That’s how students at Government Senior Secondary School in Sector 19, Panchkula, greet their teacher, Anju Chahal, in unison as she steps into the Class 6 classroom. “Bonjour!
Above the doorway, a poster sets the scene: “Voyage en France (Journey to France).”
The curriculum covers culture, festivals, music, games, and basic conversation in French, all without exam pressure. “Pronunciation is the main hurdle. I’ve turned this classroom into a language lab to help them practice so they can eventually interact with peers back in France. Colourful classroom, spirited students The classroom walls are lined with student-made posters showcasing French terms for clothing, food, family members, and animals. One poster highlights Les sites touristiques à Paris, while others display les nombers (counting charts), les fetes Francaises (French festivals) and everyday phrases that students repeat aloud, often breaking into giggles over tricky tongue-twisters.
The Haryana government has introduced French in Class 6 in 26 government schools this academic session following a rigorous year-long training of selected teachers by the French Embassy. Out of the participants, 26 teachers cleared the qualifying tests to teach basic French as an activity-based fun language. The campus accommodates roughly 1,450 students from Classes 6 to 12.
“French is a very polite language, and the students are loving it,” Chahal explains, noting that French and English share the Latin alphabet and numerous cognates. “We’ve already learned the days of the week, months, and numbers,” says student Sajan R. Nearby, Khushbu proudly demonstrates counting from zero to 100: “Zero is zéro, one is un, two is deux, three is trois, four is quatre…” “Ours is the only school in Panchkula district running this programme because Chahal was the only teacher from the district to pass the French Embassy exam,” says principal Nirmal Dhull. “It’s an enrichment activity, not part of the three-language formula,” she says.
