French: Classroom language

If you want to talk about school (l’école) in French, here are some useful words and phrases to help you.

Join Scottish pupils as they give French a go!

Listen and guess what they are saying before trying yourself.

Tip: This video can be used as an interactive introduction to this topic or as a recap on key vocabulary and phrases already learnt.

Remember!

It doesn't matter if your pronunciation isn't perfect. Try your best and have fun!

You can talk about which subjects you like and which you don’t like. To do this, you use the verb aimer – to like.

• J’aime le français – I like French

You usually use je for I, but as aimer begins with a vowel, use j' instead as it makes it easier to say.

• Je + aime = J'aime

Did you notice that the ending on aimer for 'I' is e, not er?

This is because aimer is the infinitive form of the verb and the ending of the verb changes according to who is doing the action, so aimer becomes j'aime.

If you want to talk about what you don't like, you need to make the sentence negative and say not.

To make a sentence negative, add ne before the verb, or n' if the verb begins with a vowel. Then add pas after it.

• Je n’aime pas les maths – I don’t like maths

Here are some subjects, so you can talk about what you like and don't like.

Did you notice that in French, you need to say the word for 'the' in front of the school subject? So it is:

• le before a masculine noun
• la before a feminine noun
• l' before a noun beginning with a vowel
• les if the school subject is plural (more than one)

You can also say what your favourite subject is.

To do this, you use the question word Quelle est (what is). Then add ta (your) and matière préférée (favourite subject).

• Quelle est ta matière préférée ? – What's your favourite subject?

So to answer, you change ta to ma, which means 'my'.

• Ma matière préférée est l'anglais – My favourite subject is English
• Ma matière préférée est le français – My favourite subject is French

You can say what subjects you study on different days. The verb 'to study' is étudier.

To say 'I', use J' instead of Je as étudier starts with a vowel and this makes it easier to say. Don't forget that the ending of the verb will now be e not er.

• Le lundi, j’étudie le français – On Mondays, I study French
• Le mardi, j’étudie le dessin – On Tuesdays, I study art

Did you notice that you need to use le (the) before the day of the week in this phrase? This is the word to say 'on' a particular day of the week.

Here are the days of the week:

If you want to talk about what your class will be studying today, you can say Aujourd’hui(today) nous étudions (we are studying) and then adding the school subject.

Your teacher might use instructions in the classroom. Here are some phrases to help you understand.

All the verbs end in ez. This ending on a verb tells you that it is a command.

If you need something like a ruler or a pencil, here are some phrases that you can use.

Use the word for 'you' (tu) and the correct part of the verb 'to have' (avoir) which is as.

To make a question, you don't need a word like 'do' as in English, just use your question voice. This means that your voice goes up at the end of a sentence, turning it into a question.

• Tu as un crayon ? – Do you have a pencil?
• Tu as un stylo ? – Do you have a pen?

To reply, use I - J' and the correct part of the verb avoir which is ai.

• Oui, J’ai un crayon – Yes, I have a pencil
• Oui, J’ai un stylo – Yes, I have a pen

Below are some important French sounds that you have heard in this topic. Try practising them yourself out loud.

1. u, û

This is not a sound in the English language. Form your lips as though you are going to whistle and then say the English sound for the letters ee.

tu – you

2. o

The letter o has two sounds in French. When it is not at the end of a word, it sounds the same as the o in the English word 'hot'. Remember that the e on the end of the word is silent.

la biologie – biology

3. i, î, y

The letter i always makes the same sound in French. Spread your lips in a wide grin and show your teeth to make this sound. There are two in the word for 'chemistry'. The e on the end of the word is silent.

la chimie – chemistry