At Camp Tournesol, we work to nurture a lifelong love of French, no matter where your camper is in their French language journey! We are here to meet them where they are with fun activities and experiences, with just the right amount of French (from a little, all the way to fully immersive) to build on their existing language ability.
We are driven to create a French summer camp experience for all campers that is defined by:
Learning is play at Camp Tournesol! This is summer break after all, and we want campers to enjoy themselves.
We’re here to improve our French, so we speak as much as possible (sometimes only French!) throughout our entire day.
We encourage French learning and proficiency, but are mindful of avoiding frustration in the process.
We help all campers improve upon whatever French abilities they joined us with, wherever they start.
What a joy to be able to speak another language! We work to show how fun this special and valuable skill really is.
Children of all backgrounds and French abilities are welcome and celebrated at Camp Tournesol.
In addition to amazing themes that build on what your camper already loves, we also have programming that is tailored to your camper’s age and French stage. During your registration process, you’ll be able to select one of three streams for your camper, outlined below. Read more about our streams here.
(4-12 years)
Is your camper not in a French immersion program and/or you don’t speak French at home, but you still want them to build vocabulary and skills? Foundations is for them!
(4-12 years)
If your camper is in a French immersion program or you speak French at home, and you’d like them to build fluency and proficiency, our Mastery stream is the perfect choice.
(12-16 years)
Older campers seeking French fluency while developing leadership skills in a fun and supportive environment will love our Counsellor-in-Training (CIT) program. Read more.
Every single activity campers do at Camp Tournesol, no matter which stream they are in, puts them in a different vocabulary and situational context. They learn new, practical French words related to what they’re about to do, and then spend time using those words in conversation. At the end of the activity, at the end of the day, and at the end of the week, we review those words in ways that just feel like fun and chatting – and never like school!
In addition to all of their other qualifications, Camp Tournesol counsellors are fluent French speakers. Whether bilingual from a young age or graduates of French immersion programs, counsellors are able to not only speak French exclusively and with ease, they are also trained to adjust their dialogue to a camper’s current proficiency: perhaps using simpler words or less complex sentences, to encourage as much French conversation as possible, without campers feeling frustrated.
