Before nine o'clock this morning, how many different ways did you say hello? Think of four. English has more than you might expect: hi, hello, morning, hey...
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
- Recognise and say common French greetings
- Match each French greeting to its English meaning
- Greet a partner properly in French
Here are today's eight French greetings on the board. Listen to each one, then say it back together.
We will meet them in two short waves so they stick. Listen for the soft zh sound in Bonjour, like the s in treasure.
Watch the board. Volunteers flip two cards at a time and find each French greeting with its English meaning. When a match is found, the whole class says the French aloud together.
Freeze-frame next: your teacher will call out a situation in English. Answer together with one French greeting from today's list, meeting a teacher at 9am, seeing a friend, evening, afternoon, asking how someone is (friend or teacher), answering how you are, or meeting someone new.
Open your copy. Write four greetings you could use at school before lunch, and write the English meaning beside each one.
Tip: Bonsoir is for the evening. Pick four you could say this morning or at break. Keep the word-table on the board while you write.
You are at the school gate meeting a French pen pal, or walking into a boulangerie (bakery). Work from the three prompt cards on the board. Take turns as Partner A and Partner B, then swap after each card.
Card 1, friend at the gate
A: informal hello + ask how they are
B: short 'I'm fine' answer
Card 2, into the bakery
A and B: polite hello both ways
Card 3, meeting someone new
A: polite hello + nice to meet you
B: nice to meet you back
Unlock the full learning experience
You're previewing this lesson. Get full access to this lesson and hundreds more — each one ready to teach, with interactive activities, printable resources and pupil progress tracking built in.
This lesson is copyright of Coding Ireland 2017 - 2025. Unauthorised use, copying or distribution is not allowed.