New
New
Year 5

Description: 'ils, elles sont' and plural adjective agreement

Learning outcomes

I can write sentences describing what people are like, using 'ils/elles sont' and plural adjective agreement.

I can recognise and pronounce the sound [on, om].

New
New
Year 5

Description: 'ils, elles sont' and plural adjective agreement

Learning outcomes

I can write sentences describing what people are like, using 'ils/elles sont' and plural adjective agreement.

I can recognise and pronounce the sound [on, om].

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Lesson details

Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons

Key learning points

  1. The SSCs [on] and [om] make the same sound. They are nasal vowels. We use [om] before a 'p' or a 'b': tomber, compter.
  2. To refer to one boy we use 'il est': he is. To refer to a group of boys (or boys and girls) we use 'ils sont': they are.
  3. To refer to one girl we use 'elle est': she is. To refer to a group of girls we use 'elles sont': they are.
  4. Adjectives change spelling based on the gender and number of the noun they describe. This is called adjective agreement.

Keywords

  • [on] - pronounced as in 'non'

  • [om] - pronounced as in 'nom'

  • Être - French verb meaning 'to be'

  • Ils, elles sont - from the verb 'être', meaning they (m/f) are

  • Adjective agreement - an adjective matching the noun it describes in gender and number

Common misconception

Like in English, there is one way of referring to a group of people: they.

In French, there are two different ways of saying 'they': masculine 'ils' or feminine 'elles'.


To help you plan your year 5 French lesson on: Description: 'ils, elles sont' and plural adjective agreement, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Play a game of guess who in the classroom, using different forms of the verb être and adective agreement. Can the pupils guess who is being described?
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Licence

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.
Which sentence means 'he is'?

ils sont
nous sommes
Correct answer: il est
je suis
tu es

Q2.
Match the French to the English.

Correct Answer:écouter,to listen, listening

to listen, listening

Correct Answer:répéter,to repeat, repeating

to repeat, repeating

Correct Answer:tomber,to fall, falling

to fall, falling

Correct Answer:compter,to count, counting

to count, counting

Correct Answer:être,to be, being

to be, being

Correct Answer:lire,to read, reading

to read, reading

Q3.
Order the numbers from smallest to biggest.

1 - deux
2 - cinq
3 - onze
4 - quinze
5 - dix-neuf
6 - vingt-quatre
7 - trente

Q4.
Match the French to the English.

Correct Answer:curieux,curious

curious

Correct Answer:heureux,happy

happy

Correct Answer:courageux,courageous, brave

courageous, brave

Correct Answer:sérieux,serious

serious

Correct Answer:faux,false

false

Correct Answer:vrai,true

true

Q5.
Order the words to say 'she is small but she is stronger than her older brother'.

1 - elle est
2 - petite
3 - mais elle
4 - est plus
5 - forte que
6 - son frère
7 - aîné

Q6.
'We are very sad.' Translate this sentence into French.

Correct Answer: Nous sommes très tristes

Assessment exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Which words are conjunctions?

merci
Correct answer: et
au revoir
Correct answer: mais
s'il te plait

Q2.
'Ils sont sérieux mais ils sont __________.' Which word completes this sentence?

content
Correct answer: contents
contente
contentes

Q3.
Order the months from the beginning to the end of the year.

1 - janvier
2 - mars
3 - avril
4 - juillet
5 - août
6 - novembre
7 - décembre

Q4.
Order the words to say 'they are ill today but they are always happy'.

1 - elles
2 - sont
3 - malades
4 - aujourd'hui
5 - mais elles
6 - sont toujours
7 - heureuses

Q5.
'My skirt is green and short.' Translate this sentence into French.

Correct Answer: Ma jupe est verte et courte

Q6.
'The strawberries are too small.' Translate this sentence into French.

Correct Answer: Les fraises sont trop petites

Additional material

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