Fairy Tale as a Linguodidactic Resource Teaching French

Abstract

The relevance of the study lies in the fact that French is one of the demanded foreign languages studied in Latvia and is an important academic subject. It contributes to the improvement of communication culture and pushes the boundaries of students' cognitive capabilities. The linguodidactic versatility of a fairy tale is an urgent problem, both in theoretical and practical terms. The purpose of this research is to consider the tale, both in ontogeny and in a purely practical perspective. In the French classroom, we use fairy tales to achieve practical, educational, and developmental goals. Along with the linguistic aspect itself, a fairy tale can be effectively used for the formation and development of main types of speech activity: reading, listening, speaking, and writing. Practical goals are achieved because the use of material from fairy tales in game situations contributes to the development of communication skills. This creates conditions for speech activity, close to natural communication in a foreign language. In addition to the fact that the environment of real communication is simulated in the lesson, students transform themselves into fairy-tale characters. This approach keeps them interested in the learning process and creates a favorable psychological climate. The use of fairy tales is such an activity in the lesson that is of great importance for the formation of personality, provides the emotional, intellectual, and moral development of the student. A fairy tale as a rich linguistic and cultural resource helps the student to develop his/her attention, memory and thinking. Many years of personal experience allows me to assert that learning languages through fairy tales enables a teacher to: rely on a quality resource; deliver quality classes that teach students a second language; bring positive language learning into a classroom; engage learners both cognitively and emotionally; help students to gain a deep and satisfying understanding of language; find personal enjoyment in a resource; provide a different approach to learning language; give students ownership of their learning of a new language and equip them with language tools for their future.