La transformation des villes : imperfect of être, avoir and faire
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can describe the changes taking place in towns using the imperfect and present tenses to contrast past and present.
Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons
Key learning points
- The imperfect tense is used to describe how something or someone 'used to' be and what regularly happened in the past.
- 'il y avait' is the imperfect tense form of 'il y a', and means 'there used to be'.
- When a word ending in a normally silent consonant is followed by a mute 'h', the consonant is heard in liaison.
Keywords
Imperfect tense - tense used to describe how things were or used to be in the past, or to say what was happening
Simple present - describes habitual events in the present: 'I do'
Common misconception
When speaking or writing about what you did regularly in the past, use the perfect tense to state the action of the sentence.
When speaking or writing about what you did regularly in the past, use the imperfect tense to state the action. This is because you are talking about something that didn't have a clear start and end point. Perfect tense is not appropriate.
Teacher tip
Task B4 has two options. Option 1 is for students requiring exposure to some higher level vocab, while Option 2 is a shortened version of the task.
Equipment
Mini whiteboards and pens if available would be useful.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Match the French words with their English meanings.
Q2.Match the subjects with the correct imperfect tense verb forms.
Q3.Which is the correct imperfect verb ending in this sentence? 'Nous visit... souvent le musée quand j'étais enfant.'
Q4.What is the imperfect tense stem of être?
Q5.The present tense form for which subject is the starting point for creating the imperfect tense stem?
Q6.Which is the correct word order to make this sentence? They used to like going to France on holiday.
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Which tense should you use when speaking or writing about what you did regularly in the past?
Q2.Match the French and English vocabulary.
Q3.Which sentences are in the present tense?
Q4.Write the imperfect tense correct form of the verb in brackets. 'Ils (avoir) de longs cheveux châtains.'
Q5.What is the correct imperfect form of the verb in brackets in this sentence? 'Vous (faire) de l'athlétisme quand vous étiez jeune ?'
Q6.Complete the sentence: The translation of 'there used to be' is: il y .
To help you plan your 10 French lesson on: La transformation des villes : imperfect of être, avoir and faire, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 10 French lesson on: La transformation des villes : imperfect of être, avoir and faire, 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 4 French lessons from the My neighbourhood: Là où j'habite unit, dive into the full secondary French curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.