Practicing and learning French vocabulary can get dull, especially when using vocab cards. Over time, we default to the same activities and exercises with students, which can wear our students (and ourselves) down. By keeping activities fresh and new in the classroom, we can challenge students in new ways and bring back engagement.
Here are a few French vocabulary games and activities using vocab cards that are engaging and useful.
#1 French Vocabulary Games
Who doesn’t love a classroom game? Pairing a game with French vocab cards is actually pretty simple (and your students will enjoy it). Here are three games to try –
BANG!
Take a stack of French vocabulary cards and place them face down in a pile. Students will take turns drawing a card from the pile. After a student draws a card, they will read it out loud. If they read the word correctly, they keep the card. If not, they return it to the desk. When the BANG! card is picked up, the student who drew the card must return all their cards to the pile.
This is a great one to play at a teacher station or send home as a parent activity!
Splat
Another French vocabulary game using vocab cards is Splat! Place a few cards facing up on the ground, table, or tapped to a board. Pick two students and give them a flyswatter. Pick one of the vocab words on the card and say it out loud. The first person to splat! or swat the correct word stays in the game for another round.
Petite souris, où es-tu??
Lay out a few French vocab cards on the table face up. Then, have students close their eyes while you hide a paper mouse under one of the cards. Once it’s hidden, students will say, “Petite Souris, Petite Souris où es-tu?” They will take turns guessing where the mouse is by reading the words from the cards out loud. If they correctly pronounce the word, they will lift the card. The person who finds the mouse wins!
#2 Write the Room
This is an easy activity to set up for learning French vocabulary. Place French vocab cards around the classroom where students can find them. Students will walk around the room in search of the words. When they find a word, they will practice pronouncing it and writing it. They can write the word on a worksheet or use a dry-erase board. Grab this free write the room template by clicking here!
#3 Grammar Mini-Lessons
You can also use the vocabulary cards in teacher stations or centers to practice various grammar lessons. Here are a few examples –
- Sort the cards by masculine and feminine words
- Take the words and make them plural
- Write the words in a sentence and practice using different articles (le, la, les, etc.)
#4 Science of Reading Aligned Activities
If you know about the Science of Reading, then you’ll appreciate these activities for learning French vocabulary. Here are a few activities that I find easy to use with primary students that also align with the Science of Reading –
- Orthographic Mapping – Have students locate spelling patterns within French vocab words and identify ways to spell compound sounds. I talk more about orthographic mapping in this blog post.
- Counting Sounds and Syllables – When students read, have them tap out and count the sounds and syllables. I like to do this by putting my hand to my chest, but there are tons of fun and unique ways to do this. Model it first for students, then move to We Do and You Do.
- Identifying phonemes – Choose a word at random and say it out loud. Have students identify the first sound, medial sound or last sound!
Want to try out these French vocabulary games and activities? Grab the free French vocabulary card pack! This freebie includes 54 vocabulary words.
You can also get the entire French Vocabulary Card Pack Bundle, currently filled with 20 different word packs (with plans to expand to 60 word packs). It includes word packs like le Printemps, Pâques, l’espace, le transport, les animaux du zoo, and more.
