Les Chiffres – JSS1 French Lesson Note (First Term)

Les chiffres are the numbers in French, from un (1) to cent (100).

• 21 to 69: built from the tens word and the unit, for example vingt-deux (22).
• 70 to 79: built on soixante (60), for example soixante-douze (72).
• 80 to 99: built on quatre-vingts (80), for example quatre-vingt-cinq (85).

Behavioural objectives

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

1. say the French words for the numbers 1 to 20;
2. say and write the French words for the numbers 21 to 69;
3. say and write the French words for the numbers 70 to 100;
4. spell the French numbers correctly.

What are the key French number words?

The key number words are the tens, which are the base for building every other number.

How do you count from 1 to 25 in French?

The numbers 1 to 16 are separate words, and 17 to 19 join dix with 7, 8 and 9.

How do you count from 26 to 100 in French?

From 26 to 100, each number is a tens word plus a unit, with special patterns from 70 onwards.

What are the rules for building French numbers?

French numbers follow a few fixed rules for the tens, the hyphen and the word et.

Numbers from 21 to 69

• Pattern: tens word, a hyphen, then the unit, as in trente-cinq (35).
• Tens words: vingt (20), trente (30), quarante (40), cinquante (50), soixante (60).

When do you use “et un”?

• Use et: for 21, 31, 41, 51 and 61, as in trente et un (31).
• Also use et: for 71, which is soixante et onze.
• No et: for 81 and 91, which are quatre-vingt-un and quatre-vingt-onze.
• Other units: use a hyphen only, as in quarante-deux (42).

Numbers from 70 to 79

• Pattern: soixante plus the numbers 10 to 19.
• Example: 74 is soixante-quatorze, and 77 is soixante-dix-sept.

Numbers from 80 to 99

• Pattern: quatre-vingt plus the numbers 1 to 19.
• Example: 93 is quatre-vingt-treize, and 98 is quatre-vingt-dix-huit.
• The letter s: 80 is quatre-vingts with an s, but the s is dropped when another number follows, as in 82.

How do you build a French number step by step?

Split the number into its tens and units, then join the French words with a hyphen.

Example: 45

1. Split 45 into 40 and 5.
2. Write 40 as quarante.
3. Write 5 as cinq.
4. Join them: quarante-cinq.

Example: 96

1. Split 96 into 80 and 16.
2. Write 80 as quatre-vingt (without s, because a number follows).
3. Write 16 as seize.
4. Join them: quatre-vingt-seize.

What mistakes should students avoid?

Most errors come from the hyphen, the word et and the numbers above 70.

• Missing hyphens: write vingt-deux, not two separate words.
• Wrong et: use et only for 21, 31, 41, 51, 61 and 71.
• 70 to 79: start with soixante, not a new tens word.
• 80 to 99: start with quatre-vingt, which means four twenties.
• Spelling: check quarante, cinquante and soixante carefully.

Evaluation

Write these numbers in French:

1. 13
2. 31
3. 56
4. 71
5. 93

Assignment

Using the tables in this note, write these numbers in French: 14, 22, 45, 77, 80, 98 and 100.