New
New
Year 9

Occupied France: perfect tense with verbs like 'sortir' and 'choisir'

Learning outcomes

I can use the perfect tense, including past participles like 'sorti' and 'choisi' in the context of the Vichy regime in the 1940s.

I know when to pronounce nasal and non-nasal vowel sounds [ain/in], [aim/im] and [ai].

New
New
Year 9

Occupied France: perfect tense with verbs like 'sortir' and 'choisir'

Learning outcomes

I can use the perfect tense, including past participles like 'sorti' and 'choisi' in the context of the Vichy regime in the 1940s.

I know when to pronounce nasal and non-nasal vowel sounds [ain/in], [aim/im] and [ai].

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Lesson details

Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons

Key learning points

  1. [ain/in] is pronounced as in 'train' and [aim/im] is pronounced as in 'faim'.
  2. The nasal sounds [aim/im] and [ain/in] become non-nasal sounds when they come before a vowel.
  3. During WW2, after Paris was captured by Germany, France was divided into different zones.
  4. Use the perfect tense to talk about past specific/one-off events/actions. Use part of 'avoir/être' + a past participle.
  5. The past participles of verbs like 'sortir' and 'choisir' both end in -i. To form, remove -r from the infinitive form.

Keywords

  • Past participle - verb form that forms the perfect tense, together with the auxiliary verb

Common misconception

The letters 'ain' and 'aim' are always pronounced the same way.

Before a consonant or at the end of a word, [ain] and [aim] are nasal but before a vowel, they are non-nasal sounds.


To help you plan your year 9 French lesson on: Occupied France: perfect tense with verbs like 'sortir' and 'choisir', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

The historical element of the lesson relies on little background knowledge of the events of WW2 but it might be worth checking if some students have prior knowledge from history lessons. Maps of Europe and France under occupation from the internet would enhance the lesson.
Teacher tip

Equipment

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of sensitive content

Supervision

Adult supervision recommended

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 of these shows a past action correctly using 'avoir' or 'être'?

Je viens à Genève.
Correct answer: J’ai nourri le poisson.
Tu partir à Bruxelles.
Il dormir un verre.

Q2.
Choose the sentence that includes a past participle.

Le résultat est bon.
Je dors à côté de la personne.
Correct answer: Tu as nourri le chien.
Nous venons de Genève.

Q3.
Match the French verb to its English meaning.

Correct Answer:dormir,to sleep, sleeping

to sleep, sleeping

Correct Answer:remplir,to fill, filling

to fill, filling

Correct Answer:nourir,to feed, feeding

to feed, feeding

Correct Answer:finir,to finish, finishing

to finish, finishing

Correct Answer:choisir,to choose, choosing

to choose, choosing

Q4.
Match the pronouns to the correct present tense form of 'finir'.

Correct Answer:je, tu,finis

finis

Correct Answer:il, elle, on,finit

finit

Correct Answer:nous,finissons

finissons

Correct Answer:vous,finissez

finissez

Correct Answer:ils, elles,finissent

finissent

Q5.
What is the past participle (for perfect tense use) of the verb 'remplir'?

Correct Answer: rempli

Q6.
Fill in the blank with the correct form of 'venir' in the present tense. 'Ils de Suisse.'

Correct Answer: viennent

Assessment exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Which countries controlled part of France during World War 2?

Correct answer: Italie
Correct answer: Allemagne
Suisse
États-Unis
Angleterre

Q2.
In which word is [aim] or [im] pronounced as a non-nasal sound?

faim
impossible
simple
Correct answer: aimer

Q3.
Which sentence is in the perfect tense and shows a completed action?

Je dors à côté de la personne.
Correct answer: Tu as fini le programme.
Il revient de Genève.
Nous allons à Bruxelles.

Q4.
What is the stem of the verb 'choisir'?

Correct Answer: chois, chois-

Q5.
Match the French word to its correct English meaning.

Correct Answer:poisson (m),fish

fish

Correct Answer:derrière,behind

behind

Correct Answer:programme (m),programme

programme

Correct Answer:verre (m),glass

glass

Q6.
Write the correct past participle of 'remplir' - 'j’ai un verre'.

Correct Answer: rempli

Additional material

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