Bonjour! Get to Know Madame Johansson

By: Liliana Madrigal

With the retirement of Madame Newman last year, Madame Johansson has stepped into her place. A new addition to our campus, Madame Johansson has enjoyed her first 2 and some months of teaching french-learning Rangers.

Madame Johansson was born in France, specifically the Alps and then moved to the northern part of Paris. She then moved to California at the age of 15. From her parents having a flower business, she was able to learn the language fluently before moving. 

She then went to college in Ashland, OR, originally planning to major in graphic design, but decided to switch her major to the French language. 

Johansson shares what led her to teaching the language, “I honestly just fell into it! I never imagined teaching because I have a bad fear of public speaking…[In college] I started tutoring in the language lab and really loved that job. From there, I did the TAPIF (Teaching Assistant Program in France) program, and kept going with various teaching jobs in the US. In 2022 I decided to get my credential to feel more official.”

Before getting her credential, she was tutoring after graduating college in France and after that, she “lived in Portland, OR, for five years and taught so many different people there: the youngest was a 6 month old little girl and the oldest was an 82 year old woman!” 

Before hearing about the job position, she had developed a friendship with another French teacher in Visalia while acquiring her credential. After unfortunately losing her job in the French program at her old high school, she began working at a boutique, she says, “I didn’t like it, so after my first day there, I got on a teacher job search and saw the French teacher position at Redwood HS got posted that same exact day, so I applied right away.” 

Once Madame Johansson was introduced to Redwood, she was interested to find “the diversity of classes that are offered. “My previous school was very small, under 250 students and 15 teachers,” she says, “so we didn’t have a lot of different classes.” 

She enjoys teaching at Redwood because of “how supportive administrators and the other teachers are here,” she says. 

It’s always nice to have a supportive community and especially when working with experienced teachers who’ve been here longer! 

When asked about her favorite part of teaching, she says, “It’s definitely getting to know the students and forming little communities within my classroom. I also like creating lessons and activities. I always try to think of the best activities that let students express themselves! Seeing the students progress, whether it’s with speaking, writing, or reading is always good too.” 

Madame Johansson strives to create a fun environment for her students. She wants all her students to feel comfortable and be as creative as they can be in her class. She also attempts to make the environment comfortable for herself too. 

She’s also enjoying teaching her new students. She says, “I started in late October, so I wasn’t sure where students were at, but I’ve been really happy with what they can do and how they sound.” 

French is not an easy language to learn. Madame Johansson goes on to say that she was happily surprised when she heard how well her students speak the language. She hopes to grow their skills to the absolute best they can be! 

Madame Johansson talks about her most challenging part of teaching. She says, “giving students enough opportunities to actually speak French. With very big classes, the students can’t get a lot of in-depth practice with me.” 

When asked what is the most important thing she’s learned throughout her years of tutoring and teaching, she says, “I have learned that students who are in a supportive, relaxed, and fun environment are more likely to want to participate in a world language class!” 

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