1 - The Toy Shop Window ~5 mins
Imagine standing outside a bright magasin de jouets (toy shop) in Lyon. Which toy in the window would you point at first? Keep that picture in your head.
Today you will name eight French toys with le or la, then describe one using a short French sentence.
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
- Name eight toys in French with le, la or l'
- Say a short describing sentence about a toy
- Compare French board-game cafés with pastimes at home
Take four or five quick answers in English only. The aim is energy and a shared picture of a toy shop window, not a long story. Tell the class they already know colour words from the couleurs work earlier in the year, and size words such as petit and grand from earlier animal descriptions; today those join the new toy names. Do not introduce the French list yet; that lands on the flashcards next.
2 - Eight French Toys ~10 mins
You are looking into the toy-shop window. Eight toys appear one at a time.
Listen to the French first (with le, la or l'), say it with the class, then check the spelling and the English meaning.
The article is part of the word: keep it every time.
Run the flashcards on the board. Play the audio (or model yourself) first so pupils hear before they speak; class repeats each word twice, then reveal the spelling. Do not ask volunteers to guess French from English before the model. Keep this step to the eight toy names with articles only; leave the describing sentence for the next oral step.
Pronunciation guides: la balle (lah bal), la poupée (lah poo-PAY), l'ours en peluche (loors ah(n) puh-LOOSH), le cerf-volant (luh serf-voh-LAH(N)), le train électrique (luh treh(n) ay-lek-TREEK), le yo-yo (luh yoh-yoh), le puzzle (luh PEU-zl), le robot (luh roh-BOH). Warm beat: l'ours en peluche is a cuddly phrase — loors ah(n) puh-LOOSH — say it as if you are hugging the bear. For le puzzle, keep the French vowel short and rounded (PEU-zl), not the English "puh-ZEL". Recycle cue for later: colours come from the couleurs lesson; size words petit/petite and grand/grande from earlier animal descriptions.
3 - Match the Toys ~8 mins
Volunteers flip two cards on the board to find each French toy with its English meaning.
When a match is found, the whole class says the French together, article included, then a quick class cheer: Oui!
Whole-class board play with volunteers taking turns. Lead every match with a choral repeat of the full French form, then invite a one-beat class cheer (Oui!) so energy stays high. If a pair is missed twice, pause and say the French together before moving on. Keep insisting on the article: poupée alone is not enough; la poupée is the answer. Optional only if devices are already set up for tables: small groups may run the same matching set, but default to the IWB.
4 - Into Your Copy ~5 mins
Open your copy. Leave the frame on the board and write one sentence about a toy from the shop window.
Frame: C'est un / C'est une + size or colour + toy
Size bank: petit / petite · grand / grande
Colour bank: bleu / bleue · rose · rouge · vert / verte
Copy one modelled pattern, then change the toy (and size or colour if you like):
C'est un petit robot. · C'est une grande poupée. · C'est une balle bleue. · C'est un cerf-volant rouge.
You are recording a sentence you have already said, not inventing new French spelling unaided.
Pause the board after spin-and-describe. Keep the frame, size pair, colour bank and one worked example visible. Every pupil writes one full sentence from the modelled pattern, changing only the toy and optionally the size or colour. Walk the room; praise any clear attempt at the frame. Do not collect the copies. If a pupil is stuck, point at one model and ask them to swap only the toy word from today's list.
5 - Spin and Describe ~10 mins
Still in the toy-shop window. First, learn one short frame together:
C'est un / C'est une + size or colour + toy
Toy cards used le/la/l'. Describing sentences use C'est un or C'est une.
Models (class repeats):
C'est un petit robot. (It is a small robot.) · C'est une grande poupée. (It is a big doll.) · C'est une balle bleue. (It is a blue ball.) · C'est un cerf-volant rouge. (It is a red kite.)
Size bank: petit / petite · grand / grande
Colour bank (from earlier lessons): bleu / bleue · rose · rouge · vert / verte
Spin the wheel. Whisper the sentence with the class, then one volunteer says it aloud. Use C'est un… or C'est une… and add one size or one colour (both only if you feel ready).
Before any spinning, chorally drill the four model sentences. Point to the on-screen line: cards = le/la/l'; sentences = C'est un/une. Recycle briefly: colours from the couleurs lesson; petit/grande from earlier animal descriptions. Do not teach a full gender-agreement lesson; show the size pair and colour bank as pick-lists. Perfect endings are a bonus, not the pass bar.
Spin on the board. Before or after each spin, whole class whisper-says a sentence for that toy; then a named pupil or table volunteer says it aloud. Partner option: one watches the wheel, partner speaks, then swap. Scaffold stays visible: C'est un/une + size or colour + toy. If someone freezes, offer two choices (e.g. petit or bleu). Aim for eight spins so most of the set is heard in a sentence. Success: correct article in the frame, plus one size or colour word. When a full sentence lands, celebrate: Bravo, phrase complète!
Model pronunciation if needed: C'est un petit robot (seh tuh(n) puh-TEE roh-BOH); C'est une grande poupée (seh toon grahnd poo-PAY); C'est une balle bleue (seh toon bal bluh); C'est un cerf-volant rouge (seh tuh(n) serf-voh-LAH(N) roozh).
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