Learning while having fun.

Mission

Let’s learn a new language! 

The mind of a young child is like a sponge and the early years are a perfect opportunity to develop language capabilities. “Petits Pas” brings to your students and children, from 9 months to 6 years: songs, stories, and scenes, along with many other activities and tools to develop a second language.

Experiencing Petits Pas 

We propose a weekly 45 minutes lesson for nursery and primary school classes, or for parents groups. Typically, a lesson will focus on a single topic or theme but, as a child advances we can mix the lessons to play with the concepts and open new ideas. We also provide materials for parents so that, between lessons, they can repeat and play with the ideas, vocabulary, games, songs, and concepts introduced in each lesson.

Benefits of Petits Pas

A Pause: “Petits Pas” lesson is a time out of the day when a child can both play and concentrate at the same time – developing childrens’ understanding through sensory activities, music, stories, songs, dance, and imagination. 

Wholistic Learning: “Petits Pas” offers fun activities to develop core learning. The lessons create the foundations to learning a new language while opening a child’s mind and perception. In her lessons, Miss Clémence uses British Sign Language (BSL) or Makaton to create links between French and English, giving a more complete understanding of the concept and meaning of the words, rather than simply a transliteration. 

Materials are included, Miss Clémence brings all of her material into your school or meeting space. The progression of the lessons are lined to the principles of the EYFS (early years foundation stages), including the development of the following: 

·      A new language
·      Motor skills and body coordination 
·      Spatio-temporal perception 
·      Counting and mathematics essentials
·      Understanding of the world around us 
·      Emotions 
·      Language, verbalization and vocabulary
·      Self-confidence, improvisation and creativity

The Origins of Petits Pas

Clémence Whitten studied child developmental psychology at the Marie Haps School in Brussels, Belgium, specializing in pedagogy and motor skills. She completed her field work in a Belgian scholastic program for disadvantaged children, assessing and designing learning and reorientation strategies to help them get back on track or even ahead in their learning and development.  

When Miss Clémence moved to the UK in 2017, she brought with her that interest in childhood development, particularly within the family educational infrastructures. In London, she worked as a teacher in a bilingual English/French Montessori nursery, observing and providing analysis of child behaviour and development, working with parents to help their children engage with material being presented and “learn better.”

Miss Clémence spoke only French with the Montessori students while her colleagues spoke English, and all instructors used Makaton then BSL to connect the spoken languages. She worked with children from 12 months to 4 years old, as well as their parents. Her experience in UK bilingual learning capped off more than a decade of work in with young children and catalyzed the programs that are now incorporated into Petits Pas lessons. 

As you can see from a selection of video lessons [LINK HERE] (produced during the Covid-19 lockdown for the children of friends and family), Miss Clemence is brings the energy, motivation, and kindness of nature to promote the language development and well-being of children through her educational activities – all with a touch of fun. 

Find out more …

If you want to know more about “Petits Pas” feel free to contact me or send a message.