Le Petit Cours du Rocher

Le Petit Cours du Rocher is a small bilingual French-English nursery and primary in the 8th arrondissement, founded in 1953. Two sites near Gare Saint-Lazare, ages 2 to 11, capped class sizes around 20.

Teaching is split 50-50 in French and English, with native-speaker teachers in both languages, blending the French national curriculum with elements of the British curriculum. Children come from 26 nationalities. Director Clémence Caux took over in 2002 after twenty years teaching internationally and grew the immersive bilingual programme. The school runs a FabLab Engineering for Kids strand at preschool and primary, unusual at this age.

Parents describe excellent and patient teachers, real bilingual progression, and a small nurturing community. The capped class sizes and individual attention come up repeatedly. The trade-off is the lack of a secondary pathway, so families plan their next school move from CM2. Best fit for families with young children who want a small traditional bilingual primary in central Paris and are happy to switch schools at age 11.