Jobs: feminine nouns
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can make person nouns feminine to talk about different jobs.
Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons
Key learning points
- [h] is silent in French, as in the word 'heure'.
- Most French person nouns for jobs become feminine by adding -e, e.g. une avocate.
- Person nouns already ending in -e stay the same, but the article changes, e.g. le → la secrétaire.
- Masculine person nouns ending in -eur typically change to -rice in the feminine form.
- The rules around job nouns are still changing and there are exceptions to the rules.
Keywords
[h] - pronounced as in 'heure'
Person noun - a noun used for a person e.g. un professeur
Common misconception
Add an -e to all person nouns to make them feminine.
The most common way to make a person noun feminine is to add an -e to the masculine version. If nouns already end in -e, person nouns usually stay the same but the article changes. Jobs ending in 'eur' usually change to 'rice' in the feminine form.
Teacher tip
There is scope for a much wider discussion around feminine job titles in France. You may wish to find some articles to share with your class.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Match the French words below to the correct English translation,
to be, being
I am
you are
he is
she is
Q2.Which is the best translation for 'je veux' ?
Q3.Nouns in French are either masculine or ...
Q4.Match the French words below to the correct English translations.
to have to
to sleep, sleeping
to want (to)
postwoman
headteacher
lawyer
Q5.What is the word for the rise and fall of the voice when speaking?
Q6.What letter do feminine adjectives often end in?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Which sound-symbol correspondences are contained in the word 'hélicoptère'?
Q2.Match the French and English.
to have to
I have to, must
he has to, must
to want (to)
I want (to)
he wants (to)
Q3.Who is the sentence about '__________ secrétaire travaille dans le bureau.'?
Q4.Order the French for the sentence 'Léa wants to be a teacher but Sophie wants to be a headteacher.'
Q5.Add the missing word. Person nouns ending in 'eur' usually change to in the feminine form.
Q6.Add the missing word to the sentence 'The lawyer is careful'. L' est prudente.
To help you plan your 8 French lesson on: Jobs: feminine nouns, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 8 French lesson on: Jobs: feminine nouns, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 3 French lessons from the Jobs: 'avoir' and 'être', feminine nouns unit, dive into the full secondary French curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.