My Story

Bonjour! My name is Sue Backley, and I run Bijou French.

I have always loved France and the French language. As a child I spent many happy holidays in France with my family, and we especially enjoyed our trips to Bordeaux to stay with friends. After studying French with German at university, I moved to Nancy in north-eastern France, where I spent 4 years teaching English to university students. I then lived in Paris for 3 years, where I continued to teach English at the Franco-British Chamber of Commerce. I loved my time in France, absorbing the culture and the language, and I continue to enjoy regular holidays there with my family.

My professional life has been devoted to teaching. Since moving back to England and doing my teacher training, I have taught French and German in secondary schools and French at primary level. Teaching primary school pupils made me realise how well children respond to a language at a young age. I also witnessed first-hand how my own son (now 20 years old!) absorbed French naturally and with a great deal of enthusiasm and enjoyment when he was a child. With this in mind, I set up a French club for children called Les Petits Dauphins in January 2007. Since then, I have taught countless children of primary age, in lunchtime and after-school clubs in Abingdon. I have loved every second of it!

When Covid-19 struck in March 2020, I had no idea that I would be unable to return to work for over 18 months. Once the reality began to sink in, I decided to try to put the time to the best possible use and to produce something positive out of a difficult situation. And so, I am very happy to introduce you to Bijou French, my brand-new French course for primary children. So, what is new? As well as attending weekly face-to-face French classes at school, the children will have access to several new resources on my brand-new Bijou French website (see About Bijou French for more information). I believe that, by offering this extra material to supplement the classes, I can offer a complete language learning experience, as well as making it easier for parents to get involved with their child’s learning, if they wish to do so.

I am really excited to embark on this fresh adventure: I love finding new ways to share my passion for France and the French language, and I very much hope your child will enjoy learning French with Bijou French.

À bientôt.

Sue

October 2022