Course Description

FRENCH 1315 FRENCH FOR FASHION

French 1315 is a beginning conversational course oriented toward the fashion industry. It was designed specifically for the degree programs in Fashion Design, Fashion Merchandising and Fashion Illustration, for which it is a requirement. This specialized, one-semester course is not part of an ongoing sequence. Activities will include dialogue practice, role-playing, oral and written exercises, work with fashion magazines and written texts.

Prerequisites

There are no prerequisites. This course is a requirement for Fashion Design and Fashion Merchandising students.

Course Goals (includes core competencies, incorporation of SCANS, etc.)

1. SPEAKING: Pronounce in an acceptable manner French designer names and French fashion terminology. Describe clothing orally in French. Speak in words, phrases and short sentences using vocabulary relating to clothing and to a few practical situations a traveler to France would encounter.
   
2. LISTENING COMPREHENSION: Listening skills to enable one to carry out basic social formalities, exchange personal information, order meals, get a hotel room, make clothing purchases or get along in other practical situations a traveler to France might encounter.
   
3. READING: Extract information about clothing and the fashion industry from clothing ads and descriptions, brief articles, correspondence and commercial forms written in French. Understand dialogues relating to the practical situations covered.
   
4. WRITING: Not emphasized in this course. Writing of words and short sentences will be done mainly as reinforcement for speaking and reading skills.
   
5. CULTURAL AWARENESS: Develop sensitivity to French customs of social interaction in meeting strangers, eating, shopping, finding lodging, requesting information. Gain insight into the nature of intercultural communication and the cultural context of the French language. Be able to identify key people and places in the French fashion industry.

Instructor Information (Provide contact information for students)

Textbook Information

REQUIRED TEXTBOOKS

1. Entre amis, Oates &  Oukada, 3rd edition (1998), Houghton Mifflin 
   & accompanying Homework Cassette
   Chapters 1-5 and selected other portions of the book will be used. This book
   presents basic structures and patterns of French.
   
2. Parlons Mode!  Let?s Talk about Fashion: French for the Fashion Industry, 
   Supplementary Materials , Jacobs, 1999. 
   Sold as shrink pack (3-hole punched) in bookstore. Students provide binder.

   This book provides French vocabulary, readings and exercises relating to fashion and fashion professions.

None. See student information for practice with tapes.

Students with Disabilities

Students who require reasonable accommodations for disabilities are encouraged to report to Room 102 SJAC, or call 713-718-6164 to make necessary arrangements. Faculty are authorized to provide only accommodations requested by the Disability Support Services Office.

Academic Honesty

Students are expected to do their own work, unless an assignment is made specifically as a group assignment. Plagiarism (handing in another person's work as your own),  or cheating will result in a grade of F for the assignment, quiz, or test in question. For a second offense, the student may receive a grade of F for the course.

Attendance and Withdrawal Policies

In accordance with HCCS policy, a student is eligible to be withdrawn for excessive absences after missing the equivalent of 2 weeks of class. In this course, that means 4 classes. In any case, students missing more than two weeks of class will lose points on their participation grade.
Failure to withdraw from the class formally may result in a grade of F for the course, depending on the semester calendar.

Grading Policy

Course Requirements for example: Testing, Projects, Assignments, Portfolios, Service Learning, Internships, etc.

oral work, pronunciation tapes
homework, projects
quizzes
3 tests (oral and written)
final exam (oral and written)

Make-up policy

1. Homework needs to be handed in on schedule. It is not possible to receive credit for homework handed in long after it was assigned. Students who are absent should take the initiative to find
   out what was assigned during any absences.
   
2. Quizzes must be made up before the following class. A single missed quiz will not be counted against you. Missing several quizzes will affect your grade.
   
3. One major test during the semester may be made up if you have a legitimate reason for your absence. Contact your instructor as soon as you return to class or, preferably, by telephone or e-mail beforehand.

   It is the responsibility of the students to seek out information on work missed and to ask the instructor for any handouts.

Course Content

It introduces basic oral communication skills needed for social formalities, getting acquainted, making requests and purchasing clothing. Vocabulary relating to clothing and fashion professions is emphasized. The course includes pronunciation of designer names and fashion-related terms and reading comprehension of fashion ads, clothing descriptions and business documents.

Course Calendar with Due Dates for Assignments and Testing

Semaine = week. Chapitre = chapter. Mode is used to designate the supplementary materials.

Semaine 1

• 30 août: Introduction to course. Characteristics of French. Social Courtesies. Counting (1-30). Fashion tracks. Entre Amis chapitre préliminaire, pp. 1-3Mode, chapitre préliminaire, pp. 1-2, 5-8
• 1er septembre: Telling time, weather. Alphabet. Cognates. Entre Amis pp. 4-6Mode, pp. 3-5

Semaine 2  

• 6 septembre: Labor Day Holiday
• 8 septembre: Introducing yourself. Pronunciation: accents, rhythm, final consonants. Fashion professions, likes & dislikes Entre Amis, chapitre 1, pp. 8, 10-15 & cassette.Mode chapitre 1, pp. 9-11 

Semaine 3  

• 13 septembre: Conversation: Dans un hôtel à Paris. Irregular verb: être (to be),  Describing. Agreement of adjectives. Courses. Entre Amis, p. 9, 16-20 & cassetteMode  pp. 12-14
• 15 septembre: Negative sentences. Describing physical appearance.  Describing clothing. Numbers 100-1000 & prices Entre Amis, pp. 20-25.Mode  chapitre 2, pp. 15-16

Semaine 4  

• 20 septembre: Asking and responding to questions. Pronunciation: alphabet and accents. Transactions in a Store. Entre Amis chapitre 2, pp. 30, 32-36 & cassetteMode  pp. 16-17
• Semaine 4 -suite 22 septembre: Conversation: Une Soirée à Besançon. Paying compliments. Regular -er verbs. Entre Amis pp. 31, 37-43 & cassette

Semaine 5

• 27 septembre: Accepting, offering, refusing. Review. Review for test 1:Entre Amis: chapters 1 & 2 to p. 43 &Mode ,chapitres 1 & 2 to p. 17.
• 29 septembre: Test 1: Entre Amis chapters 1 & 2 to p. 43 & Mode, chapters 1&2 to p. 17 Mode  : Fashion Descriptions pp. 20-21.

Semaine 6  

• 4 octobre: Yes/no questions. Using -er verbs in a fashion context. Fashion Descriptions. Entre Amis - Chapitre 2, pp.49-52.Mode - Chapitre 2, pp. 18-19
• 6 octobre: Identifying family and friends. Conversation:  Arrivée à la gare. Pronunciation:  accent and rhythm, vowel sounds. Entre Amis - Chapitre 3, pp. 58-64 & cassette

Semaine 7  

• 11 octobre: Articles. Irregular verb avoir. Number to 79.  Professionals in the clothing industry. Entre Amis pp. 65-72Mode chapitre 3, pp. 22-24
• 13 octobre: Indicating ownership. Clothing Industry. School of La Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Entre Amis pp. 72-73, 78-81Mode pp. 26-29

Semaine 8  

• 18 octobre: Clothing, colors, clothing description. Pronunciation: nasal vowels Entre Amis chapitre 4, pp. 90, 92-94, 100-105 & cassette
• Semaine 8- suite 20 octobre: Describing people and clothing. Pointing out: use of ce and related forms. Asking questions, making exclamations: use of quel and related forms. Entre Amis pp. 105-109, 117 Mode  chapitre 4, pp. 30-33

Semaine 9

• 25 octobre: Shoppping and sizes. Irregular verb faire. Adverbs expressing when. Entre Amis p. 99, 113.Mode pp. 34-38
• 27 octobre: Getting a hotel room. Review. Review for test: Entre Amis end of chapter 2, chapters 3 & 4 to p. 117Mode end of chapter 2, chapters 3 & 4 to p. 38

Semaine 10

• 1 novembre: Test 2:  Entre Amis end of chapter 2, chapters 3 & 4 to p. 117Mode end of chapter 2, chapters 3 & 4 to p. 38 Entre Amis p. 346Mode pp. 38-40
• 3 novembre: Describing materials Mode  chapitre 5, pp. 41-44 

Semaine 11

• 8 novembre: Saying what you are going to do (near future).  Irregular verb aller. Lingerie, jewelry Entre Amis chapitre 5, pp. 131-138 & cassette.Mode pp. 44-45
• 10 novembre: Time: clock time, days, months, seasons. Time expressions. Parts of body. Saying what looks good on who or with what.  Entre Amis pp. 140, 142-145, 209-210, 265Mode pp. 47-50

Semaine 12

• 15 novembre: Verb review. Telling where things are (prepositions of location). Shopping, purchases. Entre Amis pp. 148-149Mode pp. 45-47
• 17 novembre: Review. Review for test 3: Entre Amis chapter 5 and assigned pages. Mode  end of chapter 4, chapter 5

Semaine 13

• 22 novembre: Test 3: Entre Amis chapter 5 and assigned pages. Mode  end of chapter 4, chapter 5 Entre Amis pp.167 & cassette; pp. 222-223 & menus: p. 238, 247
• 24 novembre: Eating in France. Business side of fashion. Commercial correspondence. Entre Amis p. 381Mode chapitre 6, pp. 51-54

Semaine 14

• 29 novembre: Business correspondence. Mode  pp. 55-57
• 1er décembre: Business correspondence. Mode  p. 58

Semaine 15

• 6 décembre: Review Review
• 8 décembre: Final projects

FINAL EXAM Wednesday, December 15, 2-4 p.m.

Other Student Information (clubs, tutoring, web resources, student services, etc.)

AUDIO TAPES

1. Audio tape to accompany Entre Amis.

        This tape is packaged with new textbooks. If you buy a used textbook, you can get
        the tape duplicated by the library.  1  120-minutes tape (through chapter 7)  (To
        get entire book, 1 additional 90-minute tape.)

   The following tapes will be duplicated for you by the library, free of charge, when you provide cassette tapes of the indicated length:
   
   

2. French 1315, French Pronunciation: French Sounds - one 90-minute tape.
   
3. French 1315, French Pronunciation: Designer Names - one 60-minute tape.

   The scripts for these tapes are found at the back of Parlons Mode!

Fashion Internet: There are many French fashion Internet sites. These can be helpful for learning vocabulary and learning about the French fashion industry. Internet assignments will be a part of the course.