A school exchange: formal 'you' and informal plural 'vous'
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can use the pronoun 'vous' to talk to one person in a formal situation.
Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons
Key learning points
- The SSC [oy] sounds like [oi] + 'yih', like the [oy] in 'envoyer', which means 'to send'.
- The pronoun 'vous' means you (pl), but it can also mean you (sing) when you talk to one person in a formal situation.
- This could be an older person, someone in a position of responsibility or an adult you don't know well.
- We use 'tu' for you (sing) in informal situations, such as when we talk to friends, family and children.
- There are two ways of saying please in French: 's'il te plait' (informal) and 's'il vous plait' (formal).
Keywords
[oy] - sound-symbol correspondence like the [oy] in 'envoyer', which means 'to send'
Tu - you (singular informal)
Vous - you (plural, or singular formal)
Common misconception
There is only one way to say please to a person in French: 's'il vous plait'.
There are two ways to say please in French: 'sil vous plait' for someone you don't know very well or someone in a position of responsibility like your teacher. But for friends and family you use 's'il te plait'.
Teacher tip
There are some famous and beautiful landmarks in Nice mentioned in this lesson like the Baie des Anges and the Promenade des Anglais. This may be something you wish to explore in more detail with your students.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Match up the French and the English.
Q2.Match the parts of 'être' (to be, being) with the correct form of the verb.
Q3.Which of these pronouns are the third person plural?
Q4.If you wanted someone to listen which instruction would you give them?
Q5.Fill in the word for 'without' in this sentence. Je viens papa.
Q6.What is the third person plural form of 'venir'?
Assessment exit quiz
5 Questions
Q1.Match the French and the English.
Q2.What word would you use in for 'you' when speaking to a teacher in French?
Q3.You are talking to a group of friends in French. What word do you use for 'you'?
Q4.When would you use 's'il te plait' to mean 'please'?
Q5.Translate this sentence as if you are talking to one friend: 'You like the town'.
To help you plan your 8 French lesson on: A school exchange: formal 'you' and informal plural 'vous', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 8 French lesson on: A school exchange: formal 'you' and informal plural 'vous', 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 School life: -IR verbs in the present, uses of 'vous' and 'on' unit, dive into the full secondary French curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.