshop, I think it would be great to show it to my students in the hopes that they will question whether or not Google Translate is a good idea. Kick up your feet and watch this Fresh Prince inspired video created by cdza:

This week, the Ontario Modern Languages Teachers' Association/Association ontarienne des professeurs de langues vivantes is hosting another spring conference entitled "Connections 2013 Connexions" from March 21-23. This is the one conference I look forward to the most each year and I love that it is held right here in Toronto. Also, I am quite lucky that I am one of few Core French teachers in the board who have been offered subsidized participation through Ministry FSL funding. The OMLTA Conference offers amazing professional development for language teachers and I always learn something new every time I attend. This will be my sixth time attending since I moved to Toronto about nine years ago! Not only is a great opportunity to develop teaching strategies, listen to amazing keynote speakers, and check out the exhibitors and displays for the latest products and resources, but it is also a chance for me to connect with some of my teaching counterparts from my hometown of Hamilton as well as meet new friends from all over Ontario. So if you're planning on attending, let's 'connect!' I would love to meet you!

If you are a French or Modern Languages teacher in Ontario, I recommend becoming a member, especially if you are interested in attending the conference. The difference in member and non-member conference fees more than covers the cost of the annual membership fee plus you will receive Communication, the OMLTA newsletter published three times a year. It contains practical tips for the classroom as well as up-to-date information on language issues. 

Additionally, the OMLTA, supported by the Government of Canada through the Department of Canadian Heritage and the Government of Ontario, is running Projet à Québec again this year. The Projet à Québec program provides professional development opportunities for 40 Core FSL Teachers from Catholic and Public English-language district school boards across Ontario and is taking place in Quebec City from July 15-26, 2013. The session costs, excursions, room and certain meals are covered. Participants will only have to pay for return travel costs and some meals. The deadline

The deadline to submit an application is Friday April 12th at 5:00 pm. Visit OMLTA.org for more information.

Hope to see you at the OMLTA Spring Conference!

A couple of weeks ago, I attended the Ontario Modern Languages Teachers' Assocation Spring Conference held here in Toronto. It was such a great experience and I learned a lot during most of the workshops. However, what I found most invaluable was the keynote address by War Child North America founder Dr. Samantha Nutt.

She shared her views on the importance of learning another language so that one may not only be able to speak but also to listen, listen to the stories like that of a young girl who lives in the Democratic Republic of Congo and who, on more than one occasion, was raped and once had the soles of her feet cut off to prevent her from running away. This is sadly common practice, the rape, the abuse. I learned from Dr. Samantha Nutt that there is a strong correlation between the high incidence of rape and the proximity of where those rapes occur to the coltan mines, which are controlled by militia groups. She also told us that Africa has approximately 80% of the world's known coltan deposits. So what's the big deal? Coltan is used to derive tantalum which can be found in basically every cell phone and other similar devices. It's in essence a different form of blood diamonds. Because blood is violently shed due to the exploitation of coltan. That really made me think. And as I sat there with my iPhone in hand ready to tweet that astonishing fact, I thought about that poor girl and about all the high-tech devices that I personally own, and I felt ill. Up until that point, I didn't know anything about the unethical mining of coltan. Did you?