MFL – French
Unit 11 A la mode
About the unit
In this unit pupils describe clothes
and give their opinions about
clothes. They learn how to use ‘this’
and ‘these’ with nouns and extend
their knowledge of the perfect tense.
New language content:
• demonstrative adjectives
• comparisons
• more early steps with the perfect
tense
New contexts:
• clothes and fashion
• styles and materials
• reading about clothes and
fashion for information and
pleasure
Alternative contexts: leisure
activities; comparing, stating
preferences; buying clothes;
describing places and buildings
(style, materials, changing fashions);
describing pictures, photographs,
works of art; food and drink.
This unit is expected to take
12–15 hours.
Where the unit fits in
This unit offers further
opportunities for stating
preferences. The initial use of the
perfect tense is given more scope.
The learning of comparisons builds
on the ability to describe things
learnt in previous units.
Key stage 3 schemes of work
Year 8
Expectations Out-of-school learning
At the end of this unit Pupils could:
• read fashion magazines for pleasure. This is a way for them to ‘collect’
most pupils will: read and understand descriptions of clothes and fashions
language to use in extended descriptions and presentations later in
from a range of written and spoken sources; describe people and year 9 and in key stage 4
clothes in some detail, and state preferences, giving reasons; compare
• collaborate to prepare a display of work on a given theme. Each pupil
items of clothing, giving reasons for their suitability for different could work on a specific section of the wider theme, eg sportswear for
occasions; use the perfect tense to say what they wore on different a frieze about clothes
occasions, without reliance on notes • create their own clothing catalogues using ICT, eg scanning pictures
some pupils will not have made so much progress and will: understand from magazines and pasting them into word-processing/desktop-
simple descriptions of clothes and fashions, including comparisons; publishing files, adding price labels and text descriptions
ask for items of clothing, give simple descriptions and state
preferences, using a model or other support; show some knowledge of
the difference between present and perfect tenses Future learning
some pupils will have progressed further and will: describe clothes and • This unit continues to introduce the perfect tense with avoir. Once
fashions at length and in some detail, using a wide range of vocabulary; pupils understand how to express past actions and events, they are
cope with some unfamiliar language in spoken or written material, and equipped to extend and transfer their capability to describe past
occasionally improvise actions and events in later units.
• The ability to make comparisons will be needed in other contexts.
Prior learning
It is helpful if pupils already know:
• adjectives: agreement and position
• the perfect tense with avoir with a small number of past participles
Resources
Resources include:
• fashion magazines and catalogues
• home shopping catalogues
• TV clothes and fashion programmes
• TV adverts for clothes
• access to the internet
• PCs and data-handling software
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• to use demonstrative adjectives
ce, cet, cette, ces + noun
• the concept of the h muet
• Pupils read catalogue descriptions of clothes and learn clothes-related vocabulary, • express their opinions using • Sets of these pictures can be cut out of
eg colour, style, material, expressing likes and dislikes. sentences like Je n’aime pas ce magazines collected over time, and
• Introduce in context, using clothes pictures, the notion of ce, cet, cette, ces + pull. stored in plastic wallets.
noun, revising aimer/préférer, etc to encourage pupils to express preferences. • give a full description of clothes • If there are French catalogues available
Practise in ‘clothes shop’ role plays. ▲ Pupils could explain why, eg ... parce que to read first, pupils can collect and adapt
c’est démodé. useful language from them.
• Teach and practise further qualifiers for adjectives, eg bleu clair, vert foncé, and
further descriptions, for example the cut and other features of clothes, eg à
manches courtes; à col roulé.
▲ Pupils could be taught agreement rules for these.
• Referring to design extracts from a store or mail order clothes catalogue for the
next season, pupils give written descriptions or record them on audio/video tape,
with detail varied according to their ability.
• Using an order form pupils note details of orders from a tape-recorded message.

• to use knowledge of language • Cut up a written text (separating nouns from adjectives) for pupils to reassemble, • understand a text, and aspects • Astute cutting at different points can
to interpret meaning working in pairs. Highlight rules of agreement. Discuss (in English) with class as of grammar within it, eg J’aime produce tasks of varying difficulty, eg cut
appropriate. ces chaussures blanches. at points where the syntax forms a sense
group.

• to make an extended spoken
presentation
• Pupils describe (by spoken commentary) the clothes worn in a fashion show, or by • give an extended spoken
celebrities at an event. Amount of detail and support needed will vary according to presentation, using language
pupils’ attainment. such as Elle porte un long
pantalon en soie ... and adding
opinions, eg J’aime ce pantalon
parce qu’il est très élégant.
• This is an appropriate activity to set high
standards of pronunciation, intonation
and clarity of speech and to demonstrate
good communication skills. Video-
recording helps motivation and gives a
reason for intensive rehearsals and low
reliance on notes.

Any activities marked ▲ might be better suited to higher-attaining pupils

Key stage 3 schemes of work MFL – French unit 11

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• to describe people and clothes in • Revise physical descriptions, eg of hair (styles) using ‘identikit’ overhead projector • understand and produce
greater detail
• to listen for detail
• to use language creatively
• to use French creatively in
progressively more demanding
contexts
Key stage 3 schemes of work
▲ The third activity effectively produces text
(OHP). ‘Guess who’ type game. language to describe people in in the historic present – a use of the
• Game: the names of celebrities are drawn from a list/cards. Pupils have to describe detail, eg Il a les cheuveux frisés present tense which you may want to
their hair and other physical features. – c’est rigolo. explain, drawing analogies with English if
▲ Pupils describe some features of fashion over the course of three or four decades • write or speak at length, appropriate.
for a magazine article. describing different fashions, eg
• Show a set of (full-length) pictures of celebrities from magazines, concealing all Nous sommes en 1966 – les
except the heads. Teacher or pupil describes outfits; other pupils predict who is femmes portent des jupes très
wearing what. Pupils can then prepare similar visuals for pair or group work. courtes.
▲ Pupils could simulate an interview between a journalist and a fashion designer. The
designer is describing what styles and colours are currently in fashion for various
garments.
• This could be transformed into a scripted pair-work interview, after intensive work
on question forms.
• Back-to-back pair work using cue cards of people wearing clothing of different
colours. Pupil A describes. Pupil B identifies the person from a chart.
• Pupils describe and design unsuitable fashion combinations for the unfashionable.
• Pupils select their preferred garments from a series of pictures, and describe them • give reasons for their choice, eg • Revise formation of the perfect tense
in detail, giving reasons for their preferences. Structured pair work for each to find J’ai choisi le coton, parce que le (introduced in the previous unit) and add
out what the other chooses. coton, c’est très léger. more verbs as appropriate. For ideas,
pupils can draw on the reading of
fashion/teenage magazines and trawl
fashion house and mail order catalogue
websites.
• A further related activity can be found in
Optional Tests and Tasks 8.1.
Any activities marked ▲ might be better suited to higher-attaining pupils
MFL – French unit 11
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• to understand and use
comparisons in the context of
fashion
• to use the perfect tense
creatively and cope with
unpredictable elements
8 End-of-unit activity
• to apply knowledge, skills and
understanding learnt in this unit
Ref: QCA/00/453 © Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) 2000
• Price is right game: using catalogues or adverts with the prices obscured, invite • state opinions • Show pupils how comparisons work in
pupils to guess the price, stating moins cher, plus cher as they give their price offer. • use comparatives in spoken and other known contexts. This will give
• Teach comparatives plus/moins … que using contrasting pictures. written sentences, eg J’aime ce opportunities to consolidate topics
• Using stimulus pictures, pupils select, compare and contrast qualities of various pull, mais je préfère ce pull bleu, such as school subjects, modes of
items of clothing. ▲ Pupils do more extended comparisons/contrasts of outfits. parce que la laine est plus transport, etc.
• Pupils listen to or read consumer analysis of clothes, or another product, eg types chaude que le polyester.
of car, using comparatives. • understand the pattern of
comparatives in different
contexts, eg La grande voiture
bleue est plus rapide mais moins
économique que la
camionnette.
• Describe what you (or someone whose identity you are assuming) wore and why, • use a limited number of verbs in • The amount of support needed for using
for various occasions. Pupils make notes (in French or English). the perfect tense more the perfect tense may still be substantial
• In small groups, pupils draw cards each containing an occasion, eg Noël, or date, independently and at this stage.
eg dimanche dernier. They make sentences saying what they wore for each imaginatively, eg Pour la visite • In their work in English pupils will have
occasion, comparing answers with other pupils in the group. du premier ministre, j'ai porté covered characterisation, including
• Pupils are given vouchers to buy clothes. They access a datafile containing, for un jean ... physical description of characters.
instance, information on items of clothing, eg colours, sizes, materials, prices, in • Further related activities can be found in
order to make appropriate choices. They then describe to each other or the whole Optional Tests and Tasks 8.2A, 8.2B.
class what they bought, how much they paid, etc. This can be written up, using a
word processor with clip art or scanned images to illustrate.
• Pupils hear, eg from the French assistant, or read, eg internet information, about • show understanding of a range
contemporary French fashions, not only in clothes but also other aspects of youth of spoken or written French
culture, eg which films, songs, groups, sports are currently popular; any current sources relating to youth
fads or crazes. They prepare an oral or written report on ‘Clothes’ and compare it fashions, including complex
with the British ‘scene’. sentences, and produce a
spoken or written summary,
including comparisons
Any activities marked ▲ might be better suited to higher-attaining pupils
MFL – French unit 11