I am opening a French language school for adults in Sweden. The courses will be on beginner and intermediate level. The concept that makes us...

You might begin with a lecture/discussion on how foods get their names. Think, for example, of how animals have English names (cow, pig, sheep, etc.) but the food made from those animals have French names (beef, pork, mutton, etc.); this occurred because of the Norman Invasion – the ruling aristocracy was French, but the serving classes were Anglo-Saxon. As a result, the servants had to learn the French words in order to obey the commands...

You might begin with a lecture/discussion on how foods get their names. Think, for example, of how animals have English names (cow, pig, sheep, etc.) but the food made from those animals have French names (beef, pork, mutton, etc.); this occurred because of the Norman Invasion – the ruling aristocracy was French, but the serving classes were Anglo-Saxon. As a result, the servants had to learn the French words in order to obey the commands to the kitchen staff from the rulers – boeuf, porque, mouton, etc. Expand this discussion into a study of how French foods are named, what pate di fois gras  or brulee means, where fondue gets its name, etc. You might ask the class to translate a menu from a good French restaurant into English, with appropriate sampling of the food itself. Then you can ask the class to give French names to American and British cuisine, thereby building their vocabulary. Finally you can have taste tests (perhaps at a French restaurant in Sweden) and tell the students to write their reviews in French: magnifique, terrible, etc. (salty, mellow, too much, too little, “I would go back,” etc.). And don’t forget French wines (a lesson on regions and how regions give wines their names).