FLAM, FLE or curriculum French — which one does your child need?
Three programmes. Three completely different teaching approaches. Choosing the wrong one is the most common cause of disengagement in French education abroad — and the easiest mistake to avoid. All three are available in person in Shanghai and Suzhou, and online anywhere in the world.
The short answer
Ask yourself one question: does my child speak French at home?
- Yes, French is spoken at home → FLAM
- No, French is new for my child → FLE
- My child is enrolled in the French school system → Curriculum French
If you are not sure, a free placement assessment will give you the answer in twenty minutes.
FLAM — French as a mother tongue
For children who already speak French at home, but cannot write it.
These children grow up in French-speaking families. They understand their parents, they speak at the dinner table, they watch French films. But they live in China and attend an international school — so their written French, grammar and reading are far behind where they should be for their age.
FLAM does not start from scratch. It works from the child's spoken foundation, moves into reading and writing, then builds towards the full written register — literature, grammar, dictation, composition. The pace is faster than FLE because the language is already there: it just needs to be formalised.
The most common mistake: putting a FLAM child in an FLE class. The vocabulary is too simple, the pace is too slow, the child is bored in week two and never comes back.
FLE — French as a foreign language
For children discovering French for the first time.
These children have no French at home. French is a foreign language, like Mandarin or English. They start from the very beginning — sounds, basic vocabulary, simple sentences — and progress towards oral fluency and then written expression.
FLE at AEF is not a generic language class. The objectives, vocabulary and progression are calibrated for children and teenagers living in China, with Chinese or English as their dominant language. We do not use adult FLE methods on children.
FLE leads to the DELF Junior, the official French certification for young learners, from A1 to B2.
The most common mistake: putting a child who speaks French at home into an FLE class. They are immediately ahead of everything, help the others, and learn nothing. Disengagement follows within weeks.
Curriculum French — following the French school system
For children enrolled in the French school curriculum, or preparing for the French baccalauréat.
These children are enrolled in the French school system — in a French school in Shanghai, in a French section, or following the CNED distance learning programme. They need to keep pace with the national curriculum: French literature, grammar, written composition, the history and geography programme in French, and eventually the bac de français oral and written.
This is a completely different job from FLAM or FLE. The objectives are academic, the texts are from the prescribed list, and the preparation is exam-driven. At AEF we offer curriculum support from primary school through to terminal.
Can a child do both FLAM and curriculum French?
Yes, and it is common. A child in a French school who also speaks French at home often benefits from both: curriculum French for academic support, and FLAM for building the oral and cultural register that the school does not always cover.
We design the two programmes so they complement rather than duplicate each other.
What if I am still not sure?
The placement assessment is free and takes twenty minutes — in person in Shanghai or Suzhou, or online from anywhere in the world. At the end of it, you have a clear answer: which programme, which level, and what to expect in the first term. There is no commitment and no obligation.