French with Flo

Here is, with my apologies for the delay, the rest of the class activities we did during the Summer 2021 online class. I. Grammar: the verb "manquer" I couldn't very well end the Summer session without at least one grammar lesson! A student asked me about the verb "manquer", so I seized this opportunity to take a deep dive into the various meanings and constructions of this weird French verb.  Here's the lesson and exercises (+answers) .  If you want more examples and explanations, here are a few resources I found: https://french.kwiziq.com/revision/grammar/manquer-de-thing-to-miss-lack-something https://www.frenchtoday.com/blog/french-grammar/i-miss-you-in-french/ https://www.lawlessfrench.com/grammar/manquer-lesson/    (Note: this last webpage is pretty good, but be careful, there's one mistake! The author translates "manquer de + verb" into "to fail to do something". Not quite! It actually means "to almost do something". ...

 France is a very diverse country. Each region has its own geography, landmarks, culture, characteristic landscapes, and even its own language in some cases. To complicate things, the administrative entities known as régions were re-arranged in 2016. The new map is supposed to be simpler, but personally, I'm still getting a bit confused! I guess it will take some time getting used to it... Here are a few activities to discover French geography and famous landmarks. Geography exercise :  La France, tu connais?  (document created by  FranRC91  at ISLCollective). In this exercise, you'll have to identify France's main rivers and mountain ranges, and associate cities, regions and pictures. Here's the answer key . [Beginner] French landmarks and regional features , based on the map from the exercise above. We started in class to identify and explain the numerous illustrations appearing on the map. This is an ongoing, collective effort. Here's the list (in progress)...

You already know that the French take gastronomy very seriously, but even so, cheese occupies a special place in our hearts and on our tables. No meal is complete without a piece of cheese. A lot of restaurants even offer lunch menus ending with "fromage ou dessert" (either cheese or dessert). I wonder if many people outside of France would consider that a piece of cheese is an acceptable alternative to a slice of gâteau au chocolat or a crème brûlée ... How many French cheeses are there? Hard to tell, but it might be in the thousands, according to this article . In the following activities, you'll get acquainted with a few of the most popular ones. Crossword exercise: Lexique des fromages de France (document created by dodeuil at ISLCollective . Includes answer sheet.) Quiz des fromages français , with answer sheet (based on this document .) Similar to wine, cheese is more than a food: it's a way of life, connected to many traditions and customs.  For example, do ...

La Chandeleur (Candlemas), on February 2nd, is a very popular Holiday in France. The main reason? You've guessed it, food, once again! More precisely, in this case, crêpes. Candlemas is a religious Holiday (it celebrates the presentation of Jesus at the Temple) and it's also based on older, Roman and Celtic traditions, but to everybody in France, it's mostly known as Crêpes Day . If you want to know more about la Chandeleur and its origins, you can check the videos we watched last year on my previous Chandeleur blogpost . (Note: for the second video, you can find a transcript at the end of the handout.) Since we didn't have time to talk much about crêpes last year, I decided to focus on them this year. The following video explains how to make a very famous recipe: the Crêpes Suzette , which are cooked in citrus sauce and flambéed. The chef in the video uses lemons, but more traditional versions call for oranges, or sometimes tangerines. The alcohol used can be coin...

          1. Happy new year ! Since, in France, it is acceptable to offer New Year wishes until the end of January , I'm still on time! All joking aside, here is what we did for the first class of the year 2020 : Bonnes Résolutions  I made this handout using images and descriptions from documents found at ISLCollective (created by  silvialefevre , freedombird and sylviepieddaignel ). The first page of the handout presents a list of possible New Year resolutions. The second one has images that relate to the resolution list.  Working in pairs, the students asked each-other, about each image, if they wanted or were going to make that resolution. We ended the class by sharing our favorite resolutions, which I found very inspiring!           2. Who Am I? Famous Names in French History I found this series of portraits and quick descriptions of well-known characters in French History on the blog " La cla...

Today we watched "Cliché !", a wonderful little animation film, created by Cedric Villain, that collects many of the stereotypes about the French. Enjoy! (Click on the "settings" icon at the bottom right of the screen to select the French or English subtitles.) The questions about the movie I handed out in class were created by Coralie Maurin at Oh mon FLE! As for the transcript , it comes from the Version FLE blog. Are the clichés mostly true? Mostly false? Where do they come from? What's a cliché, anyways? And why is the movie so funny? We'll continue the discussion next week...

Music Day , la fête de la musique , is celebrated on June 21st, the longest day of the year and the first day of Summer. In this video by FrenchPod101.com , Ingrid tells us everything about this special Holiday: In class, we also studied the text " La fête de la musique " (with audio version) from Podcast Français Facile . I reformatted their pdf to create the class handout , which includes a fill-in-the-blanks exercise, vocabulary notes and comprehension questions. We also took this opportunity to study a song in class: "Parce qu'on vient de loin" ("Because we Come from Far Away") by singer-songwriter Corneille . Here is the official music clip: Here are the chords with guitar tabs I used for the class handout . You can also find here the French lyrics with English translation. In order to fully understand this song, it is necessary to know the singer's story. Corneille grew up in Rwanda. At 17, his whole family w...

Since last week's class fell on May 1st, I had of course to talk about the premier mai  Holiday in France. We studied the French Labor Day last year in this post (with a text and a video - check it out if you missed it last time), so this year I thought I'd focus on another May 1st custom : the sprigs of lily of the valley French people gift each-other to bring good luck. Here is my class handout  about the muguet du premier mai , adapted from the website momes.net . I slightly modified their text and quiz and I added a vocabulary list.

Tentez votre chance ! ( Try your luck! ) Today we are talking about the loto . When people in France talk about jouer au loto , they can mean two things : either the National Lottery , which is drawn every night or so on TV ( here's a random example ), or a more traditional game that resemble the American bingo. The latter is also called loto traditionnel , quine or loto bingo , depending on your region. (I'm from the South-East and I've always called it "loto".)  Organizing loto evenings is a great way for associations, towns and villages to raise money. They can take place year-round, but they are particularly frequent around Christmas. The prizes are usually donated by local businesses. Here is a TV news report about one of those events in the town of Saint-Sauveur, in the South-West of France: I handed out in class a transcript of the video , with accompanying vocabulary. Each one of the cards used to play loto is called un carton . Y...

" Poisson d'avril ! " That's what you'll hear in France, on April 1st, after a friend tries to make you believe a tall tale or a little kid sticks a paper fish on your back. OK, that's April's Fool, but why a fish?? You'll find the explanations you need, in English,  on this webpage . You'll find on this other page , shown in class, another quick explanation, as well as the RATP's (that's the company that operates the Parisian subway) 2017 joke: they added big stickers around stations' names to form puns. The puns are explained in English. Scrolling down the page, you'll also find some useful vocabulary about April's Fool and joking in general, and a funny video at the bottom of the page. As for a selection of poissons d'avril for 2019, here it is ! The RATP strikes again this year by giving subway travelers an opportunity to send prank selfies to their friends and pretend that they took a plane to an exotic destinat...

During last class, we celebrated (a bit late) International Women's Day. Here is the exercise sheet accompanying the video, with a fill-in-the-blank exercise and comprehension questions. On the last page of this document, you'll find the video transcript with English translation . You might also like these web-based exercises, proposed by TV5Monde: - Women in the workplace (a series of 4 exercices, beginner to intermediate level) - Droits des Femmes: à quand l'égalité?  (other series of 4 exercices, intermediate to advanced level) - Quiz: la Journée de la Femme (also advanced level, but no listening involved so it seems easier 😉)

Here we are with two (hopefully) fun classes dedicated to food in France (a topic of national importance), and more specifically to the different meals of the day. "Un  repas de noces à Yport" (détail), Albert Fourié, 1886 Our first link is a text with audio version from Podcast Français Facile: Les repas . The class handout  (created by  BEZOYA15  at  ISLcollective ) includes an exercise based on the audio document above, as well as the transcript and questions that can be found on the Podcast Français Facile page. The next handout  (created by mariaf at ISLcollective ) is a series of crosswords and exercises aimed at practicing vocabulary around food and learning how to describe what you eat as well as your likes and dislikes. It's also a good opportunity to review the use of the definite/indefinite/partitive articles when talking about food. (Document created by arliette at  ISLcollective .) And finally, here's a video ab...

On February 2nd, the French celebrate  la Chandeleur (Candlemas in English). For Catholics, this Holiday commemorates Jesus' presentation at the temple, but it also corresponds to very old folk rites celebrating the beginning of Winter sowing and the lengthening of daylight. But first of all, for everyone in France, la Chandeleur is Crepes Day ! This video, produced by FrenchPod101.com , explains what you need to know about this Holiday, with both French and English subtitles. We also practiced listening with the next video, aimed at young French speakers. The class handout  that goes with this second video includes Chandeleur-related vocabulary, as well as a fill-in-the-blank exercise and comprehension questions. Finally, after talking about crepes so much, you may feel a bit hungry.  If that's the case, here's the Crepes Recipe ! With pictures and in French, of course... (document created by crisbarto at ISLCollective .)

Using properly the casual address "tu" or the formal address "vous" is very important when you speak French. Use "vous" at the wrong time and you'll sound strange and overly formal ; use "tu" wrongly and you might very well offend the person you're talking to... which is what happened to Boris, a young French learner, in the video above. Poor Boris, he learned the hard way! This text comes from the book "Je vis en France : vingt lectures faciles pour découvrir la civilisation française" by Marie Barthe and Bernadette Chovelon. Here is the class handout (slightly reformatted from the original.) There are many, many resources on the Internet about this topic. Here is one I like:

As we've seen, feasting takes a prominent place in Christmas and end-of-year celebrations in France. So, after all these excesses, in early January, what do French people do? They eat cake! 😂 The "fête des Rois", or Épiphanie, is a popular holiday for French people, no matter their religion (or absence thereof.) The video shown in class, from FrenchPod101.com, gives a very good overview of the subject. Our first handout this week was a crossword puzzle with accompanying vocabulary (adapted from this webpage .) We also worked on a fill-in-the-blanks exercise . You can find here the audio document the exercise above is based on. Scroll up and click on the first video to hear the text. Just under the video is a multiple-choice exercise you may find entertaining, and a little below is the full transcript of the text. And, by the way, how do you make this famous galette des Rois? Well, apparently, it's child's play. Enjoy! 😋

As we end 2018, here are some handouts and links that, for some reason (such as me being absolutely terrible with anything having to do with the Internet) never made it to the blog after I taught the corresponding class. This is material we studied between June and September 2018. Hopefully, posting this, even late, will be useful for returning and new students alike.       Texts / Dialogues La fête des voisins: Neighbors Day      1. Text and exercises:  Voisins, voisines      2. Learn more about France's Neighbors Day  here Booking a Table      1. Dialogue:  Réserver une table au restaurant      2.  Dialogue in pictures  (both documents created by  carolebim  at  Tes )       Exercises Crosswords to Practice the Present Tense      1. Mots Croisés:  présent des vacances  (created by  dodeuil  at ISLC...

For our last class of the year, here is a series of Christmas-related links and resources.  I hope you'll find them interesting and entertaining.  🎄 Joyeux Noël à tous, et à l'année prochaine ! 🎄 Here is the first video we watched in class, explaining how Noël is celebrated in France.  The video is in French, with both French and English subtitles. It is produced by FrenchPod101.com. The second video we watched comes from a language school in Germany. This one is only in French (with a little bit of German.) But don't worry, it's not difficult ! Clic Here  for the class handout that includes questions about the video, as well as a full transcript. I also recommend the following videos: Christmas in France: So. Much. Food! (video in English) Easy French: Noël in France (Interviewing French people about Christmas. A great way to hear the way regular people talk. In French with both French and English subtitles.) Easy Fren...

On July 14th , the French celebrate the " Fête Nationale ," the French National Holiday. If you'd like to learn more about this Holiday and how we celebrate it in France, I recommend you check out  this page .  (In English, with French vocabulary and short texts.) One element of the celebrations is the French National Anthem, which is called " La Marseillaise ". So why, then,  is this blogpost's title " Les Marseillaises "? There is only one official " Marseillaise ," composed during the war that followed the French Revolution, but over the decades many people have complained about its violent, belligerent lyrics, and some have proposed alternative versions. In our class handout, you'll discover, on top of the official song, two of those alternative, more pacific (but unfortunately almost unknown)  Marseillaises . 1. La Marseillaise de Rouget de Lisle The first song in the handout is the first stanza and the choru...

En France, le 1er mai est un jour férié. Les français célèbrent la fête internationale des travailleurs. In France, May 1st is a national Holiday. The French celebrate International Workers' Day. Voici une vidéo sur le sujet, avec sous-titres en français et en anglais. Here is a video on that topic, with French and English subtitles. Et voici un lien vers le texte que nous avons étudié en classe, avec la version audio : And here is a link to the text we studied in class, with the audio version: https://www.podcastfrancaisfacile.com/podcast/la-fete-du-travail.html Le muguet du premier mai. Pour les français, c'est un porte-bonheur ! Lily of the Valley, offered on May 1st. For the French, this is a lucky charm!

Si vous avez manqué un cours (ou perdu une feuille), voici ce que nous avons étudié lors des cours précédents. If you've missed a class (or lost a handout), here is what we studied during the previous classes. Dialogues Le petit déjeuner   ( Breakfast) (source: podcastfrancaisfacile.com) À la boulangerie   (At the bakery) (source: ISLcollective, créé par sarahISL) Grammaire (Grammar) Les articles (source: grammaire française Larousse) Exercice: articles partitifs   (source: podcastfrancaisfacile.com) Grammaire : articles partitif ou pas ? (source: ISLcollective, créé par arliette) not either/not anymore Women's professions and titles Fêtes et culture  ( Holidays and Culture) La Saint-Valentin   (Valentine's Day) (source: podcastfrancaisfacile.com) Jeux olympiques d'hiver   (Winter Olympics) (source: ISLcollective, créé par silvia lefevre) Lexique du printemps   (Spring Vocabulary) (source: ISLcollective, créé pa...