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Parent guide · Grade 2 French · Unit 3

Lesson 3.1 Les Mois de l’Année

Written for the parent. The Read aloud parts are written to your child; read them as they are. Do this parts are for you. Answers for you are marked Listen for.

At a glance

Time
3 sessions of 15–20 minutes
Goal
Say the twelve months in French.; Ask and answer C’est quand, ton anniversaire?; Hear that God made a time for everything.
You need
  • A paper plate
  • Crayons, markers
  • A sketchbook or plain paper, and crayons
  • A King James Bible
Print
Worksheet A · the lesson page (it also has a short video (1:49))

Steps

  1. Do this together: What month is it now? What month is your birthday? Today you learn the months in French.

  2. Read aloud: The story. A wise king named Solomon wrote a book called Ecclesiastes. He watched the year turn round: the planting and the harvest, the cold and the heat, the weeping and the laughing. He wrote, To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven. God made the months and the seasons. January is a time for snow, May for flowers, September for school, and December for Christmas.

    Read aloud: How French sounds. French months sound a lot like English: janvier, février, mars, avril, mai, juin, juillet, août, septembre, octobre, novembre, décembre. They are written with small letters, not capitals! In août, the a is silent: OOT. In juillet, ill says y: zhwee-YAY.

    Read aloud: Say it and move. Shiver for janvier! Smell a flower for mai! Swim for juillet! Rake leaves for octobre! Clap and cheer for your birthday month!

  3. Do this: Say each word clearly; your child says it back twice. Point to a picture or the real thing when you can.

    • janvier [zhahn-VYAY]: January
    • mai [MAY]: May
    • juillet [zhwee-YAY]: July
    • décembre [day-SAHMBR]: December
    • le mois [luh MWAH]: month
    • l’anniversaire [lah-nee-vehr-SEHR]: birthday

  4. Show: My birthday is in July. Say it.

    Say this: “July is juillet.”

    Say this: “Say C’est en juillet.”

    Answer: C’est en juillet.

    Show: Which month is Noël?

    Say this: “Christmas is December 25.”

    Answer: Décembre.

  5. Do this: Ask out loud. Let your child try first; help only after a real try.

    Ask: Say January in French.

    Listen for: Janvier.

    Ask: Say May in French.

    Listen for: Mai.

    Ask: Say December in French.

    Listen for: Décembre.

    3 more on the lesson page.

  6. Read aloud: Make a family birthday wheel with the months in French.

    Steps:

    1. Divide the plate into twelve slices like a pie.
    2. A parent writes the French months in order around the edge.
    3. Draw a little picture for each month: snow, flowers, sun, leaves.
    4. Write each family member’s name in their birthday month.
    5. Ask each person C’est quand, ton anniversaire? and let them answer.

    Tips for you:

    • Color winter blue, spring green, summer yellow and autumn orange.
    • Add Noël in décembre.

    Done when your child can say:

    • My wheel has all twelve months in French.
    • I can say my birthday month.

  7. Do this: Your child picks one or more; you write the date.

    1. Copy the twelve months in your French notebook in small letters. Draw a birthday cake beside your month.

  8. Read aloud: Many French months come from Latin. Septembre once meant the seventh month, because the old Roman year began in March.

    • Writing Janvier with a capital. French months use small letters.
    • Saying all the letters in août. It sounds like OOT.

  10. Write the months on twelve cards and mix them up. Race to put them in order, saying each one in French. Time yourself and try to beat it!

  11. Say this: “Tell me what you learned today.”

    Listen for: Say the twelve months in French.; Ask and answer C’est quand, ton anniversaire?; Hear that God made a time for everything.

  12. To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

    Ecclesiastes 3:1 (KJV)

    In the French Bible of Louis Segond (1910), this verse reads: <i lang="fr">Il y a un temps pour tout, un temps pour toute chose sous les cieux:</i> God made a time for everything: the months, the seasons and the feasts. Every month is a gift from Him.

Spread over the week

3 sessions of 15–20 minutes. Stop while it is still going well.

  1. Session 1. Warm-up, then read and teach the new idea and the new words. Show how.
  2. Session 2. Practice together, then start the project. Finish the project, then the sketchbook.
  3. Session 3. Narration, the game and the Scripture.