A few years ago, I retired from my position as head of Modern Languages, a bit fearful of the "R" word. But to date, it has been nothing but fun! Canadian law requires school-aged actors to study with a qualified teacher when they’re off-camera. Many of our young actors are in immersion French so I've found a happy little niche, teaching a few days a week as an on-set tutor and moving in inspiring and creative circles! Furthermore, I get to share resources here! Vive la retraite!
A few years ago, I retired from my position as head of Modern Languages, a bit fearful of the "R" word. But to date, it has been nothing but fun! Canadian law requires school-aged actors to study with a qualified teacher when they’re off-camera. Many of our young actors are in immersion French so I've found a happy little niche, teaching a few days a week as an on-set tutor and moving in inspiring and creative circles! Furthermore, I get to share resources here! Vive la retraite!
Imagic
After your students have solved the Imagic (visual crossword) puzzle, challeng them to make a little Imagic of their own.
Broken Words
In this virtual race, players have to reconstitute and recopy words that have been broken into pieces and scattered over the game grid. Students may play individually or in pairs.
The words in this puzzle are:
1 hero
2 honour
3 prayer
4 silence
5 bugle
6 poppies
7 service
8 weapon
9 courage
10 parade
11 battle
12 defend
I’ve included a suggestion for extending the lesson for this activity.
Many students are reluctant to speak in the target language. Using the transcripts of popular commercials and children’s television shows, this activity builds their confidence and enthusiasm for speaking in French.
• First, have the class view the whole video.
• Then, assign short segments of the (tran)script to small groups of students.
• Each group will listen and rehearse their lines carefully because on the second
screening of the full video, the sound will be muted and they will be providing the
soundtrack. (I usually schedule the second viewing a week after the first screening.)
• Especially creative and motivated classes should be encouraged to include sound
effects and/or background music.
This file includes transcripts for videos about Halloween, l’Action de Grâce, Noël and le patin à glace.
I’ve included suggestions for extending the lesson for both Immersion and Core French programmes.te
Thanks to their texting skills, today’s students intuit the principle behind rebus puzzles but I’ve included a “how to” guide nonetheless.
To extend the lesson, ask your students to create a rebus of their own.
If you’d like me to make a rebus on a specific theme, please let me know.
Scribblescrabbles are a portable hybrid of Scrabble and crossword puzzles. I’ve made this one for teachers of English, French and Spanish who are desperate for meaningful but fun work at the end of the school year. You’ll discover that it is flexible enough to work well for all levels of ability.
Happy holidays to all!
C’est touchant ressemble un peu à Boggle™.)
This C’est Touchant! puzzle for Easter is a Boggle™ with a twist.
Embedded in the game grid are 8 French words on the Pâques theme
and 70 more general vocabulary words.
The file includes
• a “how to play” guide
• a full colour puzzle
• 4 small B&W copies of the grid for teachers who are trying to cut back on photocopying costs
• a thematic vocabularyÂ
• the answer key
Because the English version of the game, Hippity, Hoppity, Easter’s on its Way, has been warmly received, this French version has been on my “to do” list forever. Thank you for your patience.
La fiche, Comment jouer, explique les règles du jeu en français.
Santa’s Resolutions for 2020 is an exemplar of a New Year’s activity.
I couldn’t resist making a list of resolutions on Santa’s behalf. It will give your students some ideas, a laugh and an opportunity to try their hand by filling in resolutions 9, 10, 11 and 12.
Note: This is not a new resource but an update of the resolutions
that I’ve been posting since 2012.
As you count down to the holidays, you might like these four little Christmas-themed rebus puzzles as icebreakers or fillers.
Thanks to their mad texting skills, today’s kids get the principle behind rebus puzzles intuitively but I’ve included a “how-to” page nonetheless.
Heads up! Biblical though one of the terms in puzzle # 4 may be, I would reserve it for older students. The solution is, “Let us go for a sleigh ride” and, as you can see in the preview, the picture clues include a (jack)ass.
The difference between homophones and homographs is (literally) illustrated in this homonym lesson camouflaged as a game. Students are asked to identify and write out the eighteen pairs of homonyms pictured in the puzzle:
ad add
ball bawl
bare bear
bat bat
bowl bowl
cents scents
dough doe
eight ate
eye I
flour flower
knight night
lynx links
moose mousse
pair pear
piece peace
pitcher pitcher
sow sew
waste waist
Black and white and half-sized versions of the game board are included.
WORDOKU6 is a simplified version of my 9 x 9 word sudokus.Â
The challenge is to slot the following expressions into the 6 x 6 grid.
1 pumpkin pie
2 share
3 turkey
4 family
5 cornucopia
6 autumn
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
FOUND IT! is a game inspired by Spot it™ or Dobble™. There is always one matching expression on any two cards. FOUND IT! encourages students to concentrate, to read attentively and to pronounce the thematic vocabulary carefully.
This deck comprises 31 cards with 6 expressions or pictures per card.
Here is the vocabulary featured in FOUND IT! (The Hallowe’en deck):
autumn leaves
bat
black cat
broom
cauldron
cemetery
coffin
danger
devil
disguise
frightened
ghost
goosebumps
hat
haunted house
horror film
jack o’lantern
makeup
mask
owl
party
scar
scarecrow
scream
shiver
spider
sweets
toilet paper
trick or treat
vampire
witch
This set of twelve illustrated bingo cards - I know, I know, I should have made thirteen - is designed for language arts and ESL students. One of the two tiny bonuses is a DIY bingo card that disguises writing and spelling practice as a game.
Here is the vocabulary featured on these cards:
afraid
bat
black cat
broom
candles
cauldron
cemetery
costume
creepy
excitement
goosebumps
haunted house
incantation
jack o’lantern
little monsters
magic potion
makeup
mask
moonlight
night
owl
party
phantom
prank
pumpkin
scarecrow
scream
skeleton
spiderweb
to cast a spell
trick or treat
vampire
witch
wizard