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Lesson 6 of 10
  • Year 4

My monster: 'il y a' and 'il a'

Learning outcomes

I can use 'il y a' and 'il a' with 'des' and numbers 1-12 to say how many.

I can use liaison to pronounce numbers and nouns together.

Lesson 6 of 10
New
New
  • Year 4

My monster: 'il y a' and 'il a'

Learning outcomes

I can use 'il y a' and 'il a' with 'des' and numbers 1-12 to say how many.

I can use liaison to pronounce numbers and nouns together.

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Lesson details

Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons

Key learning points

  1. Numbers 1-12 go before nouns to indicate how many there are.
  2. The indefinite article des is the French word for the determiner some.
  3. When 'des', 2, 3 and 10 are followed by a noun beginning with a vowel, the -s and -x are pronounced; this is liaison.
  4. 'Il y a' means both there is and there are; 'il a' means 'he, it has'.

Keywords

  • Des - plural indefinite article meaning some

  • Liaison - pronouncing a usually silent final consonant when followed by a vowel, e.g. trois oreilles

  • Il y a - irregular verb phrase meaning 'there is' or 'there are'

  • Il a - from the French verb 'avoir', meaning 'he has'

Common misconception

'Il y a' and 'il a' can both be used to say what there is/are.

'Il y a' and 'il a' sound similar but have different meanings. 'Il y a' means 'there is' or 'there are' and 'il a' means 'he has'.


To help you plan your year 4 French lesson on: My monster: 'il y a' and 'il a', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Ask pupils to prepare a description of a monster in their heritage language. This can be an opportunity to celebrate other languages and diversity within the class.
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This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Prior knowledge starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Match the French and English verbs.

Correct Answer:aimer,to like

to like

Correct Answer:préférer,to prefer

to prefer

Correct Answer:faire,to do, make

to do, make

Correct Answer:être,to be

to be

Correct Answer:avoir,to have

to have

Q2.
Match the cognates.

Correct Answer:le sport,sport

sport

Correct Answer:absent,absent

absent

Correct Answer:présent,present

present

Correct Answer:calme,calm

calm

Correct Answer:curieux,curious

curious

Q3.
Match the high frequency words.

Correct Answer:et,and

and

Correct Answer:aussi,also

also

Correct Answer:mais,but

but

Correct Answer:de,of, from

of, from

Correct Answer:en,in

in

Q4.
C'est quoi ?

An image in a quiz
un nez
une bouche
Correct answer: une oreille
un œil

Q5.
C'est quoi ?

An image in a quiz
une tête
Correct answer: une main
un pied
des yeux

Q6.
Translate: There are some mouths.

Correct Answer: Il y a des bouches.

Assessment exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Fill in the gap: deux, quatre, six, , dix

cinq
sept
Correct answer: huit
onze
douze

Q2.
Match the French and the English.

Correct Answer:j'ai,I have

I have

Correct Answer:tu as,you have

you have

Correct Answer:il a,he has, it has

he has, it has

Correct Answer:elle a,she has, it has

she has, it has

Correct Answer:avoir,to have

to have

Q3.
Which of the following have a liaison?

deux mains
Correct answer: trois oreilles
Correct answer: des yeux
six mains
Correct answer: dix yeux

Q4.
Choose the correct description.

An image in a quiz
Correct answer: Il y a six yeux.
Il a six yeux.
Il y a six bouches.
Il a six bouches.

Q5.
Il a combien d'yeux ?

An image in a quiz
sept
cinq
Correct answer: sept
neuf
onze

Q6.
Translate: It has some feet.

Correct Answer: Il a des pieds., Elle a des pieds.