Gallery
Services
Would you like your child to learn French from a young age in an entertaining and enjoyable way?
Toddlerhood is the perfect age to start learning a new language. Young children do it naturally and effortlessly and, as they have powerful imaginations, they love learning in a fun and playful way.
Learning a new language is also incredibly beneficial for stimulating our children’s brains and improving their creativity, and it also plays an important role in childhood development.
The sensitive period for language development described by Maria Montessori occurs between birth until six years of age, when all children have an absorbent mind. During this period, they are naturally interested in learning the names for everything in their environment, making it the ideal time to easily learn, understand and speak a second language, and expand their vocabulary.
​
The children at French Frogglers will intuitively learn French through songs, simple stories, games, and interacting with a variety of puppets (including star puppet Frogouille!).
They will learn vocabulary about a variety of topics. Each term will introduce a new topic, and learning colours and numbers will be implemented in each and every class.
Your children will always hear the right pronunciation of the vocabulary introduced in the lessons, and as they are excellent imitators, they will acquire a lovely near native French accent.
As all children attend the classes with their carers, you can learn or improve your own French too!
If you are a bilingual family and are keen for your child to have regular language lessons to maintain their knowledge of their family’s native tongue, this is the perfect class for you! Very young children have the incredible ability to absorb and learn several languages at once, without getting confused.
So whether your children are beginners or speak some French already, they can benefit greatly from a class using both English and French, boosting their cognitive development, creativity, confidence and self-esteem.
French Frogglers will develop your children’s taste for learning French, and is a perfect basis for future successful language learning! Learning languages should be fun and effortless – at French Frogglers we focus on both – with the emphasis on fun!
​
“We can help the child’s language development with listening, eye contact, speaking well in his presence, and by providing a stimulating environment, rich in sensorial experiences and in language, providing a wealth of experience, because language is meaningless if it is not based on experience”
Maria Montessori
How does it work ?
FACE-TO-FACE CLASSES FOR UNDER FIVES
Face-to-face classes run Tuesdays (10-10.40am) and Saturdays (10.40-11.20am) for children aged 3 months to 4 years.
Each class lasts 40 minutes with a maximum of 10 children (and their carer).
Fees per term (10 weeks): £70 (one child); £105 (two children).
There is a 50% discount for siblings over 18 months old (at checkout). Siblings under 18 months attend free of charge.
Classes take place at the Ware Arts Centre/Southern Malting (Kibes Lane, Ware SG12 7BS).
​
AFTERSCHOOL FACE-TO-FACE CLASSES FOR OLDER CHILDREN
Afterschool classes run on Tuesday afternoons (4.10-4.50pm) for children aged 4 to 7 years.
Each class lasts 40 minutes with a maximum of 10 children.
Fees per term (10 weeks): £70 (one child); £105 (two children).
There is a 50% discount for siblings (at checkout).
Classes take place at the Ware Arts Centre/Southern Malting (Kibes Lane, Ware SG12 7BS).
​
​
ONLINE CLASSES
Online classes run Fridays 11-11.30am and 4-4.30pm.
Each online class lasts 30 minutes with a maximum of 10 screens/families.
Fees per term (10 weeks): £60 per screen/family
​
All bookings and payments must be made online in advance. Cash payments and PAYG are not accepted.
Each term will focus on one topic and a regular attendance is strongly advised to maintain continuity in the learning process. Each session will reinforce the vocabulary learned in the previous ones, so the more you attend, the more you learn!
About Me
My name is Cathie Little and I am a Montessori trained French teacher, and a native French speaker, with over 15 years' experience in teaching French to children in nursery and primary schools, both in the US and the UK, as well as English in France in a secondary school.
I am also mum to a lovely and lively 7 year old little boy called Marlon.
I have been in the UK since 2002 and live in Ware, Hertfordshire, with my husband and son (and our cat Mousse).
I founded French Frogglers in 2019, and now teach both face-to-face and online classes.
Testimonials
"Very Professional"
"A natural gift for teaching"
Professional recommendations
"We absolutely loved having Cathie come into our setting to teach the little ones French. She has a lovely warm and inviting personality, is able to keep a group of children entranced and has an innate understanding of the individual child's development. We cannot recommend Cathie highly enough!"
St Andrew's Montessori school, London
(where I had the pleasure to teach French for 7 years)
"Cathie, who worked for our club (Le Club Frère Jacques) for 13 years and is now founder of French Frogglers, is that rare find: a teacher with a genuine love and natural gift for teaching languages to young children. The themed lessons are well planned to introduce children to French and develop their language skills. With many puppets, songs, games and tailored activities, her lessons captivate, entertain and teach in equal measure. If you are interested in introducing your child to French, this is the perfect way!"
"Reliable teacher"
Cathie taught our French classes for 9 years and we all were very sad when she left us to have her baby. The children thoroughly enjoyed her classes and she was always looking for new ways to keep them stimulated and engaged. She was reliable, cheerful, warm and enthusiastic and altogether an excellent teacher. I would highly recommend Cathie as a teacher to introduce children to learning French and feel sure that she will do a great job in her new venture running French Frogglers.
Julie Scorah, manager at Le Club Frère Jacques
"Positive start for children"
For many years Cathie, introduced the French language to our children at Ladbroke square Montessori School . She found marvellous ways to inspire, and engage our children with puppets, stories and songs - combined with her gentle, lovely, sense of humour. I would wholeheartedly recommend Cathie to parents wishing for positive start and continued progress for their children with the French language.
"Imaginative and lively"
Cathie Little taught French classes at both my
schools once a week for 12 years, from September 2004 to
March 2016. She was always reliable and cheerful. Her classes were imaginative and lively. The children were very engaged in the lessons and the parents impressed with their progress and knowledge of French. Her delightful personality made her a welcome weekly visitor.
Felicity Marrian, headteacher at Iverna Gardens Montessori School and Victoria Road Montessori School, London
"A perfect way to develop an interest in learning"
"My son absolutely
adores her"
Parents recommendations
"Cathie is just perfect with the little ones, my two boys have so much fun and always look forward to bringing something to show and hear what it is called in French! At home, my eldest has started to ask me what everything he can find is in French, so what a perfect way to develop an interest in learning a new language! Cathie teaches in a way that is so fun for the kids and easy to learn and recap what they have already learnt previously!"
"I take my 3 year old to classes on Tuesdays and he has picked up all the vocab so quickly. I “test” him at home from time to time and i am amazed at how much he has absorbed. Cathie is great with the children and my son absolutely adores her.
It is a great introduction to a second language and I highly recommend the class."
"A great teacher !"
"Help little ones learn french"
"My little girl LOVED storytime in French with all the amazing puppets! Lots of fun and engaging activities to help little ones learn French - we will be back! Thank you Cathie!"
"Imaginative and lively"
"Learning French whilst having fun through songs, games, stories, puppet shows... and with a great teacher...! What's not to like?"
"Imaginative and lively"
"Cathie is just amazing with children . Such a nice way to develop an interest in the French language. Fun, educational, useful and a tool for life. Cathie makes it easy for children to learn :) highly recommended"
"A perfect way to develop an interest in learning"
"My son absolutely
adores her"
Parents recommendations
"Cathie is just perfect with the little ones, my two boys have so much fun and always look forward to bringing something to show and hear what it is called in French! At home, my eldest has started to ask me what everything he can find is in French, so what a perfect way to develop an interest in learning a new language! Cathie teaches in a way that is so fun for the kids and easy to learn and recap what they have already learnt previously!"
"I take my 3 year old to classes on Tuesdays and he has picked up all the vocab so quickly. I “test” him at home from time to time and i am amazed at how much he has absorbed. Cathie is great with the children and my son absolutely adores her.
It is a great introduction to a second language and I highly recommend the class."
"A great teacher !"
"Help little ones learn french"
"Learning French whilst having fun through songs, games, stories, puppet shows... and with a great teacher...! What's not to like?"
"My little girl LOVED storytime in French with all the amazing puppets! Lots of fun and engaging activities to help little ones learn French - we will be back! Thank you Cathie!"
"Fun, educational, useful and a tool
for life"
"Cathie is just amazing with children . Such a nice way to develop an interest in the French language. Fun, educational, useful and a tool for life. Cathie makes it easy for children to learn :) highly recommended"
"Enjoyable for both the children and their parents"
"We love French Frogglers and we highly recommend Cathie's fantastic classes.
Cathie is a very experienced French teacher and it shows! She is passionate, very professional, always positive and creative (with an impressive range of voices for the class puppets!). Her classes are well-structured, fun and enjoyable for both the children and their parents.
As a Franco-British family living in the UK, our children have a good understanding of French but they also show a very strong preference for speaking English. However, after each of Cathie's classes, our little one is always excited to retell us what happened to Toto and Frogouille (the class puppets) IN FRENCH (and over and over so brace yourself!). Hooray!
Merci French Frogglers/Cathie!"
"Fun & instructive"
"I am so happy I went to one of Catherine's French Frogglers lessons before Xmas. I absolutely loved everything about it. The ambiance, the setting but most of all I appreciated Cathie's pedagogy and fun all through her lesson. The way she makes every child (and parent!) feel special and welcome, the way she interacts in French and makes it easy to understand the message in English; the stories she tells (notice, I did not say "read") and the subtle moral at the end (this time it was about accepting differences and being friends); all accompanied by lovely and cute artefacts, soft toys, puppets, relevant objects and songs, coloured pictures and/or a white board. I have myself been a Montessori teacher for many years and I couldn't help but notice the natural way in which Cathie interacts with each child and the group of children; with respect, reverence and a lot of fun. I encourage everyone to try and see for themselves how fun and instructive it can be to learn and speak French with this great and bubbly teacher. Bravo & long life les Frogglers!"
"My daughter is enjoying online classes even more! Thank you Cathie for brightening our lockdown"
My daughter has been attending French Frogglers for over a year and she absolutely loves it. The mix of puppets, songs, stories and interactive games keeps her engaged from start to finish and she has progressed so much with her French since starting. I love how Cathie involves all the children and my daughter is always excited to show Cathie what she has brought to class with her that week and to learn what it is called in French. I wasn't sure my daughter would enjoy the classes as much when they were forced to move online but if anything she is enjoying them even more! Thank you Cathie, not only for helping my daughter immensely with her French but also for brightening our lockdown!