Auxiliary Verbs in French

Grade 6 · French

Semester 2 | Period 6 | Week 32

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Subject: French

Semester: 2

Period: 6

Week: 32


School Name:
Teacher’s Name:
Subject: French
Grade Level: Grade 6
Date: Week 32
Lesson Duration: 45 minutes
Week & Period: Week 32, Period 6
Topic: Auxiliary Verbs in French
Sub-topic: Using être in simple sentences and adjectives/conditions

Learning Objectives
By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:
Use être in simple descriptive sentences.
Apply être to describe state, identity, and location.
Construct short sentences with pronoun + être + adjective/noun.

Previous Knowledge
Students already know conjugation of être in the present tense.

Instructional Materials
Flashcards of adjectives, classroom object cards, blackboard, written examples.

Lesson Development – ABC Model

A – Anticipation (Warm-up / Starter)
Time: 5–10 minutes
Teacher asks: “Comment es-tu aujourd’hui ?” (How are you today?). Students respond in simple phrases. Teacher explains today’s focus: describing people and states using être.

B – Building Knowledge (Main Lesson Body)
Time: 25–30 minutes

The teacher begins by reminding learners of the conjugated forms of the auxiliary verb “être” (to be), which they learned in the previous lesson. These are written clearly on the board for reference:

  • Je suis – I am
  • Tu es – You are (informal)
  • Il/Elle est – He/She is
  • Nous sommes – We are
  • Vous êtes – You are (formal/plural)
  • Ils/Elles sont – They are

 

Sentence Structure: Subject + Être + Adjective

The teacher explains that the verb être is commonly used to make descriptive sentences. The structure is:

Subject + être + adjective

The teacher models this clearly using both oral and written examples:

  • Je suis fatigué. – I am tired.
  • Elle est grande. – She is tall.
  • Nous sommes au marché. – We are at the market.
  • Il est heureux. – He is happy.

Flashcards with pictures (e.g. happy child, tired student, tall girl, market) are used alongside these examples to give visual cues and reinforce meaning.

Students repeat each sentence after the teacher to practice pronunciation and sentence rhythm.

 

Adjective Agreement Explanation

The teacher introduces the rule of gender and number agreement:

  • In French, adjectives must agree with the gender (masculine/feminine) and number (singular/plural) of the noun they describe.
  • This means we often have to change the spelling of the adjective depending on the noun.

Examples:

Masculine Singular

Feminine Singular

Masculine Plural

Feminine Plural

petit

petite

petits

petites

grand

grande

grands

grandes

heureux

heureuse

heureux

heureuses

fatigué

fatiguée

fatigués

fatiguées

Teacher writes and says examples aloud:

  • Un garçon petit – A small boy
  • Une fille petite – A small girl
  • Un chien gros – A fat dog
  • Une maison sale – A dirty house
  • Ils sont heureux. – They are happy (masculine)
  • Elles sont heureuses. – They are happy (feminine)

Pronunciation practice follows for tricky endings like -euse, -ée, and -s.

 

Learners’ Activities (Expanded)

  1. Oral Practice – Describing Classmates and Objects
  • Students are called upon randomly to describe a classmate using être + adjective.
    E.g., "Il est gentil.", "Elle est belle."
  • Students also describe objects around the room:
    E.g., "La chaise est grande.", "Le sac est rouge."
  1. Guided Written Exercise

Teacher gives partially complete sentences on the board or worksheet:

  • Je suis __________. (fatigué)
  • Elle est __________. (content)
  • Nous sommes __________. (heureux)
  • Tu es __________. (petit)

Students must complete with the correct form of the adjective, considering gender and number.

  1. Pair Work: Describing Each Other

In pairs, students take turns describing one another using appropriate forms.
Example exchanges:

  • A: "Tu es grand."
  • B: "Merci! Tu es intelligent."

Students write 3 sentences about their partner in their notebooks using être + adjective.

 

Assessment Checks

The teacher uses the following to assess learning:

  • Oral Checks: Students are asked to form correct sentences using être and an adjective.
    Teacher listens for correct verb form and adjective agreement.
  • Written Work Review: Teacher walks around while students complete the written tasks, checking:
    • Did they use the right form of être?
    • Is the adjective correctly matched to the noun (masc./fem., sing./plur.)?
  • Quick Quiz (Optional Exit Ticket):
    • Complete: "Il est ________." (happy)
    • True or False: "Nous sommes fatiguée." (False – should be fatigués if the group is all boys or mixed)

 

Notes (Expanded & Detailed)

  • The verb être is one of the most used verbs in French and is essential for:
    • Describing people (Elle est grande.)
    • Expressing feelings (Je suis fatigué.)
    • Indicating location (Nous sommes à l’école.)
    • Giving professions (Il est médecin.)
  • Adjective agreement is not optional.
    Mistakes in agreement change the meaning or make the sentence sound strange to native speakers.
  • The ability to describe people, places, and things accurately gives learners real-life communicative power in French.

C – Consolidation (Conclusion & Assessment)
Time: 5–10 minutes
Summary: Teacher reviews sentence building rules with être. Students give two sentences each as exit practice.

Evaluation Method (Expanded):
Exit slip/quiz: Write one sentence with être describing yourself and one describing your friend.

Assignment (Expanded):
Write five sentences using être to describe people or things around you.

Follow-up Activity:
Pair role-play: students describe their classmates using être.

Differentiation / Inclusive Strategies
Provide adjective cards with images for weaker learners. Allow stronger learners to form longer sentences for challenge.

Teacher’s Reflection (After Class)
What worked well? ___________________________________________
What needs improvement? ____________________________________
Students’ engagement level: ☑ High ☑ Medium ☑ Low