Here are fifteen of my favourite old (and new) maxims for French students. Most are inspirational. Some are just for fun. A few are both at once. Once a few of these posters have provoked your students’ interest, ask them to find an inspirational quote of their own to illustrate. Have them include their photo in a corner of the poster. The secondary “source” of the quote tends to generate as much interest as the maxim itself. Note: The last quote has been a personal favourite since I was a student. However, this particular bit of wisdom by Michel de Montaigne is probably not appropriate for your classroom walls. I'm always grateful for (positive!) feedback.

The old-fashioned practice of writing out conjugations for mastery still works academic wonders for many students. But it’s a much-maligned approach so I’m always looking for ways to camouflage it as fun. As students solve this MOTDOKU6, they will inadvertently conjugate the present tense of CHOISIR three times. If you like this activity, please let me know and I will post more like it. . P.S. The original file had and orphan subheading for "vouloir, pouvoir & devoir" which has been corrected in this version

Thanks to Diana Martínez, a brilliant young colleague from Mexico, here is the first Spanish game in the OSLTC series. In this ¡Busquemos el tesoro escondido! game the focus is on verbs with AR endings. It will work well both as a teacher-directed game and as a small group activity. Try it to see how keen even reluctant learners are to participate and to volunteer answers. After the fun of the oral treasure hunt, simply assign some coordinates to create an instant written assignment. We've only included answer keys for three tenses but the game works in virtually every verb tense. Please note that we have opted to use Mexican Spanish wherever possible. If you like this game, we would appreciate your feedback.

WORDOKU6 (Christmas) is a simplified version of my WORDOKUs (word sudokus). The challenge is to slot the following Christmas words into the grid: 1 poinsettia 2 wreath 3 gingerbread 4 Santa Claus 5 elf 6 reindeer

These message cards are just little ice-breakers. They look a bit like QR codes until you raise them to eye level and read the “magical messages” from bottom (indicated by a number) to top.  Decades ago, these things took me forever and a day to draw by hand. But then I could legitimately challenge my students to draw a message of their own. Nowadays, I use the computer so they just take forever. However, I’ve lost the moral authority to launch my drawing challenge. But the “wow” moment when a student actually sees the message still makes it worthwhile. If you print your magical messages on card stock you can also use them as little reward records. Once my students accumulate ten stickers or stamps on the back of their magic message card, they redeem the card for a small treat or a bonus point on a future test.

This translation game combines both serious learning AND a lot of fun. But, if all goes well, it will be a bit raucous. You might want to stipulate that your runners “speed walk” rather than actually run. If you like this resource, please let me know and I will make more like it.

À l'aide de quelques petits indices, vos étudiants sauteront d’une case à l’autre pour découvrir les sept phrases cachées dans la marelle. Using a few small clues, your students will discover the seven sentences hidden in this paper hopscotch. • Le trèfle est l’emblème national de l’Irlande. • Fait surprenant: la première parade de la Saint-Patrick s'est déroulée à Boston aux États-Unis. • J’ai apporté mon trèfle à quatre feuilles à l’examen de maths alors je suis certain que j’aurai une bonne note! • Le 17 mars, ma couleur préférée est le vert, bien sûr! • Selon le folklore, embrasser la pierre Blarney vous donnera le pouvoir de parler avec éloquence. • Au-dessus de l’arc-en-ciel, tu vas trouver un énorme pot d’or caché par un petit leprechaun. • Saint Patrick, le patron des Irlandais, a chassé tous les serpents de l’Île d’Émeraude. Je vous joins une version qui utilise le mot “leprechaun” et une version qui met en vedette le mot “farfadet". Il y a un troisième fichier pour ceux et celles qui cherchent une marelle pour les apprentis lecteurs. Any and all nauseatingly fawning feedback gleefully accepted!

Thanks to their texting skills, today’s students intuit the principle behind rebus puzzles but I’ve included a “how to” guide nonetheless. To extend the lesson, ask your students to create a rebus of their own. If you’d like me to make a rebus on a specific theme, please let me know.

A five-minute filler. Thanks to their texting skills, today’s students intuit the principle behind rebus puzzles but I’ve included a “comment déchiffrer un rébus” guide nonetheless. This rebus is intended for native speakers, Immersion, Extended & advanced Core French classes.

Santa’s Resolutions for 2020 is an exemplar of a New Year’s activity. I couldn’t resist making a list of resolutions on Santa’s behalf. It will give your students some ideas, a laugh and an opportunity to try their hand by filling in resolutions 9, 10, 11 and 12. Note: This is not a new resource but an update of the resolutions that I’ve been posting since 2012.

Engage your pupils in reading (and writing) through play by printing and cutting out these puzzles for them to solve. There are separate files for puzzles in upper and lower case letters. I'm working on puzzle sets on other themes and would appreciate your feedback.

Engage your pupils in reading (and writing) through play by printing and cutting out these simple puzzles for them to solve. There are separate files for puzzles in upper and lower case letters.

In this virtual race, players have to reconstitute and recopy words that have been broken down into syllables and scattered over the game grid. Students may play individually or in pairs. The words embedded in the grid are: 1 spider 2 cauldron 3 costume 4 pumpkin 5 phantom 6 haunted 7 wizard 8 zombie 9 disguise 10 casket 11 cobweb 12 demon 13. howl Happy Hallowe'en!

WOORDOKU6 (Kerstmis) is a simplified version of my WORDOKUs (word sudokus). The challenge is to slot the following Dutch words about Christmas into the grid: 1 de kerstster 2 de kerstkrans 3 de speculaaspop 4 de Kerstman 5 het elfje 6 het speelgoed

The end of every word in this circular puzzle is also the beginning of the next word. This puzzle comprises the following words: 1 thanks 2 stuffing 3 gobble 4 blessing 5 gratitude 6 devout 7 turkey 8 yam 9 amen 10 enterntain 11 nap 12 apple 13 leaves 14 squash 15 share 16 reap 17 pies 18 serve 19 vegetable 20 leap 21 potluck 22 kitchen 23 nut Once your students have found all the overlapping words, assign a theme and invite them to work with a partner to build their own variation on the game. Happy holidays!

WORDOKU6 is a simplified version of my 9 x 9 word sudokus.  The challenge is to slot the following expressions into the 6 x 6 grid. 1 pumpkin pie 2 share 3 turkey 4 family 5 cornucopia 6 autumn Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

This simplified word sudoku ( in a 6 x 6 grid) features the following expressions: 1 chocolates 2 Cupid 3 bouquet 4 friendship 5 February 6 sweetheart

Ce MOTDOKU simplifié met en valeur le vocabulaire ci-dessous. This MOTDOKU6 is a simplified version of my 9 x9 word sudokus. Students are challenged to slot the expressions below into the grid. 1 la tarte à la citrouille 2 partager 3 la dinde 4 la famille 5 la corne d’abondance 6 l’automne Joyeuse Action de grâce à tout le monde!

Many students are reluctant to speak in the target language. Using the transcripts of popular commercials and children’s television shows, this activity builds their confidence and enthusiasm for speaking in French. • First, have the class view the whole video. • Then, assign short segments of the (tran)script to small groups of students. • Each group will listen and rehearse their lines carefully because on the second screening of the full video, the sound will be muted and they will be providing the soundtrack. (I usually schedule the second viewing a week after the first screening.) • Especially creative and motivated classes should be encouraged to include sound effects and/or background music. This file includes transcripts for videos about Halloween, l’Action de Grâce, Noël and le patin à glace. I’ve included suggestions for extending the lesson for both Immersion and Core French programmes.te

My sister and her writing partner have given me permission to share their happy new Christmas song with other teachers. So, to spark a seasonal singalong, I’ve made a karaoke version of BABY, BABY, IT FEELS LIKE CHRISTMA for your students. P.S. I’ve also included a triangle puzzle based on the lyrics and, of course, the lyric sheets. (Triangle puzzles make wonderful cooperative activities.) May your well-deserved Christmas holidays be joyful, relaxing, and . . . restorative. Merry Christmas!