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      Des auteurs francophones : perfect tense with 'être'

      Lesson details

      Learning outcome

      I can use verbs in the perfect tense with 'être', paying attention to agreement of past participles.

      Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons

      Key learning points

      1. Verbs which express a change of state, place or condition often use 'être' as the auxiliary verb in the perfect tense.
      2. Past participles used with 'être' must agree in gender and number with the subject of the verb.
      3. [i] like 'midi', [u] like 'tu' and [é/ez/er] like 'écrire', SFC and SFE are common endings to past participles.

      Keywords

      • Auxiliary verb - a form of either 'avoir' or 'être' used to form the perfect tense

      • Past participle agreement - when the ending of a past participle matches the subject of the verb in gender and number

      Common misconception

      Verbs never change their spelling to agree for gender or number.

      Past participles with 'être' verbs do agree for gender and number. Embedding this knowledge requires practice, a component of which can be practice of sound-symbol correspondences [i], [u], [é], [SFC], and [SFE].

      Teacher tip

      A wider discussion on the contribution to literature of authors from across the globe would be stimulating and enriching if time permits.

      Equipment

      Mini whiteboards and pens might be useful for the quick check activities in the lesson.

      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.
      Identify the auxiliary verb in the following sentence: 'Mes soeurs ont acheté un livre au marché.'

      soeurs
      Correct answer: ont
      acheté
      livre
      marché

      Q2.
      Match these English words to the correct French translations.

      Correct Answer:directly,directement
      Correct Answer:treatment,le traitement
      Correct Answer:opening,l'ouverture
      Correct Answer:fact,le fait
      Correct Answer:traditional,traditionnel
      Correct Answer:reading,la lecture

      Q3.
      Match the beginning parts of 'faire' (to do, to make) in the perfect tense to the correct ending parts.

      Correct Answer:j',ai fait
      Correct Answer:tu,as fait
      Correct Answer:il, elle, on,a fait
      Correct Answer:nous,avons fait
      Correct Answer:vous,avez fait
      Correct Answer:ils, elles,ont fait

      Q4.
      Identify the verbs which use 'être' as the auxiliary verb in the perfect tense.

      Correct answer: venir
      Correct answer: naître
      faire
      avoir
      Correct answer: retourner

      Q5.
      Select the irregular past participles from this list.

      vendu
      Correct answer: eu
      Correct answer: bu
      visité
      choisi

      Q6.
      'Apprendre' (to learn) and 'comprendre' (to understand) follow which verb's pattern to form the past participle?

      Correct Answer: prendre, Prendre, PRENDRE

      6 Questions

      Q1.
      Which Sound Symbol Correspondences (SSCs) are present when pronouncing regular past participles?

      [u], [ou], [a], [SFC], [SFe]
      [i], [u], [ou], [on], [SFC], [SFe]
      Correct answer: [i], [u], [é], [SFC], [SFe]

      Q2.
      What prize did the novel 'Frère d'âme' receive in 2021?

      The Pulitzer Prize
      The Booker Prize
      Correct answer: The International Booker Prize

      Q3.
      Which country did David Diop spend time in as a child?

      Correct Answer: Senegal, senegal, SENEGAL, Sénégal

      Q4.
      Match these English verbs to the correct French translations.

      Correct Answer:to stay,rester
      Correct Answer:to come back, to return,revenir
      Correct Answer:to go down,descendre
      Correct Answer:to become,devenir
      Correct Answer:to leave,partir
      Correct Answer:to fall,tomber

      Q5.
      Match the subjects to the correct past participles of 'sortir' (to go out).

      Correct Answer:Jacob et Aisha ,sont sortis.
      Correct Answer:Aisha,est sortie.
      Correct Answer:Jacob ,est sorti.
      Correct Answer:Jacob et Alex,sont sortis.
      Correct Answer:Aisha et Lauren,sont sorties.

      Q6.
      Verbs expressing a change of , place or condition often use 'être' as the auxiliary verb in the perfect tense.

      Correct Answer: state, State, STATE

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