Learning Context
	The purpose, objective, or focus of the learning experience:

This unit of study allows students to use the Internet to access sites such as the Bibliotheque National de France, whose collection has at its core the illuminated manuscripts from the Middle Ages which were originally in the libraries of the kings of France. The library has put 1,000 of these manuscripts on its web site. Students connect through cyberspace with some of the world's oldest books to conduct their research.

In addition, the availability of CD-ROMs from France, such as the tour of the Louvre, permit a personal visit to the museum without leaving the school. The French version of the encyclopedia, as well as the other primary sources in French, allows students to conduct research in the target language, eliminating the need for translation.

These students have studied French throughout their school years and this effort combines Internet travel, research, a writing activity, a speaking activity and a project: the creation of a stained glass window.

This learning experience addresses Languages Other Than English Standard 1, Communication: Students will be able to use a language other than English for communication. The performance indicators assessed:

• Students can understand the main ideas and significant relevant details of extended discussions or presentations, and of recorded songs, feature programs on radio and television, movies, and other media designed for use by native speakers.
  
• Students can give an oral presentation on an assigned topic, using culturally appropriate vocabulary, expressions, gestures, and verbal and nonverbal cues, simple and complex sentences, and the full range of time frames.
  
• Students can write multiparagraphed essays, journals, personal and business letters, and creative texts in which their thoughts are unified and presented in an organized fashion; errors in form may occur, particularly when the students are writing about complex themes or issues requiring the expression of opinions, or when the topic is outside their realm of experiences.

This learning experience addresses Languages Other Than English Standard 2, Cultural Understanding: Students will develop cross-cultural skills and understandings. The performance indicator assessed:

• Students can demonstrate sophisticated knowledge of cultural nuances in a target language culture.