Meet Our French Teachers: Deborah Steenhout and Isabelle West

In this next segment of L’Alliance New York’s running “Meet Our Teachers” series, we’re highlighting two incredible educators at L’Alliance’s Montclair campus, teachers Deborah Steenhout and Isabelle West. 

What’s your background with the French language and how did you arrive at teaching French?

Deborah: I am from the French-speaking part of Belgium. After translation studies, I became a French teacher on the NATO base near my hometown. I developed a passion for teaching French among an international community and was able to continue once I moved to New Jersey.

Isabelle: I taught French and English for more than 10 years in a bilingual school, starting with an after-school program for elementary schoolers and later moving on to teaching pre-k. Currently, as a mother in the U.S., I have plenty of experience maintaining the French language within my family.

What French classes do you teach at L’Alliance New York’s Montclair campus?

Deborah: I teach all levels, from the à petits pas program for toddlers to adult classes. I am particularly fond of teaching the basic levels of French, whether to adults or children, as I enjoy sparking the love for the French language and culture in beginners.

Isabelle: I used to teach à petits pas and now I teach pre-k.

What do you love about the town of Montclair?

Deborah: Montclair is a beautiful town with a very active French community. I love the French bakeries throughout the town as well as the selection of international food. It’s also a very laid back place where people take the time to enjoy life.

Isabelle: It’s a lively place to live with many options for restaurants, coffee bars, and stores—it also has a French bakery and a French  pastry shop on the same street! It offers many cultural events, and I also like the residential part of the town and the fact that you can reach the city by train.

What’s your favorite thing about being a French teacher at L’Alliance? 

Deborah: The opportunity to meet people from a wide range of ages, backgrounds, professions, and cultures. 

Isabelle: The size of the classes allows me to individualize my teaching according to the needs of my students. It’s a little island of French culture and lifestyle in New Jersey!

What sets L’Alliance apart from other language schools?

Deborah: The sense of community, a welcoming and nurturing atmosphere throughout the school, and a real love for French language and culture.

Isabelle: Total immersion, access to French cultural events and materials, and creating a sense of belonging in class.

What’s a favorite breakthrough moment you’ve witnessed from a student?

Deborah: I used to teach a particularly opinionated five-year-old girl who refused to speak French despite her dad being French and speaking French to her since she was born. For about six months, she stubbornly spoke English to me even if she understood what we were doing in French. One day, for no obvious reason, she said one word in French. You can imagine how happy I was! That same day she won a game answering with all the correct words…in French. From that day forward, she only spoke French in class. 

Isabelle: When a student starts to joke or play a game, in French!

What’s your favorite French word or phrase, and why?

Deborah: My favorite French word is actually a belgicisme—which means a French word that only exists in Belgium. That word is essuie, which refers to a towel—a dish towel, a bath towel, or paper towel, and it literally means “to dry.” In French from France, they use three different words for this word, isn’t that fascinating?

Isabelle: Flâner, which means “walking without a goal”—it’s a word that inspires with a sense of liberty and happiness. 

What’s your favorite French-speaking location to visit, and why?

Deborah: Belgium, of course!

Isabelle: Any region from the south or southwest of France, where there is an extra touch of music, sea spray, and sun in the langage.

Some rapid-fire favorites—what is your favorite French… Food? Film? Book? Musician? Artist?

Deborah: Food: mussels and fries are my favorite Belgian dish, and foie gras is my favorite French dish. Film: Rien a declarer directed by Danny Boon. It’s a Franco-Belgian movie about the border between the two countries that highlights the cultural differences, it’s very funny. Book: Stupeurs et Tremblements by Amélie Nothomb is my favorite Belgian book; my favorite French read is L’etranger by Albert Camus. Musician: from Belgium, Stromae; from France, L.E.J. Artist: From Belgium, René Magritte; from France, Marc Chagall.

Isabelle: Food: Les endives au gratin, les chipirons à la basquaise, and les rousquilles. Films: Le fabuleux destin d’Amélie Poulain directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Les petits mouchoirs directed by Guillaume Canet. Books: La tresse by Laetitia Colombani and L’élégance du hérisson by Muriel Barbery. Musicians: Vincent Delerm, Francis Cabrel, and Angelique Kidjo.

Until our next installment of Meet Our French Teachers, you can learn more about our educators and browse our French classes. Questions? This FAQ page should answer them, or you can call us in Manhattan at 212-355-6100 or Montclair at 973-783-0507.