French school system?

[Charallais]

I have been asked to help at an after school club, listening to the children read, help with simple sums etc.!!!
It is something I can do, I helped in a classroom in England. It would help my language skills, help me integrate into the community and help my memory, being with groups of people etc. as I had a stroke 3 years ago and I am still recovering.
My worry is I have not a clue about the French school system and how I could relate it to helping at the aide de devoir. It sounds a good idea, the French people there seem to think my French at a standard to cope so I am prepared to give it a try.
Can anyone help with with a short resume of the schooling of 5 11 year olds?
Thanks for any information.

[letrangere]

Not a clue but I'm very envious, it's the sort of thing I'd quite like to do when we move. Well done for getting the job.

M

[Teamedup]

You'll have to learn how they do them here, the division is done with the sum one is dividing into on the left and the divisor on the right and even in long division all the multiplications and subsequent subtractions have to be done in the head. Multiplication is a done slightly differently too.

[Alma]

>I have been asked to help
>at an after school club,
>listening to the children read,
>help with simple sums etc.!!!
>
>It is something I can do,
>
You won't know til you try! And if you find that it is impossible will it have hurt anyone? The positive is that you have been asked and will be 'accepted' into the community more for it.

Good luck

[SaligoBay]

>Can anyone help with with a
>short resume of the schooling
>of 5 11 year olds?

By 11, they'll have gone through French history (and ONLY French history ) from cavemen to World War 2. They'll probably be familiar with names like Clovis, Charlemagne, Napoleon.

Maths - by 11 they'll have done long division and big multiplications, but as TeamedUp said, probably not the way you did them, so you'll have to learn their method.

English depends on the school and how well it's funded. Some will be quite advanced by 11, some will barely be able to say "Hello".

A conversation tonight with some French people who have spent time abroad suggests that if you say to a class of 11-yr-old French children "draw a star and cut it out" they might not be able to, because the system generally doesn't encourage creativity. But this does depend very much on the individual teachers.

Good luck, I hope they pay you!