FAQs

Your child is medically covered while traveling in France. Your child’s host family and/or traveling teacher will take your child to the doctor.

Note: This is rare since students are matched using their information files/dossiers. However, in the event that there is a conflict, both the American and French teacher work with the host family try to find a resolution. If a resolution cannot be found, then it is possible that the child would be removed from hosting home and a new host family found.

Overall, no. The only cases in which an additional fee might apply:

• If the airport taxes are more than we anticipated when establishing the program pricing. In the past 20 years, this has happened only 2 times.
• If the traveling teacher and group wants to visit or do an extra fieldtrip that was not included in the French hosting school’s budget. The French and American teachers discuss the calendar of events together to decided what can and cannot be included into the already existing budget. It is the goal of FACEP and La Ligue de l’enseignment not to tack on additional fees.

Your child usually will shadow their French correspondent 1 or 2 days at school, to see what a typical French school day is like. Most of the other days, the Americans are out on educational tours visiting the region they are being hosted in while in France.

If a child’s behavior warrants, the child could be sent back to the USA before the rest of the group at his/her parent’s expense.

You will attend parent meetings leading up to the hosting. These meetings are meant to help prepare you, your child and family to host.

You will correspond with the child’s family in France via email or some other type of social media. You do not need to speak French in order to participate.

While the French child is here, treat and care for the child as if he/she are a member of your family. Ensure the child has food, clean clothes and a safe, clean place to sleep. You must also ensure that there will be adult supervision at all times. This could be you personally or another adult that you trust your own children’s well-being with when you are absent.

You will attend meetings leading up to your child’s travel. These meetings are meant to help prepare you and your child for his/her trip to France.

No. Due to new laws about traveling with minors, you cannot take your French child to Canada or to another country.

Yes, provided that the child’s French family, traveling French teacher and the American hosting teacher have all consented to this travel

Contact the American teacher running the school for your program. With the help of the French teacher, they will help guide you and the child through the situation.

Play board games, video games, watch movies (with subtitles), visit local attractions in your area

You call the American teacher/adult running the program for your school. These adults are on call 24/7 while the French are here.

No. You do not need to speak French in order for you and your family to participate in the program.

If your child is hosting a French child of the same gender, they are allowed to share the same bedroom.

If your child is hosting a French child of the opposite gender, then the French child must either have his/her own room or may share a room with a brother or sister who is of the same gender.

In both cases, the French child should however, have his/her own bed to sleep in.

Picture books or calendars from your region or on the USA.

T-shirts from your local school, universities, sport teams, etc.

Local foods such as candy, chips, jams, etc.

All student participating in the program as traveling students will need to fill out a medical history document and have his/her doctor sign off on the information. This will help ensure that the necessary precautions for a student traveling with special medical needs can be put into place.

On the information dossier that each child is required to fill out, there is a section for students to comment about foods they like or dislike. However, It is important that students be encourage to try different foods if he/she does not have food allergies. Part of an exchange program is experiencing different foods.

We encourage student to pack an extra pair of underwear, t-shirt and toothbrush in case luggage is lost or delayed. Fortunately, we have never had luggage get lost. We have had luggage arrive 24 hours after the student’s arrival in the country. In the event that luggage is lost, the travel teacher working with the hosting French teacher and French family will help organize taking the student shopping to replace the necessities.

1. If your child has never been away from home for an extended period of time, it might be good to organize a long weekend for the child to stay with family or friends of the family with little to no contact with you.
2. The meetings organized by the traveling teacher(s)/adult(s) are meant to help prepare students to deal with the cultural differences that he/she will experience while in France. It is of utmost importance that your child attend these meetings.

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