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Astronauts and French cuisine: extended reading

Lesson details

Learning outcome

I can apply my knowledge of vocabulary and grammar to understand an extended text.

Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons

Key learning points

  1. The French [o] sound can be open like in 'porte' or closed like in 'photo'.
  2. If the [o] is the final sound, is followed by a 'z' sound, or has a circumflex [ô], it is closed.
  3. Before reading an extended text, it is important to learn key vocabulary.
  4. Predicting the themes and key ideas of the text is also a useful strategy to help understanding.
  5. Applying vocabualry and grammar knowledge to understand the order of events is essential.

Keywords

  • Open [o] - sound-symbol correspondence like the [o] in ‘porte’ which means ‘door’

  • Closed [o/ô] - sound-symbol correspondence like the [o/ô] in 'photo' which means 'photo'

Common misconception

The [o] sound in French is only pronounced one way.

The [o] sound in French can be open, like the [o] in 'porte' and 'd'accord' or closed like the [o] in 'radio' or 'dos'.

Teacher tip

The extended text in this lesson features information about typical dishes served on Christmas Eve and how this would be adapted to the environment on the International Space Station. These are themes that you may wish to look into in more detail with your students.

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2026), 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

6 Questions

Q1.
Match the French and English.

Correct Answer:savoir,to know how to, knowing how to

to know how to, knowing how to

Correct Answer:je sais,I know how to

I know how to

Correct Answer:on sait,you (in general) know how to

you (in general) know how to

Correct Answer:pouvoir,to be able to, can

to be able to, can

Correct Answer:je peux,I can

I can

Correct Answer:on peut,you (in general) can

you (in general) can

Q2.
Match the French and English.

Correct Answer:porte (f),door

door

Correct Answer:école (f),school

school

Correct Answer:poste (f),post office

post office

Correct Answer:contrôle (m),test, exam

test, exam

Correct Answer:mot (m),word

word

Correct Answer:hôpital (m),hospital

hospital

Q3.
Order the months from earliest to latest.

1 - janvier
2 - février
3 - mai
4 - juin
5 - juillet
6 - novembre
7 - décembre

Q4.
Which number is the largest?

dix-sept
Correct answer: vingt-deux
vingt
deux
treize

Q5.
Write in English: 'Qui sont-ils ?'

Correct Answer: Who are they?

Q6.
Write in French: 'He celebrates his birthday'.

Correct Answer: Il célèbre son anniversaire.

6 Questions

Q1.
The French sound [o] is closed when it ...

is the first sound
Correct answer: is the final sound
Correct answer: is followed by a 'z' sound
is followed by a 't'
Correct answer: has a circumflex accent

Q2.
Which words in French have an open [o] sound?

hospital
Correct answer: school
Correct answer: to sleep, sleeping
word
back

Q3.
What does 'le réveillon' mean?

Correct answer: Christmas Eve
Christmas Day
Boxing Day
Correct answer: New Year's Eve
New Year's Day

Q4.
Match the French and English.

Correct Answer:espace (f),space

space

Correct Answer:gout (m),taste

taste

Correct Answer:langue (f),language, tongue

language, tongue

Correct Answer:plat (m),dish

dish

Correct Answer:recette (f),recipe

recipe

Correct Answer:repas (m),meal

meal

Q5.
Order the words to say: 'You can celebrate Christmas in space'.

1 - on
2 - peut
3 - célébrer
4 - Noël
5 - dans
6 - l'
7 - espace

Q6.
Write in French: 'I eat and then I sleep'.

Correct Answer: Je mange et puis je dors.

To help you plan your 8 French lesson on: Astronauts and French cuisine: extended reading, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...