Who do you work with?

I am an early literacy specialist! This means I work with students K-3. My passion is French Immersion, and I help students get the foundation they need to succeed in this program.

I also work directly with parents to give them the tools they need to support their child in French at home - no previous knowledge of French necessary.

In select cases, I also work with children with no French experience and develop a custom program to meet their language learning goals.

What can I do to help my child if I don't speak French?

It can be difficult for parents to sit on the sidelines, especially if they see their child struggling in French. I've also noticed that other than hiring a French tutor, parents do not have many resources available to them if they don't know French themselves.

I am currently developing a course to support parents who want more tools for supporting their child in French Immersion.

I also currently work with a few parents 1-1 to teach them what they need to know to meaningfully support their child in French.

When is your next live parent workshop?

The next workshop is coming up soon and runs July 6-8, 2021! It is completely free as a resource for parents who want to know more about supporting their child in French.

I teach parent workshops to take families from knowing no French to being able to read decodable French sentences. I also take the guesswork out of your home routine, and provide you with the materials, worksheets, and games that will help your child progress in their decoding skills.

I submitted the form above. Now what?

You will receive an email, setting up a time for us to speak to learn more about your/your child's language goals, and answer any questions you might have. If you have any trouble contact us at [email protected]

A B O U T     Y O U R    T U T O R 

​My name is Nicole Balston, and I am a BC certified K-12 French Immersion teacher. I have been working in Abbotsford, B.C. since 2016 and have been tutoring privately since 2011. I am passionate about French language acquisition, and enjoy the early years to teach phonological awareness and concrete strategies for supporting literacy! 

I made the decision to pursue online tutoring full-time this year to help families navigate their unique circumstances in this atypical year and gain the support they need. French Immersion is a such a unique program; it is amazing what students can accomplish in their second (or third!) language. My speciality is running enhanced small-groups that allow students in Kindergarten, grade 1 and 2 to obtain grade-level expectations for reading and literacy. 

I work with students - but did you know that I work with parents, too?! I am passionate about giving parents concrete strategies to support French Immersion...even if they don't know French themselves! Working with parents is incredibly powerful as it develops a toolbox of skills for the family to continue to use. The more I do with work, the more I see its amazing, powerful impact. 

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