Grammaire – JSS1 French Lesson Note (First Term)

Auxiliary verbs in French are être (to be) and avoir (to have). A verb is a word that expresses an action or a state.

Week 7 topic: Grammaire. In this lesson, students learn to conjugate être and use it in sentences about the classroom.

Behavioural objectives

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

1. name the two auxiliary verbs in French;
2. say what a verb is;
3. conjugate the verb être with every subject pronoun;
4. write and say sentences with the verb être.

What are the auxiliary verbs in French? (Quels sont les verbes auxiliaires ?)

Il y a deux verbes auxiliaires en français: être et avoir.

• Le verbe être: to be.
• Le verbe avoir: to have.
• Why they matter: they are used very often, both on their own and to help form other verb tenses later.

What is a verb? (Qu’est-ce que le verbe ?)

Le verbe est un mot qui exprime une action ou un état.

• Action verb: shows something a person does, as in Je mange (I eat).
• State verb: shows how or where someone is, as in Elle est grande (She is tall).
• Infinitive: the basic form of a verb, such as être and avoir.
• Conjugation: changing the verb to match the subject pronoun.

What are the subject pronouns in French?

A subject pronoun is a word that replaces the noun doing the action.

How do we conjugate the verb être? (La conjugaison du verbe être)

The verb être has six different forms: suis, es, est, sommes, êtes and sont.

Points to remember

• Il and elle: both use the same form, est.
• Ils and elles: both use the same form, sont.
• Vous êtes: write the circumflex accent on the first ê.
• Nous sommes: write mm in the middle.

When do we use the verb être?

We use être to say who or what someone is, where they are, and what they are like.

• Identity: Je suis élève. (I am a pupil.)
• Place: Tu es en classe. (You are in class.)
• Description: Elle est grande. (She is tall.)
• Nationality: Nous sommes nigérians. (We are Nigerians.)
• Profession: Vous êtes professeur. (You are a teacher.)

What are some sentences with the verb être? (Des phrases avec le verbe être)

Each sentence below uses one subject pronoun with the correct form of être.

• Je suis dans la salle de classe: I am in the classroom.
• Tu es dans la salle de classe: You are in the classroom.
• Il est dans la salle de classe: He is in the classroom.
• Elle est dans la salle de classe: She is in the classroom.
• Nous sommes dans la salle de classe: We are in the classroom.
• Vous êtes dans la salle de classe: You are in the classroom.
• Ils sont dans la salle de classe: They (m) are in the classroom.
• Elles sont dans la salle de classe: They (f) are in the classroom.

What are some classroom words to use with être?

These nouns help students make new sentences about the classroom.

• Le tableau: the board.
• La table: the table.
• La chaise: the chair.
• Le livre: the book.
• Le cahier: the exercise book.
• Le stylo: the pen.

Example: Le livre est sur la table. (The book is on the table.)

How do we conjugate the verb avoir?

The verb avoir means to have and is the second auxiliary verb.

• J’ai: je becomes j’ before a vowel sound.
• Example: J’ai un stylo. (I have a pen.)

What mistakes should students avoid?

• Wrong form: writing Je est instead of Je suis.
• Tu and vous: use tu for one friend and vous for a teacher or a group.
• Mixed groups: use ils for boys and girls together, not elles.
• Spelling: forget the accent in êtes or the double m in sommes.

Evaluation

1. Name the two auxiliary verbs in French.
2. Qu’est-ce que le verbe ?
3. Write the full conjugation of the verb être.
4. Translate into English: Nous sommes dans la salle de classe.
5. Complete: Vous ___ dans la salle de classe.

Assignment

Write out the conjugation of the verb être with its English meanings. Then write the eight sentences “dans la salle de classe” in your exercise book, one for each subject pronoun.