French document

coffeelover

Hi.
Just wondering have any of ye started this? Any ideas as to what to do

plumpote

Hi coffeelover
The night before my oral I decided it would be a good idea to bring in a document, i chose a postcard of a place I had been in France. I prepared a few questions and answers that I thought the examiner was likely to ask, plenty to keep me going if I needed to fill time. It worked really well on the day; I was able to steer the conversation back to what I wanted to talk about time and time again, the examiner asked me loads of questions about the culture and the people etc.
With the document you have to be prepared for the trickier questions, like comparisons between countries, but if you have it all ready it is brilliant!
Just pick your document, write out as many possible questions and answers as you can, and get your teacher or friends to ask you the questions.
Don't know if this helps at all!

wayhey

I'd advise you to avoid something like photographs of friends or holidays, unless you're weak at French.

You're going to have to cover topics like friends/family/holidays anyway for your oral. In mine the examiner asked a lot of questions about my best friend, what he liked, where we'd go etc. If I'd brought in a photo of us at Oxegen, I wonder what (potentially harder) topic the examiner would have brought up to kill time?

It's crucial to pick something that you're interested in. I regret not doing something like surgery- the vocabulary would have really stuck out and I like reading about stuff like that anyway.

In the end I did a French-Japanese film, which allowed me to learn off LOADS of very specific vocabulary. Word of advice though, try not to base your document in disaster zones. I nearly got sick when I saw the Japanese earthquake and the nuclear disaster unfolding at Fukushima only days before my oral.

I still think that bringing in a unique picture, or something from French culture (film, CD.. a girl in our class did a simple poem, actually a really great idea!!). It shows you actually put thought and time into your document. I'd say examiners are completely fed up talking about the summer and Oxegen anyway, but people always seem to choose it as a document..

Just pick something you won't mind preparing and reading up on and you'll be fine! Don't pick something TOO complicated or controversial either.. I was lucky to get a friendly examiner, because I could've been asked some really horrible questions. She actually only spent 2/3 minutes on the document anyway with everybody!

coffeelover

Would it be a bad idea to bring in one of Amy Winehouse? I could say she was my favouite singer, her most popular songs and the affects of alcohol and drugs? Or else I was going to do it on a holiday.. Or film but I don't know what film to do

Fergus_

I am also doing a french document, I took in a picture of myself giving a speech to Dermot Ahern so it was a bit unique

AoifeCork

They go weak for anything French related. I did mine on Edith Piaf and examiner loved it. Brought in some colloquial French that way with direct quotes and things.

If you're interested in Film maybe have a look at some popular French themed films..Joyeux Noel, Inglorious Bastards or something. If you're starting now then your document could be really really impressive by April!

_pure_mule_

im thinking of doing mine on me at french college with a big sign over my head say bienvenue a ElC ( Euro Languages College) . That way I could learn off loads about that topic and tolk for years on it!:)

coffeelover

Ya I was looking at a summary of a film and it looks brill. I was gonna do it on that but I can't find it to watch it

AbsentPonderer

Did my leaving last year, and from my experience people who bring in something conversational may have already spoken about that in the conversation previously. Bring in something that you are passionate about I would say, if you like history, something from there, I brought in the Communist symbol, which shocked the examiner and was not going to have been discussed already which I wanted to ensure :P