New
New
Year 6

Weather: 'il fait'

I can use 'il fait' with a variety of adjectives to describe the weather as well as activities on holiday.

New
New
Year 6

Weather: 'il fait'

I can use 'il fait' with a variety of adjectives to describe the weather as well as activities on holiday.

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Lesson details

Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons

Key learning points

  1. The verb 'il fait' usually means 'he does/makes'. For example 'il fait la cuisine'. (He does the cooking.).
  2. We also use 'il fait' to mean 'it is' for describing the weather. For example 'il fait froid'. (It is cold.).
  3. Use the preposition 'à' to describe the weather 'in' a town or city e.g. 'Il fait froid à Calais.'
  4. To talk about the weather 'in' a feminine country use 'en', for a masculine country use 'au'.
  5. We use the preposition 'dans' to talk about the weather 'in' the cardinal points e.g. 'Il fait beau dans le Nord.'

Keywords

  • Il fait - French verb meaning 'he does, makes'

  • Preposition - word that is used before a noun, a noun phrase, or a pronoun, connecting it to another word

Common misconception

In French 'il fait' always means 'he does, makes'.

In French 'il fait' often means 'he does, makes' but when referring to the weather it means 'it is' e.g. 'Il fait froid.' (It is cold.).


To help you plan your year 6 French lesson on: Weather: 'il fait', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

There is a lovely little rhyme to help students remember the four main weather phrases and it is best to model with extravagant actions and facial expressions: 'Il fait froid, il fait chaud, il fait mauvais, il fait beau !'.
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Equipment

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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.
Which of the verbs below means to make / to do?

aller
avoir
être
Correct answer: faire
habiter

Q2.
Match the parts of 'aller'.

Correct Answer:je,vais

vais

Correct Answer:tu,vas

vas

Correct Answer:il/elle,va

va

Q3.
Translate 'Je suis grand'.

Correct Answer: I am tall, I am big

Q4.
Translate 'she is funny'.

Correct Answer: Elle est amusante

Q5.
Put the words in order to say where you are going.

1 - je
2 - vais
3 - à
4 - la
5 - piscine

Q6.
Which of these question words means when?

Correct answer: quand
qui
quelle

Assessment exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Match the words.

Correct Answer:le Nord,north

north

Correct Answer:le Sud,south

south

Correct Answer:l'Est,east

east

Correct Answer:l'Ouest,west

west

Q2.
Put the seasons in order starting with Spring.

1 - printemps
2 - été
3 - automne
4 - hiver

Q3.
Which sentence means 'It is nice weather'?

Il fait chaud
Il fait mauvais
Il fait froid
Correct answer: Il fait beau

Q4.
Put the words in order to say what the weather is like. (Start with 'il')

1 - il
2 - fait
3 - froid
4 - dans
5 - le
6 - Sud

Q5.
Which sentences have nothing to do with the weather?

Il fait froid
Correct answer: Il fait du sport
Il fait chaud
Correct answer: Il fait la cuisine
Il fait mauvais

Q6.
Put the words in order to describe the weather in Italy. (Start with 'il)

1 - il
2 - fait
3 - beau
4 - à
5 - Rome
6 - en
7 - Italie

Additional material

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