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Year 3

What is he or she like? Intonation questions

Learning outcomes

I can use ‘être’ with adjectives to ask and answer intonation questions and write short sentences describing people.

I can distinguish in listening between [an/en] and other similar sounds.

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New
New
Year 3

What is he or she like? Intonation questions

Learning outcomes

I can use ‘être’ with adjectives to ask and answer intonation questions and write short sentences describing people.

I can distinguish in listening between [an/en] and other similar sounds.

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Lesson details

Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons

Key learning points

  1. The sound-correspondence [an/en] can be practised with similar but contrasting sounds.
  2. ‘Je suis’, ‘tu es’ and ‘elle, il est’ are all parts of the verb ‘être’ (to be, being).
  3. Statements become yes/no questions by raising your tone of voice at the end.

Keywords

  • [an/en] - pronounced as in 'enfant'

  • Il est / elle est - from the verb 'être', meaning ‘he is / she is’

  • Intonation - the rise and fall of the voice in speaking

  • Adjective agreement - a change in adjective ending; for example, adding -e to describe a girl or woman

Common misconception

Changing intonation doesn't affect meaning.

If you raise your voice at the end, you can turn a statement into a question.


To help you plan your year 3 french lesson on: What is he or she like? Intonation questions, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Once the 'guess who' game in the third learning cycle is completed, you may wish to do a 'guess who' activity in the class, allowing pupils to guess different class members using intonation questions, if you feel it appropriate.
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This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), 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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6 Questions

Q1.
Read the word 'maman'. Do you hear an oral sound, a nasal sound, or both?
oral sound
nasal sound
Correct answer: oral sound and nasal sound
Q2.
Choose the words with a nasal sound.
Correct answer: grand
malade
Correct answer: anglais
Correct answer: content
sac
Q3.
Match the French adjectives below to the correct English translations.
Correct Answer:sick, ill,malade
tick

malade

Correct Answer:pleased,content
tick

content

Correct Answer:intelligent,intelligent
tick

intelligent

Correct Answer:amusing, fun,amusant
tick

amusant

Correct Answer:méchant,mean
tick

mean

Correct Answer:calm,calme
tick

calme

Q4.
Choose the odd one out.
amusant
méchant
Correct answer: grande
petit
Q5.
Change the following adjective into the feminine form: 'petit'.
Correct Answer: petite, 'petite'
Q6.
Choose the adjectives that do not change in their masculine and feminine forms.
Correct answer: calme
contente
Correct answer: triste
petite
Correct answer: malade

6 Questions

Q1.
Say the words pictured below out loud. Which words have a nasal sound?
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
Q2.
Match up the correct verb parts.
Correct Answer:je,suis
tick

suis

Correct Answer:tu,es
tick

es

Correct Answer:elle,est
tick

est

Q3.
How do you say 'he is' in French?
Correct Answer: il est, 'il est'
Q4.
Who is being described in the following sentence? 'Il est malade.'
Correct answer: Pierre (a boy)
Clémentine (a girl)
we don't know
Q5.
To ask a closed 'yes' or 'no' question is French, change the at the end of the sentence.
Correct Answer: intonation
Q6.
Look at the image pictured below and answer the following question with a yes or no in French: 'Elle est contente ?'
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: non

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