Archive for 'Grammar'
Follow the leader Posted by Tim Hildreth on Aug 21, 2018
This is the fourth post in my on-going series of lessons for young people from the depths of the 19th century. The French aren’t the only ones to have had interesting ideas about the roles of les garçons et les filles (boys and girls) or about how les enfants (children/kids) should behave, but these stories give us…
Recommended for vous Posted by Tim Hildreth on Aug 14, 2018
Back at the end of mai (May) / début juin (start of June) I shared a couple of contes (stories, short tales) that I found online. I shared them both because they had some good vocabulary and because I was fascinated by the morality they (attempted) to share. Both tales reflected both a simpler and a more simplistic…
The Fortunate Word I Can’t Remember How To Spell In French Posted by John Bauer on Aug 8, 2018
L’orthographe (orthography, spelling) has been a weakness of mine since l’école primaire (elementary school). That same faiblesse (weakness) came back when I learned le français. Even after graduating en France, there are words I have trouble remembering how to spell en français. Heureusement (fortunately), in the age of computers I can rely on le correcteur…
Where and When – useful expressions in French Posted by Tim Hildreth on Jun 20, 2018
Relativity isn’t just a concept in physics. Knowing the relative order of events in time, or the relative location of objects in space, is as useful here on la Terre (Earth) as it is in l’éspace (space). Fortunately French has some handy vocabulary that we can use to differentiate both. Ça se passe où? /…
Not all sugar and spice Posted by Tim Hildreth on Jun 5, 2018
Last week we read an old story designed to remind les jeunes garçons sages (good little boys) how to behave. As promised at the end of that last post, this week, we look at a similar reminder for les gentilles filles (good girls). La Mouche * Listen to how the t at the end of fort ‘runs into’ occupée. View…
If only it were that simple Posted by Tim Hildreth on May 29, 2018
My son will be 24 years old next month! He is my pride and joy, but raising a boy did have its challenges. Like many parents, I was always looking for just the right way to guide him on the path to adulthood (and to good manners, behavior, and grades!) If only I’d come across…
French Music – What happened to the shop girl? Posted by Tim Hildreth on May 15, 2018
Last week I introduced you to the French singer Bénabar, and through him, to la petite vendeuse. As I mentioned, Bénabar’s songs tell stories. And fortunately for us, sometimes those stories se retrouvent et se rejoignent (find each other and connect) in other songs. Un jeune vigile A young security guard embauche en civil au grand magasin Begins his…