Grade by Grade
C. Reading / D. Writing · Reading and Writing in French: Telling, Convincing and Connecting

Lire un article: Reading a News Article Like a Reporter

C1 C2 D1About 50 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can use the title, the photo and its caption to predict what a news article is about.
  • I can find the answers to Qui ? Quoi ? Où ? Quand ? Pourquoi ? Comment ? in an article.
  • I can make an inference: work out something the text does not say directly.
  • I can notice when I don't understand and choose a fix-up strategy.
  • I can read a paragraph aloud smoothly, in word groups.
  • I can write a headline and a short summary of an article.

Words to know

un article
A news text in a newspaper, a magazine or on a news website.
le titre / la manchette
The headline. La manchette is often used in Canadian French for a newspaper headline.
un/une journaliste
A reporter: a person who writes the news.
une citation
A quotation: the exact words someone said, written between « guillemets ».
une inférence
An inference: a smart guess using clues in the text plus what you already know.
un résumé
A summary: the most important ideas, said in a few sentences.
relire
To reread.

Extra! Extra!

When something happens in your town, who tells everyone about it? Journalists! They write articles that answer the big questions: who, what, where, when, why and how.

In Grade 5 you learned to read like a detective: you skimmed for the main idea, scanned for details, and used cognates, context and word families to understand new words. This year you will use those tools on longer, real-world texts, starting with a news article. You will also learn to read between the lines and to check your own understanding.

titreauteur, lieu, dateparagraphescitation « »légende (photo)
The parts of a news article: title, author, place and date, a photo with its caption, paragraphs, and quotations in « guillemets ».

The 5 W's in French (les 5 questions)

A good news article answers these questions, usually in the first paragraph:

  • Qui ? Who?
  • Quoi ? What happened? (often Qu'est-ce qui se passe ?)
  • Où ? Where?
  • Quand ? When?
  • Pourquoi ? Why?
  • Comment ? How? (a bonus question, often answered later)

The rest of the article adds details and quotations (citations): the exact words of people who were there.

Worked example

Let's read an article together

Des élèves nettoient le parc des Érables

Par Maya Côté, journaliste junior. Sudbury, le 22 avril 2026

Ce matin, 28 élèves de sixième année de l'école des Pins nettoient le parc des Érables, à Sudbury. Pourquoi ? Parce que c'est le Jour de la Terre !

Les élèves portent des gants et ils ramassent les déchets : des bouteilles, des sacs de plastique et des emballages de collation. Ils trient aussi les déchets dans trois bacs : le recyclage, le compost et les ordures.

« Il y a beaucoup de déchets sous la neige qui fond, explique Lucas, 11 ans. Maintenant, le parc est propre ! » Madame Diallo, l'enseignante, est fière de ses élèves. Elle dit : « Chaque petit geste compte. »

Après le nettoyage, les élèves préparent des affiches pour le parc : « Gardons notre parc propre ! »

Photo : Des élèves trient les déchets dans trois bacs.

  1. Before reading: the title says élèves (students) and nettoient le parc (are cleaning the park). The caption says they sort garbage into bins. Prediction: students are cleaning a park.
  2. Cognates and context: nettoient looks like "neat" (clean); déchets = garbage (the next words list bottles and plastic bags); trient = sort (into three bins); bacs = bins.
  3. Qui ? 28 Grade 6 students from l'école des Pins. Où ? in le parc des Érables, in Sudbury.
  4. Quand ? this morning, April 22, 2026. Pourquoi ? Parce que c'est le Jour de la Terre (Earth Day).
  5. Quoi ? They clean the park and pick up garbage. Comment ? They wear gloves and sort the garbage into recycling, compost and garbage bins.
  6. Quotations: Lucas and Madame Diallo speak. Their words are inside « guillemets ». Chaque petit geste compte = Every little action counts.

The article tells who (28 Grade 6 students), what (they clean the park), where (le parc des Érables, Sudbury), when (April 22, 2026) and why (Earth Day), plus how (with gloves, sorting into three bins).

A park in early spring with melting snow, bare trees, blue, green and black sorting bins and full garbage bags.
Like the students in the article, people clean up parks on Earth Day and sort the garbage into recycling, compost and trash. Notice the melting snow, a clue from the article. AI-generated image
QuestionAnswer in the article
Qui ?28 élèves de sixième année de l'école des Pins
Quoi ?Ils nettoient le parc et ramassent les déchets.
Où ?au parc des Érables, à Sudbury
Quand ?ce matin, le 22 avril 2026
Pourquoi ?C'est le Jour de la Terre.
Comment ?avec des gants ; ils trient les déchets dans trois bacs
A 5 W chart (plus Comment ?) for the article.

Reading between the lines: inferences

An article does not tell you everything. A good reader makes inferences:

clue in the text + what I already know = inference

  • Clue: Lucas says there is a lot of garbage sous la neige qui fond (under the melting snow). What I know: in Sudbury, snow covers the ground all winter. Inference: the garbage was hidden under the snow during the winter, and now people can see it.
  • Clue: Madame Diallo est fière (is proud). What I know: teachers are proud when students work hard. Inference: the students did a good job.

An inference must be supported by a clue. The students hate cleaning is not a good inference: nothing in the text says that.

Clue in the text« sous la neigequi fond »(under the melting snow)+What I knowIn Sudbury, snowcovers the groundall winter.=InferenceThe garbage washidden under thesnow all winter.A good inference always has a clue you can point to.
Reading between the lines: a clue from the article plus what you already know gives an inference.

Do I understand? Fix-up strategies

Good readers notice when they are lost. Stop at the end of each paragraph and ask: Est-ce que je comprends ?

If the answer is no, choose a strategy:

  1. Relire: reread the sentence slowly.
  2. Lire plus loin: read ahead; the next sentence may explain.
  3. Regarder les images: check the photo and the caption.
  4. Chercher un mot: look up one key word in a French-English dictionary (on paper or a dictionary website a grown-up chooses).
  5. Demander: ask someone.

After reading, think about which strategy helped you most. That is how you become a stronger reader.

Reading aloud smoothly

Fluent readers read in word groups, not word by word. Read this sentence with a tiny pause at each slash:

Ce matin, / 28 élèves de sixième année / nettoient le parc des Érables, / à Sudbury.

Pause at commas, stop at periods, and let your voice go up at a question mark. Remember the links between words (liaisons): les‿élèves sounds like "lé-zélèves".

Just for fun

Why do reporters never feel cold in winter?

Because they're always covering stories! 📰🧣

Worked example

Let's write a headline and a summary

Write a short headline and a 2-sentence summary of the article, using the 5 W's.

  1. A headline is short and uses the present tense. It names who and what: Des élèves nettoient un parc à Sudbury.
  2. A summary keeps only the most important ideas. Start with qui, quoi, où, quand: Le 22 avril, 28 élèves de l'école des Pins nettoient le parc des Érables, à Sudbury.
  3. Add pourquoi and comment: C'est le Jour de la Terre, alors ils ramassent les déchets et ils trient le recyclage, le compost et les ordures.
  4. Leave out small details (like the name of the student) and don't copy long sentences.

Titre : Des élèves nettoient un parc à Sudbury

Résumé : Le 22 avril, 28 élèves de l'école des Pins nettoient le parc des Érables, à Sudbury. C'est le Jour de la Terre, alors ils ramassent les déchets et ils trient le recyclage, le compost et les ordures.

Hands-on activity

Be a family reporter

You need: paper and a pencil, and (if you like) a photo or drawing.

  1. Choose a real event in your family or neighbourhood: a birthday, a snow day, a new pet, a soccer game.
  2. Fill in a 5 W chart in French: Qui ? Quoi ? Où ? Quand ? Pourquoi ? Comment ?
  3. Interview one person and write one citation in « guillemets »: « C'est super ! », dit ma sœur.
  4. Write a headline and a first paragraph (3 or 4 sentences in the present tense) that answers the 5 W's.
  5. Add a drawing or photo with a one-line légende (caption).
  6. Read your article aloud to your family in word groups, like a TV news reader.

Optional: with a grown-up, look at a French newspaper or a news website for kids and find the title, a caption and a quotation.

Your turn

1

In the article, what does les déchets mean? Which clue helped?

2

Name the three bins the students use.

3

Who wrote the article?

4

Copy the quotation from Madame Diallo. What does it mean?

5

Answer in French: Où est le parc des Érables ?

6

Make an inference: why do the students make posters at the end?

7

What does the légende (caption) tell you?

More practice: warm-up

1

What is un titre?

2

Translate: Quand ?

3

Translate: Pourquoi ?

4

What punctuation shows a quotation in French?

5

What is une journaliste?

More practice: on your own

1

Read: Il neige depuis trois jours. Les écoles sont fermées et les autobus restent au garage. Make an inference: why are the schools closed?

2

Which question does this answer: le samedi 10 octobre?

3

Is this a good inference from the article? The students live in Vancouver.

4

You don't understand the word ramassent. Name two fix-up strategies you could use.

5

Mark the word groups with slashes: Après le nettoyage, les élèves préparent des affiches pour le parc.

Challenge

1

Write a headline (5 to 8 words) for this news: Hier, la classe de 6e année a planté 20 arbres au parc. Use the present tense.

2

Write a one-sentence summary of the article that answers qui, quoi, où and pourquoi.

3

Lucas says Maintenant, le parc est propre ! Write one inference about how Lucas feels, and give your clue.

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

Which question asks where?

2.

Why do the students clean the park?

3.

What is une légende in a news article?

4.

Which sentence is an inference supported by the article?

5.

You are lost in the middle of a paragraph. What is a good first step?

6.

How do you write a quotation correctly in French?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: The curriculum asks Grade 6 students to determine meaning in a variety of French texts using a range of comprehension strategies and to reflect on which strategies help them (C1), and to identify the purposes and characteristics of text forms, including media and informational forms like a news article (C2). Writing a headline and summary supports D1.

How to help:

  • Ask the 5 W's about anything your child reads (even in English). Then switch to French question words.
  • When your child says "I don't get it", ask "Which fix-up strategy could you try?" instead of translating right away.
  • Have your child read a paragraph aloud twice: once to understand, once to sound smooth.

Common difficulties:

  • Wild guesses presented as inferences. Always ask: "What clue in the text tells you that?"
  • Copying whole sentences for a summary. Encourage short sentences in their own words.
  • Forgetting the French spaces in « guillemets » and before ? and !.

Canadian French used (heard in Québec and other parts of Canada): la manchette (headline), une collation (snack).