Close your eyes and picture your bedroom. In English, name everything in it in ten seconds. Ready? Go!
Today we put those things into French sentences, and we say where they are: on, under or beside something else.
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
- Name eight pieces of furniture in French
- Say what is in a room and where it sits
- Notice how homes are furnished for climate and lifestyle
Time the ten-second burst with a real countdown so the energy stays high. Take two or three shouted lists only; do not correct English yet. Tell the class that room words they already know return today as places to put furniture, so they should keep words such as la chambre (lah SHAHM-bruh, the bedroom) ready.
Part 1: Here are today's eight pieces of furniture. Tap each one, listen, then say it back together. Watch the article every time (le, la or l').
Part 2: Now add where things sit. Board-edge phrases:
- sur (syoor) = on
- sous (soo) = under
- à côté de (ah koh-TAY duh) = beside
After à côté de, French contracts: use du / de la / de l' (not de le).
Frames on the board:
- Le/La/L' ___ est sur le/la/l' ___.
- Le/La/L' ___ est sous le/la/l' ___.
- Le/La/L' ___ est à côté du / de la / de l' ___.
Picture a small shuttered bedroom in Paris while you listen to the models.
Split the board. First cycle only the eight nouns with articles: tap each word; the class repeats twice (once all together, once by table). Point at the article every time so the pair is what they hear. Hook: canapé sounds a bit like café: a sofa is basically a sitting café; ask for a posh kah-nah-PAY.
Only then reveal the three position phrases. Write them on the board edge with gesture icons (hand flat for sur, hand under for sous, hand to the side for à côté de) and the pronunciation guides above so a non-specialist can model them cold.
Article after à côté de: pin a mini strip so pupils never write de le: à côté du (beside the, masculine), à côté de la (feminine), à côté de l' (before a vowel, as in l'armoire). For sur and sous keep le/la/l' as usual.
Model three full sentences chorally before you leave the step, set in a French chambre: Dans ma chambre à Paris, le lit est à côté de l'armoire (luh LEE ay ah koh-TAY duh lar-MWAHR). Then La lampe est sur le bureau (lah LAHMP ay syoor luh bew-ROH) and La chaise est sous la table (lah SHEZ ay soo lah TAH-bluh). Keep the three position words and the du / de la / de l' strip pinned for the rest of the lesson.
Keep the bedroom scene on the board beside the wheel. Spin the wheel. When it lands on a word, say the French aloud with its article, then finish the frame by pointing at a second object in the scene:
- Le/La/L' ___ est sur le/la/l' ___.
- Le/La/L' ___ est sous le/la/l' ___.
- Le/La/L' ___ est à côté du / de la / de l' ___.
Think of a small Paris apartment bedroom with shutters closed against the noon sun.
Whole class on the IWB with volunteers taking turns. Leave a fixed bedroom scene (use the step 1 image or a simple labelled sketch: lit, table, chaise, bureau, lampe, armoire, miroir, canapé) visible beside the wheel so every position has a real referent. Write the three frames in large letters, including the du / de la / de l' strip for à côté de.
Run two whole-class examples before volunteer turns: spin (or choose) la lampe, point at the desk, class says La lampe est sur le bureau; then la chaise under the table. For a beside example, use Le miroir est à côté du lit (not de le lit) or Le lit est à côté de l'armoire. Accept a bare noun once, then insist on the article: lit is not enough, le lit is. After the word is said, prompt the position with the gesture and point to the second item. If a pupil freezes, offer the start: Le canapé est… (luh kah-nah-PAY ay…).
Praise script: "Brilliant: full sentence with le/la/l'. That's the real French habit." Before leaving the wheel, do a 60-second all-class call-and-response of three position sentences so every pupil has spoken a full pattern, not only watched volunteers. This oral build feeds straight into the copy moment.
Open your copy and write two sentences saying what is in your bedroom and where it is. Use today's furniture words and a position phrase in each sentence. Take care with accents and articles.
Board help stays up: the word-table, three model sentences, the du / de la / de l' strip for à côté de, and a gapped frame Le lit est ___ la table.
Before pens up, run the 60-second whole-class oral build if you did not already close the wheel with it: point at two items in the bedroom scene, class says the full sentence together twice.
Pause the board for writing. Everyone writes; this is the only three minutes where every pupil's pen is moving. Keep the word-table, the three position phrases with the du / de la / de l' strip, and two full model sentences on screen (e.g. Le lit est à côté de l'armoire and La lampe est sur le bureau), plus one gapped example Le lit est ___ la table so accents and articles can be copied, not invented. Struggling writers may copy and adapt a model rather than invent both sentences from scratch. Look for full sentences, not bare word lists. Watch for the common slip à côté de le and redirect to à côté du. Do not collect these.
Your bingo card should already be on your desk (printed Bingo Cards PDF). Listen carefully. When you hear a furniture word, mark it on your card. First full line calls out!
Stretch round: listen for a whole shuttered-bedroom sentence, not just the noun: mark the furniture you hear.
How to Play Bingo:
Option 1: Students on Devices (Digital Version)
- Use the digital version where your teacher view of the lesson displays the cards that are being called out.
- Play the pronunciation sound of each word and the children mark it off their unique digital bingo card.
- Each student has a randomised bingo card so winners will vary!
Option 2: Print Out the Bingo Cards
- Print out the Bingo Cards from the attachment above, cut out the cards, and give one to each student.
- You call out the vocabulary words and students mark off their sheets.
- First student to complete a line (horizontal, vertical, or diagonal) calls "Bingo!" and wins.
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