- Saturday, November 17, 2012
- French Language
English immersion in a family Homestay Last week a French family, of three stayed at my home in Hastings. They did not require structured lessons but only to practise English conversation and to visit a few places of interest. The parents had a double bedroom accommodation and 15-year-old daughter had a single room next to the bathroom, In fact, they had use of the whole of the top floor.
English language Homestay excursions On the first day, I took them to visit Hastings and its historical attractions. We visited the castle ruins ,the smugglers caves and enjoyed the fantastic views of the Channel, from the West hill. We ended the afternoon in a 16century pub , situated in the heart of the old town and ambled back home, along the sea front. On Saturday night , we went to the traditional firework celebrations in Battle,the location of the battle of 1066. We watched the colourful processions which culminated in the lighting of a huge bonfire and a colourful firework display. The following day, we went by train to Brighton ,where we visited the famous Pavilion and art galleries .We ate fish and chips on Brighton pier and sat enjoying the sunshine as we fed the hungry sea gulls. We browsed the many small shops in the Lanes and the family bought some really nice jewellery and souvenirs. Once again we were really lucky with the weather which was very mild with constant sunshine! I managed to convince my guests the bad English weather is just a myth! We enjoyed a tasty afternoon tea in a very quaint little tea shop before catching the train back to Hastings,in the early evening . After lunch, the next day we drove to Rye and visited the ancient St.Mary?s church and the old prison and cannons ,overlooking the harbour. We looked around the shops and stopped for cakes in a Tudor style bakery. My visitors were very impressed with our English cakes and tarts, especially carrot cake and mince pies. We returned to Battle again, during the day, so that the French family could look around the site where the actual battle of 1066 took place.There is a beautiful abbey which is now a private school and the whole site has an air of mystique about it. On the last day,we went to the supermarket where the family stocked up on various cakes, jams and spices. They also bought some beautiful light fittings which,fortunately, fitted into the boot of their car. On their last day we went to my daughter?s house to have a traditional Sunday roast dinner , which they thoroughly enjoyed.
Immersion English ? improving conversation When my guests first arrived it was decided that they would speak English,at all times,even to each other, which I am happy to say,they did. I did correct them ,on occasion, but often I found it better to just let them continue with their fluency despite their grammatical mistakes. Overcorrection often results in diminished confidence and therefore, is not always a good idea. They had continual exposure to the English language being able to converse with me and members of my family every day and also having the opportunity to reinforce what they had learnt in their previous English lessons. In the evenings, we would play board games or watch TV which would give them an opportunity to listen to different accents. The French family went home by car early on the Monday morning. They made a tentative arrangement to come back in August next year. I look forward to seeing them again . Photo on the testimonials page.
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