1. French Early Level
The Weather

2. Early Level Significant Aspects of Learning
Use language in a range of contexts and across learning
Develop confidence and enthusiasm to communicate using the language being learnt
Begin to develop an awareness of other countries, cultures and languages
Listen and join in with simple songs, stories and rhymes
Explore and recognise patterns and sounds of language through listening, watching and playing
Understand, respond to and say simple greetings and personal information (e.g. name)
Repeat and understand simple familiar language from a familiar source
Actively take part in simple daily routine language
Participate in familiar games including outdoor learning
Begin to explore resources to support my learning e.g. picture dictionaries

3. Vocabulary Quel temps fait-il?
Please note: there are 6 different weather types listed but you may want to start with 3 and work your way up as learners progress.
You could start with the 3 most likely in the season you are in and then add more as the seasons change!
Quel temps fait-il? What’s the weather like?
Il fait beau It’s nice
Il fait chaud It’s hot
Il fait froid It’s cold
Il fait gris It’s grey
Il neige! It’s snowing
Il pleut It’s raining

4. Quel temps fait-il?
What is the weather like?

5. Il fait beau!

6. Il fait chaud!

7. Il fait froid

8. Il fait gris

9. Il pleut

10. Il neige!

11. Embedding the language
Ask what the weather is like in French at the start of everyday along with the date.
While learning outdoors in differing weathers, I have described and recorded the
weather, its effects and how it makes me feel and can relate my recordings to the seasons.
SOC 0-12a

12. Sample activities
You will find a bank of sample activities which you can use to practise the vocabulary in the classroom.
This is not a prescriptive list of activities and you can use or adapt them to suit the needs of your class.
You will find a set of more challenging activities in First Level Weather.

13. Quel temps fait-il? Look at the following weather pictures.
Listen to the three different weathers in French.
Can you choose which one best describes the picture?

14. Quel temps fait-il?

15. Oui! Il fait beau! 

16. Quel temps fait-il?

17. Oui! Il neige! 

18. Quel temps fait-il?

19. Oui! Il pleut! 

20. Quel temps fait-il?

21. Oui! Il fait chaud! 

22. Quel temps fait-il?

23. Oui! Il fait froid! 

24. Quel temps fait-il? Fancy dress game.
Select a range of props which match the different weather types (e.g. sunglasses, hat and scarf, warm coat, bucket and spade, umbrella etc.)
Pupils sit in a circle with all items placed in the middle.
One pupil goes to the centre.
All pupils chant, “Quel temps fait-il?”
Teacher (or pupil) calls a weather in French.
Pupil in the centre puts on an item of clothing which matches that type of weather.

25. Weather snap!
Pupils have different weather symbol cards on their desks/in a group
Class ask the question “Quel temps fail-il?”
Teacher says a weather type and they have to slap the card (or hold up the correct one!).
As they grow in confidence they can be asked to individually choose a weather.

26. Quel temps fait-il? Charades
Teacher teaches actions to each of the weather phrases e.g. shivering for cold, putting up an umbrella for rain etc.
Class chant question “Quel temps fait-il?”
Teacher then says a weather phrase and class do the mime as a group.
Pupils then take over saying the weather phrase.
Teacher then models miming a weather and pupils have to guess which one it is.
Pupils then mime for others in class.

27. Songs and videos!
You will find a bank of sample songs and videos which you can use to practise the vocabulary in the classroom.
This is not a prescriptive list of songs and you can use or adapt them to suit the needs of your class.
You will find a set of more challenging activities in First Level Days of the Week and Months.

28. Quand il neige
Quand il neige means when it snows. There are a couple of phrases included in this song which we haven’t covered at early level – Il fait du soleil and Il fait frais. You could either teach these or just do your own version of the song. Il fait du soleil means it’s sunny and Il fait frais means it’s chilly.

29. Quel temps fait-il?
Quel temps fait-il? Quel temps fait-il? Quel temps fait-il? Quel temps fait-il?
Il fait beau, beau, beau, beau
Il fait chaud, chaud, chaud, chaud
Il fait gris, gris, gris, gris
Il fait froid, froid, froid, froid
Il neige,neige, neige, neige
This is just a song I made up myself – apologies for the dodgy rendition! You can adapt this to have more/less weather. You can also do the Quel temps fait-il bit as a conga line and then stop to do actions for the types of weather (e.g. thumbs up for il fait beau etc.)

30. Au revoir!