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DELF A1: Writing a Postcard or letter in french about your vacation

DELF A1: Writing a Postcard or letter in french about your vacation

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How do you write a postcard or letter in french telling someone, such as a friend, about your vacation? This is a common question to be found on many french exam or test paper. Well this article a step by step guide on how to write a postcard or letter telling someone about your vacation.  

In the Production Ecrite section of your french exam such as the DELF A1 exam, you will be required to write a message, email or letter consisting of 40 to 50 words.  So lets begin!

How to plan your postcard or letter in french

It is possible to plan and practice various response to the possible exercises before the date of your exam.  In general, when you are writing a postcard there are certain information you may include, such as:

  • How You went
  • Where you went (montagne, plage, campagne, ville…)
  • When / with whom you went
  • Where or with whom are you staying? (à l’hôtel, chez l’habitant, dans un camping, dans un gîte…) Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4
  • What you saw or visit/did or are doing, etc
  • Are you enjoying yourself?
  • What is the weather and or the place like
  • When are you coming back?
  • Sign your name

While it is not necessary to provide all of the above information, It is important to note that DELF exam instructions, sometimes select from the list above and specifically ask you to include such information. As a result, it is important to practice different response which will include different combination of the suggestions above. The ones highlighted in red are the basics and should almost always be included in your postcard.

Writing your postcard or letter in french

Sample exercise: writing  a postcard or letter in french about your vacation.

Exercise 1                                                                                                   15 points  

Vous êtes en vacances à Nice. Vous envoyez une petite carte postale a un ami à Paris. Vous lui parlez de temps, de vous activités et vous lui donnez votre date de retour. (40 à 50 mots).

Sample letter in french about your vacation :

Bonjour Jean,

  (Word count = 49)

Sample Exercise for You!

Salut______________,

Je suis en vacances à _____________ pour _________________. C’est une ville très ______________. je visite_________________. c’est________________. Il fait______________ . Je rentrerai chez-moi _____________________.

________________

Evaluation:

  • Greetings : Bonjour Jean ( We could also use: “Salut Jean Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 ”  “ Cher Jean” . Use “Chère” only if it is a female)
  • Where you are and for how long: Je suis en vacances à Nice pour cinq jours
  • What you did or are doing: Hier, j’ai jou é au volley sur la plage . Maintenant, je prends le déjeuner dans un petit café.
  • Are you enjoying yourself? Super!
  • What is the weather and or the place like: Il fait très beau, avec beaucoup de soleil.
  • When are you coming back?:  Je rentrerai chez-moi samedi prochain.
  • Farewells: Bises ( We could also use: “ Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 A bientôt” “or “a samedi !” or “a la semaine prochaine !” or “au revoir”)
  • Sign your name: Janet

There is agreement of adjective and verb: un petit café. Plus I have used three tenses:

  • Le présent: je prends, Il fait ,
  • le passé composé: j’ai jou é
  • le futur: Je rentrerai .

I have included the specific information that they had asked for. I have also stayed within the word limit. 

Remember to stick to the word limit and follow the instructions that are given. If they want you to provide any specific information such as when you are coming back, the weather, what you visited etc this must be included in your postcard. You will lose points if this is not done.

Check for Errors

Remember to read carefully through your text. Check to ensure that plural words have a plural ending. Make sure that there is agreement between adjectives and the nouns they describe (such as une belle église , un beau chateau ). Check all to ensure that all verbs are in the right tense and that the endings match the subject (such as Je vais for the present but Je suis allé for the past ). Check to make sure you have followed the instructions and fully used all the structures that you have learnt during your study.

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Telling your holidays in French

Drrriiiiiiing !!!

It is the start of the new school year, students and learners of French are back to lessons! 

How to restart the brain gently? Telling your holidays in French is an excellent back to school exercise to keep your mind on vacation a little longer.

Vacances Actives gives you the right tips to make the start of the new school year a pleasant one that refreshes your French as a Foreign Language (FFL) skills and stimulates exchanges!

Recounting  one’s holidays: a complete linguistic exercise

Holidays, a good subject to create an exchange and integrate.

château fort Blandy-les-Tours

At the start of the school year, the first lessons of the year can impress students and it is important to facilitate dialogue between them . Whether a learner is shy or not, speaking is never an easy exercise in a new group whose members you don’t know. And the task falls to the teacher to stimulate the pupils and to encourage them to speak. Recounting your holidays in French is an excellent “ice breaker” : in turn, or as part of a two-person dialogue, the pupils share their experience and describe their holiday destination. Travel, sport, leisure, geography: so many subjects that allow students and teachers to find common points and perfect topics of conversation to facilitate their integration.

A story that mobilizes a lot of knowledge in French

“En juillet, je partis à Nice et j’ai allé à la mer”. ( = with mistakes :“In July, I left for Nice and I went to the sea”. )

Coming back from vacation can be hard for the learner’s brain. We will not hold it against him, these mistakes are very common!

First of all, recounting one’s vacation requires using the concordance of times from the past. Here is an opportunity to work on the conjugation and use of the past tense, simple and imperfect past. This exercise is not suitable for all language levels, but it can be adapted with a simplified version, using only the past tense. Here is a good introduction to discover this grammatical tense, if it is on the program for the year.  

Also, recounting one’s holidays is an opportunity to express one’s preferences, feelings and emotions . ‘I liked, I preferred, I loved, I regretted, I hated…” : so many personal formulas to testify to a moment or a pleasant or not pleasant activity. This exercise opens up many possibilities for discussion. And for those who have not had the chance to go on a trip, the exchange can be oriented towards the wish, the future desire to discover a destination, or to do a particular activity. 

chateau-vaux-le-vicomte-dome

Describing one’s holidays: a wide range of vocabulary

french essay on vacances

The description exercise is an effective way to mobilize a lot of French vocabulary words . Many lexical fields can be used, depending on the activities and the destination in question. It is a good idea to provide students with vocabulary sheets to help them describe their vacation. The sea, the mountains, the countryside, sport, leisure, transport, accommodation, weather, geography, etc. are among the main themes that can be used for this exercise. 

In particular, very dense vocabulary supports can be found on the site: https://www.lepointdufle.net/pseigner/lexique_vacances-fiches-pedagogiques.htm#h

Exercise materials to tell about one’s holidays in French

Orally: a set of questions relating to the holidays.

In pairs or in the form of a group forum, the exercise which consists of recounting one’s holidays can be easily set up with a set of questions . It is true that at the resumption of lessons, learners generally have difficulty finding their words and developing a speech in front of others. It is up to the teacher to guide them through a framework of dialogue:

french essay on vacances

  • Did you go on vacation this summer? 
  • Where did you go? 
  • At what period? How long ? 
  • With whom did you go)? 
  • How did you spend your time? What activities? What visits have you made? 
  • Have you had any meetings? (a question open to several interpretations!)
  • Did you speak French during the holidays? 
  • What do you plan to do for the next vacation?

If the speaking is still too timid and the students are not very verbose on the subject, then an ultimate exercise can help them. The idea is to ask them to identify which student in the group has had a vacation most like theirs ! As a result, the pupils question the others in the form of a game and discover a maximum of common points. A good way to untie tongues.

In writing: essay or travel diary

For higher French as a foreign Language (FFL) levels, it is interesting to work on written expression on this question. In writing, an essay for example, the story of the holidays can be developed further but the exercise will lose its interactive and playful side. 

On the other hand, to tell their vacation, students can rely on their travel diary. This can be used as “summer homework”. The travel journal is a very effective activity for working on students’ written expression and creativity. We have devoted a generous article to it with tips and suggestions: Create your linguistic travel diary. Some teachers go so far as to organize contests within the class!

french essay on vacances

The postcard exercise

Writing a postcard is a tradition that is being lost… It is an opportunity to revive it and to suggest that the pupils tell their holidays in French in a reduced format. It only takes a few minutes for learners to address the postcard to the person of their choice.   This approach is well suited to the first levels of FLE: it allows students to give a synthetic account of their adventures. Borrowing in the telegraphic style or with a more literary tone, they use a few well-chosen words to quickly describe the destination and give their impressions. 

The teacher can play the game to the end by printing a nice photo in the appropriate format to illustrate the vacation destinations of his students, or provide a set of ready-to-use postcards!

french essay on vacances

Tell your holiday stories on Instagram !

Why not do this exercise on social media? Teachers, you can create an Instagram account dedicated to your class, and start the exercise. Students should choose and post a photo and then write a clear description. Destination, anecdotes, exciting visits… The end result: an aesthetic and complete picture illustrating the holidays for the whole FFL class, to show and share!

french essay on vacances

Summer peregrinations are an excellent topic of conversation and story to mobilize knowledge and develop French vocabulary. 

The exercise can very well be applied when returning from a language study trip, where each of the learners will share an anecdote or an opinion on the trip made. 

So many good ideas to encourage travel and learning French!

Normandy travel diary, from Cherbourg to Rouen

How to visit paris during the 2024 olympic games, learn french language wit french cuisine, the perfect match, privacy overview.

Complete Guide to French Vacation ⛱

Author: Camille Chevalier-Karfis

Learn the French vacation vocabulary + French to describe your holidays in France + Vacation dates and zones in France + tips form a French native.

Vacation, in French “les vacances” (always plural), is at the heart of the French culture.

With 5 weeks paid vacation for French employees, and a total of 16 weeks of vacation for French school students, France sure values her holidays.

1 – French Holiday Vocabulary

  • bonnes vacances! = have a good holiday!
  • bon voyage! = have a good trip!
  • bonne route! = have a safe journey!
  • les grandes vacances = school summer break
  • partir en vacances = to go on holiday/vacation
  • aller au soleil = to go under the sun
  • aller à la mer = to go by the beach
  • aller à la montagne = to go to the mountains (usually to ski, but maybe to hike)
  • Faire ses valises = to pack
  • Défaire ses valises = to unpack
  • On est allés… We went… à l’hôtel – in a hotel dans un club de vacances – in a resort dans un camping – in a camping dans une auberge de jeunesse – in a youth hostel dans un gîte / une chambre d’hôte – in a B&B chez des amis – at some friend’s house.
  • le départ – departure
  • l’arrivée – arrival
  • le trajet – the trip
  • le voyage – the trip
  • la douane – customs
  • l’immigration – immigration
  • la frontière – the border
  • un passeport – passport
  • un billet d’avion – plane ticket
  • un ticket de train – train ticket
  • une réservation – booking

vacation french phrases poster

2 – Expressing What Went Well or Poorly During Your Vacation in French

  • On a vu… = we saw
  • Le voyage/tout… s’est bien / mal passé = the trip/everything… went well / poorly
  • La circulation était fluide / dense = traffic was fluid / dense
  • L’avion/ le train était à l’heure / en retard = the plane / the train was on time / late
  • La chambre (n’) était (pas) très confortable = the room was very comfortable (or not)
  • La vue était superbe / moche (slang) = the view was great / ugly
  • La nourriture était délicieuse / dégueulasse (slang) = the food was delicious / awful
  • Il a fait beau / mauvais = the weather was nice / bad
  • Il a fait (trop) chaud / froid = the temperature was (too) hot / cold
  • Le musée était ouvert / fermé = the museum was open / close
  • On a perdu nos valises = we (or someone else) lost our suitcases
  • On a été volé = we were robbed
  • J’ai été malade = I was sick
  • Il y avait des grèves = there were strikes
  • Le vol a été annulé = the flight was canceled

3 – Paid Vacation in France

The French are known to take a lot of vacations, especially if you compare them to the Americans! But is this “five weeks of paid vacation” myth really true?

Yes it is. According to Le Journal du Net, French employees take even more vacation time than that, with an average of 37 days per year, or 5.2 weeks (in 2012). There is quite a difference between French workers: a public office manager takes an average 7.4 weeks of paid vacation, versus a farm worker/ artisan who takes 4.6 weeks.

So who doesn’t take this much vacation in France? Self employed people… Shop owners, small businesses and startups – believe me, not everybody takes 5 weeks vacation in France!

However, it’s true that in general, the French really enjoy a lot of vacation time: don’t go to France in August and expect to do a lot of shopping! A lot of stores close in August – and actually in January as well, especially in smaller countryside towns.

french essay on vacances

An audio novel for all levels. Explore Paris with modern, lively and realistic dialogues

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4 – School Vacation and School Breaks Dates in France

French kids enjoy 16 weeks of vacation (+ all the long weekends and official holidays…)

The French school vacation is divided as follows:

  • France’s Summer break: “les grandes vacances”, July and August, so 8 weeks total.
  • France’s Fall vacation: “les vacances de la Toussaint”, mid October, 2 weeks.
  • France’s Christmas break: “les vacances de Noël”, mid December, 2 weeks.
  • France’s Winter vacation: “les vacances d’hiver”, zone dependant*, February, 2 weeks.
  • France’s Spring break: “les vacances de printemps”, zone dependant*, April, 2 weeks.

5 – What is the French Vacation “Zone” System?

Since 1964, France is divided into “zones” to facilitate the departure of students for vacation : France is cut into three zones (A, B, C) and the vacation time spread over one month so that there is enough room for everybody in the ski stations! I am NOT kidding…

So now, every single French household with kids has to check out this map to know which zone they now belong to, and when the vacation for their kid is going to be. And forget about meeting your Parisians cousins for the vacation if you live in Brittany… you are not in the same zone, which means you won’t have the same vacation date.

So practical!

French School Vacation Vocabulary

For more info and exact French vacation dates, go to the French School Vacation Government Site .

6 – Watch Out For Ticket Prices and Driving in France During School Vacation

Of course, as soon as you hit the vacation starting / ending dates, France is in a gridlock. We call them: “les journées noires” (black days) and you should not plan on driving during these days if you don’t want to be stuck in endless traffic-jams (“les embouteillages”, “les bouchons”).

Train and plane tickets, room prices, all goes up as well.

So it’s a good thing to know about the French school vacation dates before you plan your next trip to France!

7 – French Speaking Vacation Tip – Think Club Med!

Lots of French students want to practice their French during their vacation. It’s a good idea, however:

  • you have to pick your location carefully (read my article about vacationing in France )
  • you need to make sure you get people to talk to – it’s not always easy to strike up a French conversation with perfect strangers… This is why I recommend you check out my immersion at French Teacher’s house programs .

However, your family may not speak French, or share your enthusiasm to visit France over and over again… Or going to France maybe too far, too complicated… So why not try “Club Med”?

As a French organization, many people speak French there, and you’ll be surrounded by a lot of French guests. Even in Florida, or the Caribbeans…

Club med now has “family” clubs, which are kid friendly – although not everybody may agree on what is PC around kids! The evening shows may be viewed as “too risqué” for very conservative families, so be aware that with French speaking people, you’ll also get a bit of French culture, humor, attitude…

 French Vacation Vocabulary

8 – How do You Say “How Was Your Vacation” in French?

This is more tricky than it sounds. First, you have to memorize that the French word for vacation is always plural: les vacances, mes vacances, des vacances… The verb and adjectives will also have to be plural to match “les vacances”.

Then, to ask “how was your vacation” (or rather how were your vacations in French…) we don’t use the same construction.

  • In formal French, we say: “comment se sont passées tes/vos vacances”?

Or you can use a statement and turn it into an informal question:

  • “Vos/tes vacances se sont bien passées?”
  • Another way is to switch it around: “vous avez / tu as passé de bonnes vacances ?”

I suggest you pick one and learn it by heart to use it yourself, but you need to know the three formulas because they are very, very common in French.

Of course, one can get creative and say: “tes/vos vacances, c’était bien ?”. It’s much simpler, but less used in French!

9 – How do You Answer “My Vacation was…” in French?

Here again, you have to watch out to keep your answer in the plural.

Your answer usually “matches” the formality of the question, but it’s not set in stones.

  • Mes vacances se sont (très) bien/mal passées – My vacation was (very) good/bad.
  • J’ai passé de (très) bonnes / mauvaises vacances – I had a (very) good / bad vacation.

or, much easier:

  • C’était super / nul – It was great / really bad.

10 – How to say Where You Went / Are Going on Vacation in French?

[ftimmersion_ad]

You’ll start by using “aller” or “partir”.

In the past, both form their passé-composé with “être” :

  • Je suis allé(e), je suis parti(e) – I went, I left
  • Nous sommes allé(e)s, nous sommes parti(e)s – we went, we left

In the future, we tend to use the near future construction:

  • Je vais aller, je vais partir – I’m going to go, I’m going to leave
  • Nous allons aller, nous allons partir – we’re going to go, we’re going to leave

Then, what follows get complicated… I’ll sum it up here, but read my articles to know more about the French prepositions of place and how to say the date in French .

  • Use à + city, en + feminine country, au + masculine country, aux + plural country. Je suis allée à Paris, en France, au Japon, aux Bahamas.
  • Use en + month Je vais aller en France en juillet.

Voilà, I hope this is helpful. To learn more about French vacation vocabulary, the best is to learn in context: I suggest you check out my “ Une Semaine à Paris ” and “ Une Semaine à Paimpol ” downloadable French audiobooks, featuring:

  • A fun and reachable French story, full of useful everyday vocabulary and situations, and its English translation.
  • A story recorded at 2 speeds: a bit slower than normal and street French (normal for the French and featuring modern pronunciation and glidings).
  • A Q&A section to practice your French out loud and check your understanding of the story.

I post new articles every week, so make sure you subscribe to the French Today newsletter – or follow me on  Facebook , Twitter  and  Pinterest .

Camille Chevalier-Karfis

Born and raised in Paris, I have been teaching today's French to adults for 25+ years in the US and France. Based on my students' goals and needs, I've created unique downloadable French audiobooks focussing on French like it's spoken today, for all levels. Come to Paimpol and enjoy an exclusive French immersion homestay with me in Brittany .

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Raconter ses vacances d'été en français

raconter ses vacances d'été

Phrases en français pour apprendre à décrire et à raconter ses vacances d'été :  

Description de la plage en français
Dialogue entre deux amis sur les vacances
Les bases en français pour voyager
Phrases en français pour les vacances d'été

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50+ French Vacation Words and Phrases (With Audio)

Whether you enjoy the feel of seawater and hot sand or the crisp mountain air, there’s nothing like a relaxing vacation.

However you choose to vacation, wouldn’t you love to do it all in French?

Here are 50+ useful French vacation vocabulary words and phrases , with example sentences so you can use them correctly in context.

So grab that passport and let’s get started!

French Vacation Vocabulary for a Smooth Trip

Talking about vacation plans, vacation accommodation, modes of transport, vacation activities, tips to learn vacation vocabulary, drill flashcards before your trip, visualize the vocabulary, watch authentic french videos, start using the words in your own sentences, and one more thing....

Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)

french essay on vacances

This topic will require you to get comfortable with some basic interrogatives in French .

Common questions and answers

  • où ? (where?)
  • quand ? (when?)
  • avec qui ? (with whom?)
  • Comment voyages-tu ? (How are you traveling?)
  • Je vais au / à la…  (I’m going to…)
  • pendant (during)

Vacation seasons

  • les vacances de Noël ( Christmas vacation )
  • les vacances d’été ( summer vacation , also known as les grandes vacances )
  • les vacances d’hiver ( winter vacation )
  • les vacances de printemps ( spring vacation )
  • les vacances de la Toussaint ( fall vacation ; All Saints)

Example sentences

Où vas-tu en vacances ? (Where are you going on vacation?)

Je vais à la plage / à la montagne / à l’étranger. (I’m going to the beach/to the mountains/overseas.)

Quand iras-tu en vacances ? (When will you go on vacation?)

Je voyagerai pendant les vacances d’été. (I will travel during the summer vacation.)

Avec qui allez-vous voyager / vas-tu voyager ? (Who are you going to travel with?)

french essay on vacances

Places people stay on vacation

  • un hôtel (a hotel)
  • une auberge de jeunesse (a youth hostel)
  • un club de vacances (a resort)
  • un camping (a camping ground)
  • un appartement (an apartment)
  • un gîte (a holiday home/cottage)
  • une chambre d’hôtes (a bed and breakfast)

Phrases for making a reservation

  • Je voudrais une chambre (I would like a room…)
  • salle de bains (bathroom)
  • pour une / deux / trois / quatre personnes   (for one/two/three/four people)
  • du… au… (from [date] to [date])

Je voudrais une chambre pour deux personnes avec salle de bains du 5 août au 12 août. (I would like a room for two with a bathroom from August 5 to August 12.)

Pour mes vacances, je vais loger dans un hôtel. (For my vacation I am going to stay in a hotel.)

Je logerai dans une auberge de jeunesse. (I will stay in a youth hostel.)

L’année dernière, j’ai logé dans un camping. (Last year, I stayed in a camping ground.)

french essay on vacances

Getting to your destination

  • en avion (by plane)
  • l’aéroport (airport)
  • en bateau (by boat)
  • en train (by train)
  • la gare (the station)
  • le billet (the ticket)
  • aller-retour (round trip)

Getting around your vacation spot

  • en métro (by subway)
  • en bus (by bus) 
  • en taxi (by taxi)
  • à pied (on foot)

Comment vas-tu en Belgique ? En avion ou en train ? (How are you going to Belgium? By plane or by train ?)

Où est l’aéroport, s’il vous plaît ? (Where is the airport, please?)

Je cherche la gare. (I am looking for the train station .)

À quelle heure est le départ de l’avion ? (What time does the plane leave?)

Combien coûte le billet pour Nice ? (How much does the ticket to Nice cost?)

Je voudrais un aller-retour pour le train qui va à Marseille. (I would like a return ticket on the train going to Marseille.)

french essay on vacances

This topic is a great opportunity to pick up common French nouns and verbs . There are hundreds of activities that you can add to your vocabulary list. Some common ones include:

  • faire de la planche à voile (to windsurf)
  • faire du lèche-vitrine (to go window-shopping )
  • bronzer (to suntan)
  • aller au restaurant (to go to the restaurant)
  • nager (to swim)
  • faire du ski (to ski)
  • faire une randonnée (to go hiking)
  • faire du vélo (to cycle)
  • visiter des monuments / des musées (to visit monuments/museums)
  • participer à une visite guidée (to join a guided tour)

Try to use this vocabulary with different tenses!

Aujourd’hui, je voudrais aller à la plage pour bronzer. (Today, I would like to go to the beach to suntan.)

Hier, je suis allé(e) faire du vélo en montagne. (Yesterday, I went cycling in the mountains.)

Demain, j’irai au restaurant avec mes amis. (Tomorrow, I will go to the restaurant with my friends.)

french essay on vacances

One of the best parts of going on a holiday in France is getting to eat out and sample food. So, food vocabulary should be in the cards. We’ll give you the basics for a vacation— for an in-depth guide to restaurant vocabulary in French, check out this article.

  • le repas (the meal)
  • le petit déjeuner (breakfast)
  • le déjeuner (lunch)
  • le dîner (dinner)
  • la salle à manger (the dining room)
  • le restaurant (restaurant)
  • Qu’est-ce que vous recommandez aujourd’hui ? (What do you recommend today?)
  • le plat du jour (today’s special)
  • Je voudrais… (I would like…)
  • L’addition, s’il vous plaît. (The check, please.)

À quelle heure est le petit déjeuner ? (What time is breakfast ?)

Comme dessert, je voudrais la crème caramel. (For dessert, I would like the crème caramel.)

Recommandez-vous le plat du jour ? (Do you recommend today’s special?)

Je voudrais des escargots. (I would like some snails.)

Make flashcards for the words above and go through them periodically before your trip. You don’t even need to carry around a stack of index cards—there are apps like Quizlet for creating flashcards online and even playing games to test yourself.

French vacation words tend to be highly visual, so consider  making mind maps , or visual diagrams that represent the words you want to learn. There are many examples of mind map templates online.

You can also create a memory palace . The idea of this memorization device is to visualize a location—say, your childhood home—and populate it with the relevant vocabulary. For example, you could visualize a building and each hallway, room or object would be associated with a word you wish to remember.

It’s a great technique for visual learners to create context for seemingly isolated terms.

The best way to remember any new French vocabulary is to learn it in context. And one of the best ways to do that is to watch videos in French from French sources. You can easily find French TV shows and movies on streaming services like Netflix. If you prefer shorter videos, you can find French videos about all sorts of topics on YouTube.

FluentU New iOS App Icon

FluentU is another way to hear French how it’s spoken in actual French-speaking regions. It’s a language learning program that uses authentic videos with interactive subtitles as the core of its lessons, along with active learning features like flashcards and quizzes.

The videos on FluentU are sorted by topic, so you can easily find media that’s related to travel, such as news clips about French vacation habits or video tours of French open-air hotels.

You’ll be using the words and phrases below with real French speakers throughout your vacation. So, why not start practicing now?

For example, don’t just learn the word nager (to swim). Start creating sentences, like:

Où est la plage ? J’aimerais nager cet après-midi. (Where is the beach? I would like to swim this afternoon.)

Savez-vous nager ? (Do you know how to swim?)

To ensure your own sentences actually make sense, you can use a grammar checker like Bon Patron . 

Now that you’ve used all the tools and resources at your fingertips and you’ve prepared everything for your vacation, you’re ready to go.

Use your new vocabulary as often as you can and you’ll become good at communicating and recognizing repeated words.

Bonnes vacances ! (Have a good vacation!)

FluentU has a wide variety of great content, like interviews, documentary excerpts and web series, as you can see here:

learn-french-with-videos

FluentU brings native French videos with reach. With interactive captions, you can tap on any word to see an image, definition and useful examples.

learn-french-with-movies

For example, if you tap on the word "crois," you'll see this:

practice-french-with-subtitled-videos

Practice and reinforce all the vocabulary you've learned in a given video with learn mode. Swipe left or right to see more examples for the word you’re learning, and play the mini-games found in our dynamic flashcards, like "fill in the blank."

practice-french-with-adaptive-quizzes

All throughout, FluentU tracks the vocabulary that you’re learning and uses this information to give you a totally personalized experience. It gives you extra practice with difficult words—and reminds you when it’s time to review what you’ve learned.

Start using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)

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french essay on vacances

FrenchLearner.com

One of the most exciting things to do in life is take a trip. Here you’ll find a complete French conversation lesson with questions all about different trips you’ve taken. Click here for the downloadable PDF !

  • As‐tu déjà voyagé dans ton pays de naissance? Quels endroits est‐ce que tu as visité? Have you traveled in the country where you were born? Which places have you visited?
  • As‐tu déjà voyagé à l’étranger? Quels pays est‐ce que tu as visité? Have you traveled abroad? Which countries have you visited?
  • Combien de pays as‐tu visité? Combien d’ états ou provinces (au Canada)? How many countries have you visited? How many states and Canadian provinces have you visited?
  • As-tu deja voyagé dans un pays francophone ou tu as pu utiliser ton français ? Have you ever traveled to a French speaking country where you could use your French?
  • Apprends-tu le francais avec l’objectif de faire des voyages? Are you learning French with the goal to travel?
  • As‐tu récemment voyagé? Où es‐tu allé(e)? Have you taken a trip recently? Where did you go?
  • Où est‐ce que tu iras pendant tes prochaines vacances ? Avec qui est‐ce que tu voyageras et combien de temps vas‐tu passer dans l’endroit? Where will you go for your next vacation? Who
  • will you travel with and how long will you spend there?
  • As‐tu fait des voyages quand tu étais un(e) enfant ? Où es‐tu allé(e)? Did you travel when you were a child? Where did you go?
  • As‐tu déjà voyagé dans ta propre région? Connais‐tu bien la région où tu habites? Have you traveled in the region where you live? Do you know the region well?
  • Quand as‐tu fait ton premier voyage à l’étranger? As‐tu eu peur de quitter ton pays la première fois ? When did you take your first trip overseas? Were you afraid to leave your country for the first time?
  • As‐tu déjà fait un voyage tout(e) seul(e)? Où es‐tu allé(e) et as‐tu eu peur de voyager seul(e)? Have you ever taken a trip alone? Where did you go and were you afraid to travel alone?
  • Aimerais‐tu passer le reste de ta vie à l’étranger? Would you like to spend the rest of your life abroad?
  • Peux‐tu te rappeler d’un voyage que tu as vraiment aimé? Où es‐tu allé(e)? Can you remember a trip that you really liked? Where did you go?
  • Peux‐tu te rappeler d’un voyage que tu n’as pas aimé? Ou est‐tu allé(e)? Can you remember a trip that you didn’t like? Where did you go?
  • Préfères‐tu voyager seul(e) où dans un groupe avec un guide? Pourquoi? Do you prefer to travel alone or in a group with a guide?
  • As‐tu déjà fait un voyage en train? Où es-tu allé? As‐tu aimé le train? Have you ever traveled by train? Where did you go? Did you like the train?
  • Aimes‐tu prendre l’avion ou as-tu en a peur? Do you like to take airplane or are you afraid?
  • T’es-tu déjà perdu(e) au voyage? Raconte l’histoire! Have you ever gotten lost on a trip? Tell the story!
  • As‐tu déjà fait de l’auto‐stop? Raconte l’aventure! Have you ever done hitch-hiking? Tell the adventure!
  • Préfères‐tu voyager avec peu ou beaucoup de baggages? Do you prefer to travel with little or a lot of luggage?
  • Aimes‐tu faire du camping et faire de la randonnée? Où as tu fait un tel voyage? Do you like camping or hiking? Where have you taken such a trip?
  • Quels pays rêves‐tu encore de visiter dans ta vie ? Quels pays est‐ce que tu n’aimerais pas visiter? Which countries do you still dream of visiting in your lifetime? Which countries do you not want to visit?
  • Que dois-tu apporter quand tu visites un pays étranger? What do you have to bring with you when you visit a foreign country?
  • Quelle est ta ville préférée? Quand as‐tu visité cette ville ? Aimerais‐tu vivre là‐bas? What is your favorite city? When did you visit this city? Would you like to live there?
  • Aimes‐tu acheter des souvenirs quand tu voyages? Qu’aimes-tu acheter? Do you like to buy souvenirs when you travel? What do you like to buy?
  • Quel est l’endroit le plus beau que tu aies visité? What’s the most beautiful country that you’ve visited?
  • As‐tu déjà fait une croisière? Où es‐tu allé(e)? Have you ever taken a cruise? Where did you go?
  • Aimes‐tu revisiter les mêmes endroits? Do you like to travel back to the same places?
  • As‐tu déjà voyagé en première classe? Have you ever traveled in first class?
  • En général où vont les gens de ton pays vont en vacances? In general, where do people from your country go for vacation?
  • Habites‐tu dans une région touristique? D’où viennent les touristes qui visitent ta région? Do you live in a touristic region? Where do the people come from who visit your area?
  • Si tu avais $100,000 et tu pouvais aller n’importe où, où est‐ce que tu irais? If you had $100,00 and you could go anywhere, where would you go?

French conversation | Lessons by David Issokson

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David Issokson

David Issokson is a lifelong language learner and speaks over seven languages. Of all the languages he speaks, he's the most passionate about French! David has helped hundreds of students to improve their French in his private lessons. When not teaching or writing his French Word of the Day lessons, David enjoys his time skiing, hiking and mountain biking in Victor, Idaho.

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La fin des vacances

french essay on vacances

Lucie interviews Cynthia at the end of the summer about her recent holiday [US: vacation] and her plans for going back to school... After listening to the audio, click any word for the English translation and links to related grammar lessons.

  • Kwiziq interactive readers are great way to practice your reading skills without getting lost. Click on any phrase for the English translation and related French grammar lessons , that you can study now or add to your Notebook." data-tooltip-theme="tooltipster-generic" data-tooltip-interactive="true">What's this?
  • More French reading practice

Click any word in the text to see its translation and related grammar lessons.

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Les Vacances – Free French Listening Practice for A2 and GCSE

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Les Vacances – Free French Listening Practice for A2 and GCSE

Want to practise your French listening skills on the topic of ‘les vacances’/’holidays’ at CEFR A2/B1 or GCSE/iGCSE French level with activities and a copy of the transcript? Read on!

Below, you will find a link to our ‘les vacances’ video with an introduction from me (Sabina) and an interview type set up of questions with Enrika. Enrika is a native French speaker. This A2/B1, iGCSE and GCSE French listening practice video is perfect for French teachers to assign to their class as additional homework. It can be used in lessons, as the questions are at a level these students should understand to a degree. I have created this authentic French listening practice materials to help students practise their French listening skills, develop their vocabulary base, as well as practise their communication skills.

Having taught French in secondary schools, I have noticed a distinct lack of useful, targeted French listening practice materials. So, I have developed a selection of audio-visual clips for students and teachers to use, with or without the video. There are accompanying worksheets and transcripts available for download below too. Whilst they are free, I have paid for the content to be created and it has taken time to edit the video and write this post. If you find it useful, please do consider 

Who is this French listening practice aimed at? 

It is an ideal French listening practice resource for advanced beginner / pre-intermediate French students looking for extra listening materials for their GCSE, iGCSE, CEFR A2 and B1 studies. Although I have created it with my GCSE French students as listening practice, you can use it with adaptation for French students at KS3 or KS4, Scottish National 4, as well as CEFR A2. 

What does this ‘les vacances’ French listening practice audio-video clip include? 

This blog post and authentic audio-visual French listening clip is covers the topic of ‘les vacances’ / ‘holidays’ with references to present, past and future time frames. You will hear all about the topic of holidays from Enrika, a native French speaker who hails from Paris. She is in her friend’s (Amina) apartment and is being posed ten questions which she replies to.

INTRODUCTION: In this video, there is a 4.20 minute introduction from Sabina (me). I am an experienced and qualified secondary French teacher and tutor with excellent results. I give a brief summary of the video content and suggest some useful activities which French students can do whilst listening to/watching the audio clip. 

MAIN CLIP: Includes Enrika answering ten questions on the topic of les vacances.

This video not only offers a great opportunity to learn more about the topic of holidays through listening practice for CEFR A2/B1 students and French GCSE/iGCSE students. In addition, it enables advanced beginners, pre-intermediate French students to discover new verbs, nouns and adjectives too. Check it out here:

Additional Listening Practice Material for This Audio-Visual Clip

To support your listening skills, why not listen to the audio/ watch the clip whilst trying the accompanying activities below? I have created the listening practice for GCSE French students, advanced beginner/pre-intermediate French learners, as well as CEFR A2/B1 level French students. However, all French learners are welcome to use this original material on the topic of holidays.

Les Vacances Listening Practice Worksheets 

If you’ve found the video or the activities useful, please do consider buying me a coffee . I don’t have expensive taste so enough for an espresso or an Americano would be so appreciated. 

Download your FREE copy of the PDF Worksheet To Accompany Les Vacances in French Listening Practice Video above by clicking the yellow image below:

Download Worksheet for Audio Visual Clip

Download your FREE copy of the PDF Les Vacances in French Listening Practice Transcript by clicking the pink image below:

french essay on vacances

Want more FREE French listening practice for GCSE? Check out my other French content on the website. It is packed with vocabulary activities and listening practise on various GCSE / iGCSE topics for French learners at CEFR A2 level.

Why not check out The Ideal Teacher Language School’s YouTube Channel (and subscribe, of course!) for more French listening practice for beginner and intermediate students?

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TALK ABOUT HIS VACATIONS IN FRENCH

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In this video, I tell you about my vacation in French. The goal is to show you how I talk about my vacation so that you can be inspired to do the same. Telling your vacation story is a great exercise to improve your French.

Test your understanding of the video. Take the quiz about my vacations in Bulgaria!

  • She already lives in Bulgaria, she came by car.
  • We arrived at the same time
  • We ordered a drink.
  • We ordered dishes.
  • I told my friend about my day.
  • We talked about the program of our three-day stay in Sofia.
  • Hitchhiking
  • A monastery
  • The castle of the former queen of Romania
  • A monument of the communist era
  • A medieval fortress
  • Dining in restaurants
  • Eating ice cream
  • A Bulgarian cocktail
  • The plovdiv, a Bulgarian specialty
  • A Bulgarian yogurt
  • Fish caught on the island

Hello to all of you. I hope that you are doing well and that your learning of French is going well.

So today, I will tell you about my vacations in French. The goal of this video is for you to learn new expressions, new phrases, new vocabulary so that you too can tell your vacation in French. Don't hesitate to comment the words or expressions you don't understand so that I can explain them to you. You can also go to www.hellofrench.com to find the transcript of the video, so the text of the video, the vocabulary associated with the video, so I'll explain all the useful words to tell your vacations in French. And also, you can find a quiz to test your understanding of what I'm going to tell you about my vacations. Last year, I went on vacation in Bulgaria. I went with a friend. We made a road trip in the whole country by car. I I left Paris so I have flew in in Paris to go to Sofia and my friend was taking off of Brussels.

I was the first to arrive at the airport of Sofia. Once I have retrieved my suitcase I have been buy a metro ticket to go to the city center . Once in the center of Sofia, I used Google Maps to find the hotel that we had booked. At the hotel, I went to the reception and I spoke with the person at the front desk who gave me the keys to the room and who also gave me a map of the city.

We talked a bit, she told me about the sites to visit , of bars of restaurants that could be nice. I took advantage of the day by myself to walk around, to start visit the city waiting for my friend. In the evening, when she joined me, we went to a restaurant that I had booked during the day. We started by having a cocktail and I was able to tell him about my discoveries about the city. We spent three days in Sofia visiting the different cultural sites: museums, churches, parks and to walk around.

We also have tasted to many local specialties . At the end of the three days, we then rented a car to begin to visit the country and especially go to the sea . On the way to the sea, we stopped to visit different villages, different towns or monuments .

For example, we stopped in a town called Veliko Tarnovo to visit a medieval fortress. We also visited on top of a hill a monument dating from the communist era that looked like a huge flying saucer . Once we arrived at the sea, we stopped in the city of Balchik.

It is a very touristic city, because there is a castle, the castle of the former queen of Romania. She used to spend her vacations at the sea in this city. The castle is surrounded by a huge botanical garden and both the gardens and the castle overlook the beach and the sea. It is really beautiful. Then we went to a seaside resort for a few days. The goal was really to enjoy the beach. So we mostly tanned always with Sunscreen and an umbrella .

In the evening, we made walks by the sea and we dined in restaurants having cocktails or eating ice cream on the seaside. We then went to an island or rather a peninsula. It is a very very tourist But once we found some small streets with calm, it was really very pretty. So, we spent one evening on this peninsula where we had dinner in a restaurant which overhung the sea.

It was really beautiful and above all, we could taste our first and famous Bulgarian yogurt. It was really delicious. Then, we took the car again and we went for two days in the second biggest city of the country, Plovdiv. There was not much to visit, but we liked the atmosphere very much. There were a lot of young people, a lot of small bars, small restaurants on the terrace. Then, we took the car back to Sofia to return the car to the rental agency.

We then took advantage of the few hours we had left to go back to the places we had loved before going back to the airport to take our flights .

I hope you enjoyed this video, that you were able to learn some new vocabulary about the vacations. New words. Feel free to like this video if you liked it and follow the channel to see other videos. See you soon and have a good vacation!

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5 Ways to Vacation Like the French

What a decade of living in france taught one traveler about the art of taking time off..

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5 Ways to Vacation Like the French

Step one: Rent a house in the country.

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W hen she moved from Philadelphia to Paris in 2006, writer Lindsey Tramuta expected to fall in love with the French food scene and the culture. But what she didn’t expect has made the biggest impact: learning how to take a proper vacation.

In the decade I’ve lived in France, I’ve learned how to dine and make time for art and culture. But what has most radically shaped my life is the French art of savoir-vivre , which translates (in practice) to savoring life and its pleasures. The most evocative example of this is les grandes vacances, the extended and sacred summer holidays that begin in France as early as June. For the French, the question isn’t if you’ll take time off but when and where . Here are some lessons I’ve learned from living and vacationing in France.

Take a month off—or at least a full two weeks

French workers are guaranteed by law a minimum of five weeks paid annual leave—a fact that no longer surprises me but rather feels like a humane gesture to collective well-being. That’s in addition to 11 national (paid) holidays each year.

Even without the luxury of taking five weeks off per year, you can adopt the French mentality of saving as much time as possible for a solid break. And let’s not forget that the French work hard for that freedom. My Parisian husband’s colleague, for example, spent a summer month traveling across Australia and New Zealand. “It had a positive impact on his work,” my husband said. “But wasn’t his job at risk?” I asked, a little shocked. His response: “If you work hard the rest of the year and play your cards right, there’s no reason it can’t be done.”

Unplug completely

Unlike in the United States, where vacation time is largely considered a privilege (and one that some people forgo altogether), in France, time off is both expected and encouraged.

“People come back from vacation well-rested and more productive,” says Elodie Giraud, the founder of Etchola, a creative and strategic planning agency. “It’s in management’s interest to encourage time off.”

In my experience, the French are far less likely to check email or bring work on vacation. Some, like my husband, can’t even access their in-boxes remotely. Les vacances, whenever they’re taken, are an opportunity to leave behind the routine of metro, boulot, dodo (subway, work, sleep), the colloquial French expression for the daily grind, and breathe easy. Summer breaks are for lingering around the lunch table for hours, soaking up fresh air, and doing a whole lot of nothing.

Even if you only have a week off, reconsider how you structure it. Plan less. Eat more slowly. Don’t check your email. You might be surprised by what results from this unplugged time. As research is continuing to prove, a complete disconnect can have a profound effect on our work and on our personal lives.

Sebastien Kopp, the cofounder of the sustainable shoe brand VEJA , says that taking time off with his family—and properly disconnecting—has enabled him to come up with new business ventures: “I had the idea for [our store] Centre Commercial in 2008 while I was on a Greek island and we made it happen!” Imagine what might emerge from a proper break.

Rent a house in the country

As anyone who’s traveled to France in August knows, many restaurants and independent shops shutter for weeks at a time during summer. The owner of one of my favorite mom-and-pop bakeries in Paris’s 11th arrondissement says that he and his family decamp to a small country home in Burgundy for four to five weeks from August to early September.

They don’t spend a month traveling—they spend it resting in a home far from the pressures of their daily lives. Priority number one: sleep in! They’re used to waking up before dawn to prepare bread and pastries, but during vacation, there are no alarms and no set routines. They take walks, watch movies, go wine tasting—whatever allows them to unwind.

Thanks to services like Airbnb or Gites de France, finding a country home in, say, the Alps or Normandy is simple and convenient. One of my favorite summer memories was when my husband and I rented a chalet with friends in La Clusaz, a small village in southeast France. We went on hikes and bike rides every day, cooked at home, and relaxed on the deck with books and nothing but the view of the Aravis mountains to distract us.

Do your own cooking

As Parisians with small living quarters (and as someone who writes often about food!), my husband and I tend to dine out frequently. Vacation, especially when spent in a rented house with a large kitchen, is when we take the time to prepare more than three-ingredient meals and actually enjoy it. We visit the baker, cheesemonger, and butcher nearest to where we’re staying, buy quality ingredients, and break out recipes we’ve ignored for months. It’s also a way for us to get familiar with regional specialties and connect with local artisans.

Go far—but not jet lag far

The most common summer travel spots for the French are under six hours (by plane) away. Southern Europe is a perennial favorite, with Spain and Greece among the most popular destinations . But there’s growing interest in places even closer to home, including Brittany, Corsica, Biarritz, and Arcachon. So unless it’s the year of your epic overseas trip, consider booking a vacation that’s within six hours by plane. And don’t rule out the vacation possibilities of a destination wedding. (Not an exclusively French concept, I know.)

So many of our trips throughout France have started or ended with a wedding, which took the indecision out of vacation planning. One year, we traveled to the Dordogne for a wedding hosted in a restored chateau and made that the starting point for a road trip that took us through Basque country. Another wedding took us to southern Corsica, where we spent the week leading up to it exploring the Mediterranean island.

No matter where we go, the French work-to-live philosophy drives the journey.

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french essay on vacances

French texts for beginners (A1/A2) and intermediates (B1/B2) to practice your French reading and comprehension skills. Learning to read French well is a genuine accomplishment. For beginning learners, we offer an enjoyable way to improve your comprehension with the brief, text-based lessons below.

french essay on vacances

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  • Cinéma DIALOGUE PREMIUM How about we go to the movies? ? »
  • Les vacances d'été PREMIUM Summer holidays and the French ? »
  • Séjour à la ferme PREMIUM A day off away from the city ? »
  • Du soleil sous la neige PREMIUM Clean, fresh air: just what was needed ? »
  • Formation en anglais PREMIUM I need information about the English class. ? »
  • Journée en forêt PREMIUM A walk in the woods with grandpa ? »
  • La réunion de famille PREMIUM The only time of the year when the family gets together ? »
  • Le chat et la taupe PREMIUM The mole was lucky to escape ? »
  • Le jour du marché PREMIUM I'm going to buy the vegetables for today's meal ? »
  • Les courses d'Arthur PREMIUM The days when Arthur does the shopping ? »
  • Les lectures de Hector PREMIUM ? »
  • Trouver l'amour sur internet PREMIUM Will Amelie find the love of her life? ? »
  • Un instant de détente PREMIUM A bit of relaxation after lots of work ? »
  • La nouvelle année PREMIUM Sabrina's goal for next year ? »
  • Le français, langue de Molière PREMIUM One of the greatest writers in the French language ? »
  • La photographie PREMIUM ? »
  • Le jardinage PREMIUM ? »
  • Les voyages en bus PREMIUM ? »
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French GCSE Holidays: Present, Past, Future Tense Knowledge Organiser & Translation

French GCSE Holidays: Present, Past, Future Tense Knowledge Organiser & Translation

Subject: French

Age range: 14-16

Resource type: Worksheet/Activity

Secondary MFL Resources

Last updated

27 October 2023

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pdf, 32.51 KB

A comprehensive knowledge organiser / topic speaking mat on the topic of holidays with translation practice based on this. The knowledge organiser could be used throughout teaching the topic, or as a plenary activity. It is extremely rich in vocabulary chunks and structures and it will allow pupils to write and speak about their holidays with ease (once familiarising themselves with all the language). It could be used for mini-white board translation, dictation or paired translations in class. It is also useful for revision.

The translation practice is a good way to get pupils working on the vocabulary and getting used to its structure, with the key link words and phrases in grey below. Answers included.

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Get this resource as part of a bundle and save up to 78%

A bundle is a package of resources grouped together to teach a particular topic, or a series of lessons, in one place.

French Holidays - Les vacances

Save 75% with this bundle of 13 resources on the topic of Holidays. There are enough standalone resources here on which to base a whole unit, including the following: 1. Holiday preferences in the present tense 2. Holidays in the past tense + full review of forming the perfect tense 3. Challenging GCSE reading comprehension and translations on the topic of holidays in present & past tenses 4. The future tense - formation practice, reading and translation on my future holiday plans. 5. Holidays in the future tense - two worksheets with reading, grammar and translation 6. Useful 'faire' expressions for holidays in the present, past and future tenses 7. The importance of holidays 8. A 'longer' writing question on holidays requiring knowledge of the past, present and future tenses with a model answer and grade 8/9 structures support 9. A bumper topic knowledge organsiser/ language mat on this topic with targeted translation practice. 10. A resource on the impact of tourism - its environmental impact and the benefits. 11. A reading comprehension on holidays and weather. 12. Worksheets on 'mes dernières vacances' 13. A worksheet on 'mes vacances idéales'

French GCSE Bundle: 20 Resource Packs on different topics

Save 78% with this bundle of 20 of GCSE resource packs, with answers, on a range of topics costing over £53 individually. Ideal for classwork, homework or independent study. Bundle contents: * Complete verb practice booklet - 25 page booklet * Translation booklet of exam practice * Writing and speaking resources with useful structures * Resource on the environment * Resources on school subjects (5 worksheets) * Resource bundle on my town/area (15 worksheets) * Resource on holidays * Resource on daily routine * Resources on the weather * Resource on describing my house * Resource on health & illness * Resource on daily routine * Resources on family (4 worksheets) * Resource on TV & Media * Resource on film & cinema * Resource on healthy eating * Resource bundle on food (9 worksheets) * Resources on future plans * Resource on new technology * Resource on technology and the Internet Please leave a review if you find this useful for your pupils or if you have any feedback. You can also message me directly on Twitter @mfl_secondary

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