Les vacances et le temps
A good holiday account does three things: says what happened, says what the weather was like, and says what you thought of it. Weak accounts do only the first.
Part of your national curriculum
- Writing: Write prose using an increasingly wide range of grammar and vocabulary, and write creatively to express their own ideas and opinions
Lesson overview
What you'll learn in this lesson
Write prose using an increasingly wide range of grammar and vocabulary, and write creatively to express their own ideas and opinions
Key learning points
- • Holiday vocabulary
- • Weather in the past
- • Opinions in the past
This lesson at a glance
- 30 minutes
- 19 parts to scroll through
- 4 quick checks
- Marked quiz at the end
- Gentle pace: short sittings with pauses
Words to know
Scroll down — the lesson carries on below
Watch & discover
Part 1 of 19
Watch first
Les vacances et le temps
A summer worth retelling — in the past tense.
In a nutshell
Write prose using an increasingly wide range of grammar and vocabulary, and write creatively to express their own ideas and opinions
Learning cycle
Part 2 of 19
Learning cycle 1 of 2
Part 1 · Holiday vocabulary
A short piece of teaching, then a check to make sure it has landed.
Explore the idea
Part 3 of 19
Learn
Holiday vocabulary
je suis allé(e) en Espagne / au Pays de Galles / à Paris (en for feminine countries, au for masculine, à for towns). J'ai logé dans un hôtel / un camping / chez ma grand-mère. J'y suis resté(e) une semaine.
Reset break
Part 4 of 19
Pause
That's sitting 1 of 5 done
Stretch, get a drink, look out of the window. There is no timer and nothing is counting down — your place is saved, so you can come back in five minutes or tomorrow.
Explore the idea
Part 5 of 19
Learn
Weather in the past
Il faisait beau (it was fine), il faisait chaud / froid, il pleuvait (it was raining), il y avait du vent. These are imperfect forms — used for describing background, while the passé composé tells you what happened.
Quick check
Part 6 of 19
Quick check
Part 7 of 19
Reset break
Part 8 of 19
Pause
That's sitting 2 of 5 done
Stretch, get a drink, look out of the window. There is no timer and nothing is counting down — your place is saved, so you can come back in five minutes or tomorrow.
Learning cycle
Part 9 of 19
Learning cycle 2 of 2
Part 2 · Opinions in the past
A short piece of teaching, then a check to make sure it has landed.
Explore the idea
Part 10 of 19
Learn
Opinions in the past
C'était génial / super / nul / fatigant. Le meilleur moment, c'était quand... (the best moment was when...). Adding one c'était sentence to every paragraph lifts a description into a real account.
Quick check
Part 11 of 19
Reset break
Part 12 of 19
Pause
That's sitting 3 of 5 done
Stretch, get a drink, look out of the window. There is no timer and nothing is counting down — your place is saved, so you can come back in five minutes or tomorrow.
Quick check
Part 13 of 19
Explore the idea
Part 14 of 19
Worked example
Model paragraph
L'été dernier, je suis allée en France avec ma famille. Nous avons logé dans un camping près de la mer. Il faisait très chaud et j'ai nagé tous les jours. Un jour, nous avons visité un château magnifique. C'était génial, mais le voyage était fatigant.
Challenge round
Part 15 of 19
Game · Sort it
Which of these are true?
Drag each card into the right column. Tap a card first if dragging is fiddly.
True
Not true
Reset break
Part 16 of 19
Pause
That's sitting 4 of 5 done
Stretch, get a drink, look out of the window. There is no timer and nothing is counting down — your place is saved, so you can come back in five minutes or tomorrow.
Challenge round
Part 17 of 19
Game · Recall cards
Which sentence shows the widest range of grammar?
Card 1 of 4
Mastery quiz
Part 18 of 19
Marked quiz
End of lesson quiz: Les vacances et le temps
4 questions, marked with the reasoning shown. No timer.
1. Which sentence shows the widest range of grammar?
2. Which word means 'exciting'?
3. 'Demain, j'irai à la plage' is set in which tense?
4. 'Inoubliable' most likely means...
Lesson round-up
Part 19 of 19
Lesson round-up
Ready when you are
Quiz score
Not sat
Games
Not played
Points this lesson
0
Best run
0 in a row
Luna: 0 out of 4 on the practice checks. Only if you feel up to it — one more?
Ask LunaPart 1 of 19 · Watch & discover
How this is going
- Not looked at yet
Write prose using an increasingly wide range of grammar and vocabulary, and write creatively to express their own ideas and opinions