MIS third and fourth graders are learning French as a part of the Marion School District One World Language and Cultural Diversity Studies Program.

Emilie LeGoff (known to the students as Mademoiselle Le Goff) is a second year teacher who graduated from Francis Marion University with a Bachelor’s Degree in French and further completed a program of study at the Universite de Caen, in Normandie Basse.

LeGoff, a native of France, provides direct French instruction to all third and fourth grade students utilizing the state-approved, “Kids Interacting Through Early Language Learning” (KITE-LL) program.

Students receive daily lessons through live and video formats. The lessons reinforce SC academic standards and provide cultural enrichment through rhymes, songs, and stories. Students are transported to the French culture through technology and hands-on learning activities.

The program is part of the district’s Vision 2020 plan designed to target language skills and encourage an appreciation for cultural diversity.

French Immigration Minister Eric Besson announced plans earlier this year to dismantle the infamous Calais camp. Last Wednesday, he said it would be gone by the end of the following week.

“This is a lawless zone and a logistical base for smugglers,” Besson said on French TV. “We say that no one will be getting across the Channel from Calais.”

Some migrants refuse to believe their risky, and costly, journeys to France were for naught. They hope that Britain or France will have a change of heart and take them in, or that the destruction will simply be called off.

“We are afraid, we are scared. But this is better than other places,” said another Afghan, Mohammad Bashir, 24, who claimed he had been held last year by the Taliban but escaped.

Scores of makeshift tents built from sticks and sheets of plastic sprout from the sand and brush in the camp. Piles of garbage litter the scrubland.  The French immigration minister has promised to offer options to migrants. If they leave voluntarily, they can get a stipend. If they meet the profile, they can demand asylum in France. Otherwise, they are to be expelled.

The migrants try to elude the elaborate border security network, complete with heat sensors and infrared cameras, at the port and the Channel tunnel that carries the Eurostar trains and other undersea traffic. Nearly a decade ago, many thousands made it across by hopping a ride to Britain. Today only a few make it, but enough to sustain hope.

French authorities have not said when they will move in, but a half-dozen border police exiting the camp Saturday said they had been counting heads.

Some 800 migrants were in the main camp as of June, officials say. However, the number has since dwindled to about 300, leading to speculation that border police have been turning a blind eye to illegal crossings to make it easier to clear out the jungle.

“Even if the jungle is shut down tomorrow, migrants will continue to arrive,” said Jacky Verhaegen of aid group Secours Catholique. “Migrants are already en route, in Greece, in Italy, in Turkey. I don’t think they’ll stop in their tracks. Their goal is Britain.”

Philippe Blet, president of the Calais region, said, “We are in a surrealistic and incomprehensible situation.”

He criticized a 2004 accord signed by President Nicolas Sarkozy, then interior minister, which authorized deployment of British immigration officers in Calais and Dunkirk.

“Today, the British border is effectively in Calais,” Blet said.

This year, the festival will run for four months during which time Ambassador Elisabeth Laurin assures that everyone will be treated to some spectacular, world-class French talent.

“To know about a country you have to know its people, its history, its sentiments,” said Laurin. “One of the best ways to do that is through a country’s arts.”

Before coming to Korea a few weeks ago, Laurin was curious to know more about Korea, not its political situation which she can easily find out through the media and the French foreign ministry, but about its people and culture.

She did not have to go far in Paris to find a wealth of Korean culture. The future ambassador to Korea at the time not only discovered traditional performances but also more avant-garde or contemporary Korean art such as innovative design, films and literature. As well, there has been a big surge in recent years to translate Korean literature into French, thus bringing a whole new world to France.

Laure Coudret-Laut, cultural counselor and director of the French Cultural Center explained that there will be more than 40 events at this year’s FranceExpress.

The festival will run between September and December and will offer musical performances, exhibitions, theatrical works and films.

“We will have more theater this year than in the past,” said Coudret-Laut. “In total, 200 French artists will come to Korea for this festival.”

To give the festival a Korean touch, actress Kim A-joong was appointed as the goodwill ambassador for FranceExpress 2009.

The festival will begin with a series of events called “Platform Seoul” with art exhibitions showcasing the works of Christian Boltanski, Vincent Ganivet, Alain Declercq, Elise Florenty and Thu Van Tran. These exhibitions will be shown at the Kimusa, which is the building that formerly housed the Defense Security Command.

A tribute exhibition dedicated to designer and architect Jean Prouve will take place at the Daelim Contemporary Art Museum from Friday until Nov. 29.

If that isn’t enough French art, then check out the Georges Rouault exhibition which will showcase 160 of his works from the collections of Paris’ renowned Centre Georges Pompidou. The exhibition will run from Dec. 16 until March 28 at the Hangaram Museum.

No festival celebrating French culture would be complete without a film festival, and the embassy has lined up eight different film events.

One highlight of the film aspect of FranceExpress will be the French film night at the Pusan International Film Festival in October.

Domenech’s side have been the architects of their own downfall with another sub-standard display resulting in a 1-1 draw against Romania at the Stade de France on Saturday. The spirit in the camp has not been helped by revelations this morning of a pre-match row involving Domenech and his players, led by Thierry Henry.

Le Parisien reported Domenech tried to spark a reaction from his players before the Romania game by questioning their hunger. Henry is believed to have responded on behalf of the squad by stating the players were uninspired by training sessions before adding: “I have been in the France team for 12 years and never have I been in this situation. We do not know how to play, where to go, there is no organisation. There is no style, no guidance and no identity.”

The French Football Federation (FFF) insists there is “no urgency” to speak about the matter but the incident is sure to create further questions about Domenech’s position, which could become untenable anyway should the team not qualify.

Despite the French camp seemingly in disarray, Serbia’s defender Nemanja Vidic claims the visitors are still favourites to claim all three points. The Manchester United centre-half told L’Equipe that being four points ahead of France “does not change anything”.

“We will play against a very good team,” he said. “But the French are under pressure to get a result. After this game we still have to play Romania. Nothing is settled in this group.”

“His influence is massive,” says David Chang, a celebrity chef in his own right who will cook with Bras and other food-scene superstars over two days of events starting Sept. 12. “What he planted seeds for was a culinary revolution.”

Bras, 62, grew up in the French village of Laguiole in the remote Aubrac mountains of south central France. His parents ran a restaurant and inn, which he took over and turned into a world-class destination that earned three Michelin stars in 1999. He now runs it with his son.

Unlike most of the greats in his field, Bras never apprenticed with a master chef. He learned how to cook from his mother, who is seen in a 2008 documentary about Bras decked out in makeup, jewelry and dressy clothes, working alongside her son in the restaurant’s gleaming stainless steel kitchen.

If you didn’t know Bras was a professional cook and just listened to his musings in the film, which will be screened at the festival, you might mistake him for an artist, a poet, a mystic or a philosopher.

In the documentary, Bras describes how he spent two years searching for just the right ingredients and techniques for a recipe that could capture the wonder he felt observing the clouds moving across the landscape in the hills around his village.

The A-lister power duo will spend a further £10 million to add jacuzzis, steam rooms and a motorbike track among other contemporary renovations to the 35-bedroom compound in southern France.

Chateau Miraval is set on a 405-hectare estate in Provence and is described by an agent as the “love nest of all love nests”. But its main virtue to the Pitts is more practical.

“We’re trying to spend more time in the South of France, because our kids have a more normal life there,” Pitt, 45, said earlier.

The couple recently flew to the French site to inspect renovations. Pitt, however, admitted he is still working on his French. The pair applied to local government to have their renovations, which include high-level security measures, approved.

Jean-Claude Sadion, mayor of nearby Correns, said: “The application has been received for widespread work on their new house, and we are delighted that they will be here more permanently. They are a wonderful couple with beautiful children and we will hold a civic reception to honor them.”

Celeb neighbors include Bono, The Edge, Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis.

Spotting the impressive-looking “hotel de ville”, the tourist popped in to use the toilet before trying to check in.  But as she was in the convenience, officials finished a meeting, left the town hall and locked its door.

The solitary traveller, said to be in her 30s, ended up with the inconvenience of spending the night on chairs in the building’s lobby.

‘Je suis fermer ici’

The woman tried calling for help and switching the town hall lights on and off to attract attention.  But her plight went unnoticed until Saturday morning when a passer-by noticed a message she posted on the inside of one of the building’s glass doors.

The note said ‘Je suis fermer ici. Est ce possible moi la porte ouvrir?’ (I am to close here. Is it possible me the door to open?).

“The woman did not speak very much French, but she did make it clear that the next night she would find a proper hotel to sleep in,” the Mayor of the French town said.

Dannemarie is a small town of some 2,500 people near the Swiss and German borders, but the nearest open hotel is in the neighbouring town, said the mayor.

Deneuve, 65, and Italian actor Michele Placido performed a reading in French and Italian at the cultural festival in Marina di Pietrasanta, Tuscany, which was greeted by whistles and boos.

Police had to intervene to calm down about 200 people shouting, “Thieves. We want our money back,”. Organizers responded by offering free tickets to another show at the La Versiliana festival as compensation.

Deneuve declined to comment, while Placido, who also is a director, downplayed Wednesday’s incident.

“These things happen,” he told SkyTg24 TV channel. Placido also suggested it might have been “a mistake” to have Deneuve read her part in French without subtitles.

The two actors performed a reading from George Perec’s book “Je me souviens” (I Remember) — a recollection of memories from postwar decades accompanied by music.

Deneuve was nominated for an Oscar for her role in 1992′s “Indochine.”

François Lafitte, leader of Fédécom, the fruit and vegetable producers’ union, said paying back the €330m given to farmers between 1992 and 2002 would bankrupt them.

“Nobody will pay these subsidies,” he said. “Firstly, because the amounts put forward by Brussels don’t add up. Secondly, because it would spell ruin for the industry.”

Mr Lafitte said the subsidies had helped fruit and vegetable producers “face up to competition” from Spain and Portugal.

Between 1992 and 2002, the French state agricultural agency awarded over €330m in grants to help farmers struggling from a crisis of oversupply of French products in the European market. The money was meant to help farmers lower their prices and find temporary storage for surplus harvest.

In January, the Commission ruled that the subsidies were unlawful and likely to distort competition in the European market. France was ordered to reclaim the original subsidies plus interest.

Mr Le Maire’s predecessor, Michel Barnier, launched an appeal at the European court of justice in April to reduce the amount claimed by Brussels. While the exact figure has yet to be agreed, the new agricultural minister believes the process of reimbursement should begin regardless, warning that if the appeal were lost, France would have to pay even more than the €330m plus interest of €100m-€150m that has so far been invoiced.

The calls for repayment come at a difficult time for French farmers, with prices for fruit and vegetables 30-40 per cent lower than the weekly average of the past five years, according to Modef, the farmers’ union.

This is not the first time France has been rapped by Brussels for illegal subsidies. In 2002, the European court ruled that France had given illegal financial aid to cognac producers. France admitted the subsidies had been against European law but remains mired in a battle with the cognac producers to reclaim the funds. In both cases, if the subsidies are not paid back, Brussels can order France to pay a fine and daily penalties

The striking workers at the New Fabris plant in Chatellerault voted to remove the gas cannisters they’d placed throughout the factory and wired with detonators. The remains of burned-out production machinery will stay, for now.

Reps from the CGT union are to meet tomorrow with French Industry Minister Christian Estrosi to discuss their demands for severance pay from the bankrupt New Fabris. Estrosi had sensibly insisted that threats to destroy the factory end before he would agree to talks.

But the drama is far from over. “The canisters are being stored and kept under surveillance, and they can be re-installed at any time,” CGT union Christian Paupineau, a delegate of the CGT union, warned.

In June, workers at Raquet, another French parts company, took three executives hostage to protest layoffs. The managers were released after officials agreed to negotiations. And hostages have been seized during other labor disputes in France as well.

Still, the French protests haven’t seen anything like the level of violence that flared when 900 workers at bankrupt South Korean automaker Ssanyong occupied a building. That dispute sent 70 people to the hospital.