New
New
Year 6

Canada: 'dans' and 'à' both meaning 'in' and 'to'

I can use my knowledge of singular forms of 'aller' with the correct preposition to say where I and others are going 'to'.

New
New
Year 6

Canada: 'dans' and 'à' both meaning 'in' and 'to'

I can use my knowledge of singular forms of 'aller' with the correct preposition to say where I and others are going 'to'.

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Lesson details

Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons

Key learning points

  1. The verb 'aller' is irregular and means 'to go'. 'Je vais' is 'I go', 'il va' is 'he goes' and 'elle va' is 'she goes'.
  2. The 's' of 'je vais' is normally an SFC but if followed by a vowel like 'à', you pronounce it; this is called liaison.
  3. The word 'dans' means 'in'. After 'aller' it can mean 'into' or just 'to'. E.g. Je vais dans le parc.
  4. Use 'à' to talk about going to or being in a town or city; use 'dans' to talk about going to a cardinal point.
  5. Use 'en' to talk about going to a feminine country, use 'au' (à + le) to talk about going to a masculine country/region.

Keywords

  • Dans - French preposition meaning 'in', 'into' 'inside' or 'to'

  • À - French preposition meaning 'at, 'to' or 'in'

  • Au - à + le

  • En - French preposition meaning 'in', 'by' or 'to'.

Common misconception

I use 'à' for 'to' with cities and 'en' for countries.

We use 'en' to say 'to' for feminine countries e.g. Je vais en France. If a country is masculine however we use 'au' e.g. Je vais au Portugal.


To help you plan your year 6 French lesson on: Canada: 'dans' and 'à' both meaning 'in' and 'to', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

This lesson mentions Canadian cities Ottawa, Montreal and Vancouver. You may wish to explore these places in more detail with your students.
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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 phrase means 'she goes'?

je vais
tu vas
il va
Correct answer: elle va

Q2.
What does 'Il va dans le Sud.' mean?

Correct answer: He is going to the south.
She is going to the south.
He is going to the west.
She is going to the east.
He is going to the north.

Q3.
Match the weather expressions.

Correct Answer:il fait beau,it is nice weather

it is nice weather

Correct Answer:il fait froid,it is cold

it is cold

Correct Answer:il fait chaud,it is hot

it is hot

Correct Answer:il fait mauvais,it is bad weather

it is bad weather

Q4.
Order the words to form a sentence.

1 - quand
2 - il
3 - fait
4 - froid
5 - je
6 - joue
7 - au rugby

Q5.
What does 'Est' mean?

Correct Answer: east

Q6.
Fill in the missing word: 'Il va l'Ouest.'

Correct Answer: dans

Assessment exit quiz

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5 Questions

Q1.
What is the capital of Canada?

Vancouver
New York
Washington
Correct answer: Ottawa
Toronto

Q2.
Which sentences refer to a masculine country?

Je vais en Italie.
Correct answer: Je vais au Canada.
Je vais en Espagne.
Je vais en France.
Correct answer: Je vais au Portugal.

Q3.
Order the words to form a sentence.

1 - je
2 - vais
3 - dans
4 - le
5 - Nord

Q4.
He is going to the museum.' - 'Il dans le musée.' Write the correct missing word.

Correct Answer: va

Q5.
Write in English: 'elle va à Ottawa'.

Correct Answer: she is going to Ottawa, she goes to Ottawa, she's going to Ottawa

Additional material

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