Children Can Learn French in South Berwick

This article was published in The Portsmouth Herald.

July 09, 2008 6:00 AM

SOUTH BERWICK, Maine — Things are happening upstairs at The Little Hat Company. Beginning in September, Nicole Gastonguay Ritchie will start L'École de Nicole in the space, offering "Fun with French" through songs, games, puppets, role play, art and more for children between the ages of 4 and 6.

Ritchie was looking for a place to start teaching French to young children. She found the perfect space after talking with Jennifer Houghton at The Little Hat Company, and laying the groundwork for French classes for pre-kindergartners and kindergartners.

At a glance

L'Ecole de Nicole

Owner: Nicole Gastonguay Ritchie

Location: 10 Portland St., South Berwick, Maine

Phone: (207) 332-8320

E-mail: ecoledenicole@comcast.net

"In many other countries, children grow up learning multiple languages," Ritchie said. "It is troubling to me that children in our community are not exposed to foreign language at an early age.

"Children should be given the gift of language, and I want them to have fun learning French," she added. "With the help of The Little Hat Company, my dream of having a French school for children will come true."

A lifelong French speaker, Ritchie has long seen the need for foreign language exposure for children in this community. She grew up in Lewiston, Maine, surrounded by the Franco-American culture. Her grandparents were from Canada. Her father was a career French teacher.

As a child, there was often more French than English heard and spoken at her home, and she said she relished her annual family trips to Canada to visit her French-speaking relatives. Ritchie was taught French in school starting in the first grade, which gave her a strong background by the time she reached the high school French honors program.

Ritchie was a double major, French and mathematics, at Bowdoin College, where she spent a semester away at La Sorbonne in Paris. After graduating, she continued her French studies in Switzerland at L'Université de Lausanne. While there, she also did extensive train travel to nearby countries.

Prior to having her own family, she taught French in various private schools, including Berwick Academy, where she took students to Quebec City, Canada, to learn about the Canadian culture. She said these experiences have helped her to appreciate foreign languages and cultures.