Grade by Grade
C. Reading / D. Writing · Reading and Writing in French: Stories, Opinions and the Francophone World

La francophonie dans le monde: Reading Pen-Pal Profiles and Writing My Own

C1 C3 D1 D3About 50 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can find information about the cultures of French-speaking communities around the world in a text.
  • I can compare words and customs that differ between French-speaking communities (septante, souper, soccer / foot).
  • I can use the right preposition before cities and countries: à Dakar, en Belgique, au Sénégal, aux États-Unis.
  • I can write a pen-pal profile and a friendly reply that asks questions.

Words to know

la francophonie
All the people and places around the world where French is spoken.
un pays
A country.
la langue officielle
A language used by a country's government, laws and schools.
un correspondant, une correspondante
A pen pal.
une coutume
A custom, a tradition.
un régionalisme
A word used in one region but not everywhere (septante, magasiner).

French around the world

In Grade 6 you explored francophone communities in Canada: Québec, Franco-Ontarians, Acadians and more. But French is spoken on every continent! Many millions of people in Europe, Africa, the Americas, the Caribbean and the Pacific speak French, often together with other languages.

Today you will read four pen-pal profiles from young francophones in other countries. Each one is a fictional young person, but the cultural facts are real. Read to learn about their lives, and notice that French is not exactly the same everywhere.

Worked example

Let's read pen-pal profiles

Correspondants francophones : trouve un ami !

Awa, 12 ans — Dakar, Sénégal Salut ! J'habite à Dakar, la capitale du Sénégal, en Afrique de l'Ouest. Au Sénégal, le français est la langue officielle, mais à la maison, je parle wolof avec ma famille. Mon plat préféré, c'est le thiéboudienne : du riz avec du poisson et des légumes. Après l'école, je joue au foot avec mes cousines. Et toi, quel sport est-ce que tu pratiques ?

Lucas, 13 ans — Bruxelles, Belgique Bonjour ! J'habite à Bruxelles, en Belgique. Dans mon pays, il y a trois langues officielles : le néerlandais, le français et l'allemand. Chez nous, on dit « septante » pour 70 et « nonante » pour 90. Ma grand-mère a septante-deux ans ! J'adore les gaufres et la bande dessinée. Est-ce que tu lis des BD, toi ?

Chloé, 12 ans — Lafayette, Louisiane, États-Unis Salut ! J'habite à Lafayette, en Louisiane, aux États-Unis. Je vais à une école d'immersion française. Mon grand-père parle le français cadien. Beaucoup de Cadiens ont des ancêtres acadiens, venus du Canada atlantique il y a longtemps. Dans ma famille, on mange souvent du gombo. Est-ce que tu connais des Acadiens au Canada ?

Stéphanie, 13 ans — Port-au-Prince, Haïti Bonjour ! J'habite à Port-au-Prince, la capitale d'Haïti. En Haïti, il y a deux langues officielles : le créole haïtien et le français. Le 1er janvier, c'est la fête de l'Indépendance. Ce jour-là, ma famille mange la soupe joumou, une soupe au giraumon. J'aimerais visiter le Canada en hiver pour voir la neige !

Glossaire: un correspondant, une correspondante = a pen pal · l'Afrique de l'Ouest = West Africa · la langue officielle = official language · un plat = a dish · le foot = soccer (in Europe and Africa; in Canada, le soccer) · le néerlandais = Dutch · l'allemand = German · une gaufre = a waffle · une BD (bande dessinée) = a comic book · cadien = Cajun · des ancêtres = ancestors · le gombo = gumbo (a Louisiana stew) · la fête de l'Indépendance = Independence Day · le giraumon = a squash, like a pumpkin

  1. Form and purpose: short profiles on a pen-pal website. Each one has a name, age and place, a few facts about daily life, and a question to start a conversation. Purpose: to make a new friend.
  2. Many languages: Awa speaks Wolof at home and French at school; Belgium has three official languages; Stéphanie's country has Haitian Creole and French; Chloé goes to a French immersion school in an English-speaking country. Many francophones speak more than one language, just like many Canadians.
  3. Words that change from place to place: Lucas says septante (70) and nonante (90). Awa and Lucas say le foot; in Canada we say le soccer.
  4. Customs and food: thiéboudienne (Sénégal), waffles and comics (Belgique), gumbo (Louisiane), soup joumou on January 1st, Haiti's Independence Day.
  5. A link to Canada: many Cajuns in Louisiana have Acadian ancestors who came from Atlantic Canada long ago.

Four young francophones in Senegal, Belgium, Louisiana and Haiti share their languages, foods and traditions, and each asks a question to start a friendship.

A large platter of thiéboudienne: tomato rice topped with a whole fish and pieces of cassava, carrot, cabbage, eggplant and pumpkin.
Le thiéboudienne, Awa's favourite dish from Senegal: du riz avec du poisson et des légumes. Can you name each vegetable in French? AI-generated image
France, Canadasoixante-dix (70)Belgique, Suisseseptante (70)France, Canadaquatre-vingt-dix (90)Belgique, Suissenonante (90)
Numbers in the francophonie: 70 and 90 are said differently in Belgium and Switzerland. Canada says soixante-dix and quatre-vingt-dix, like France.
In Canada (Québec and other parts)In FranceMeaning
le déjeunerle petit-déjeunerbreakfast
le dînerle déjeunerlunch
le souperle dînersupper
le soccerle foot (football)soccer
la fin de semainele week-endthe weekend
magasinerfaire du shoppingto go shopping
Same language, different words. You met déjeuner, dîner and souper in Grade 6; meal names like déjeuner / dîner / souper are also used in Belgium and Switzerland. None of these is «wrong»: each is correct in its community.
PlacePrepositionExample
a cityàJ'habite à Dakar. Il va à Bruxelles.
a feminine country or region (often ends in -e)enen Belgique, en France, en Louisiane
a masculine countryauau Sénégal, au Canada
a plural countryauxaux États-Unis
Haïti (special case, no article)enen Haïti
Saying in or to a place. The same preposition means both in and to: J'habite au Canada. Je vais au Canada.
Awaau Sénégalà DakarLucasen Belgiqueà BruxellesChloéaux États-Unisen Louisianeà LafayetteStéphanieen Haïtià Port-au-Princeà + city · en + feminine country, region (and Haïti) · au + masculine country · aux + plural
Where the four pen pals live, from the biggest place to the smallest. Each box shows the preposition that goes with that place.

Respect every variety of French

French in Dakar, Bruxelles, Lafayette, Port-au-Prince, Montréal and Sudbury sounds a bit different and uses some different words. All of them are real, correct French. Good communicators notice differences with curiosity, not judgment, and ask Qu'est-ce que ça veut dire ? when they don't understand.

Worked example

Let's write a reply to a pen pal

Write a friendly reply to Awa (5 or 6 sentences). Introduce yourself, answer her question, tell her something about Canada and ask her 2 questions.

  1. Friendly greeting (she's a young person, so tu): Salut Awa !
  2. Introduce yourself with prepositions: Je m'appelle Léa, j'ai 12 ans et j'habite à Sudbury, en Ontario, au Canada.
  3. Answer her question: Moi, je joue au soccer en été et au hockey en hiver. (Ici, on dit « soccer » et pas « foot » !)
  4. Share a Canadian custom: Au printemps, ma famille va à la cabane à sucre pour manger de la tire sur la neige.
  5. Ask 2 questions: Est-ce qu'il fait chaud à Dakar en janvier ? Comment est-ce qu'on dit « bonjour » en wolof ?
  6. Friendly closing: À bientôt ! Léa

Salut Awa ! Je m'appelle Léa, j'ai 12 ans et j'habite à Sudbury, en Ontario, au Canada. Moi, je joue au soccer en été et au hockey en hiver. (Ici, on dit « soccer » et pas « foot » !) Au printemps, ma famille va à la cabane à sucre pour manger de la tire sur la neige. Est-ce qu'il fait chaud à Dakar en janvier ? Comment est-ce qu'on dit « bonjour » en wolof ? À bientôt ! Léa

Just for fun

Funny but true: Awa plays le foot and Léa plays le soccer, and they are playing exactly the same game. Same ball, same goals, two names!

Hands-on activity

My pen-pal profile and a francophone map

You need: paper, a pencil, an atlas, globe or online map (with a grown-up).

  1. Find on a map: Dakar (Sénégal), Bruxelles (Belgique), Lafayette (Louisiane), Port-au-Prince (Haïti) and your own town. Mark them with dots.
  2. Write your own pen-pal profile (5 or 6 sentences) like the ones you read: name, age, city with à, province with en (or au for some provinces: au Québec, au Manitoba) and country with au, the languages you speak, a favourite food or tradition, a hobby, and one question.
  3. Include one Canadian French word and explain it: Ici, on dit « magasiner » pour faire du shopping.
  4. Choose one of the four profiles and write a reply with 2 questions.
  5. Bonus: ask a family member which languages your family or ancestors spoke, and add it to your profile if you'd like.

Your turn

1

Which language does Awa speak at home?

2

How many official languages does Belgium have? Name them.

3

How old is Lucas's grandmother?

4

Who has ancestors that may connect to Atlantic Canada, and why?

5

What does Stéphanie's family eat on January 1st, and why is that day special?

6

Complete: J'habite ___ Toronto, ___ Ontario, ___ Canada.

7

What do people in Canada call the sport Awa calls le foot?

More practice: warm-up

1

Translate: un correspondant

2

In Belgium, how do you say 90?

3

Preposition for a city?

4

Complete: Chloé habite ___ États-Unis.

5

In Québec and other parts of Canada, what meal is le souper?

More practice: on your own

1

Complete: Lucas habite ___ Bruxelles, ___ Belgique.

2

Complete: Awa habite ___ Sénégal.

3

A Belgian friend writes J'ai septante-cinq photos. How many photos? How would most Canadians say it?

4

A friend from France invites you to déjeuner at noon. Which meal is it? Explain.

5

Name two things the four young people have in common.

Challenge

1

Write a 5-sentence pen-pal profile about yourself, with prepositions for your city, province and country, one food and one question.

2

Explain to a classmate why septante is not a mistake.

3

Write a reply to Stéphanie (4 sentences) that answers her wish to see snow in Canada.

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

J'habite ___ Belgique.

2.

J'habite ___ Canada.

3.

In Belgium and Switzerland, 70 is...

4.

In Québec and other parts of Canada, le dîner is usually...

5.

Which official languages does Haiti have?

6.

Which is true about varieties of French?

7.

Why does each profile end with a question?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Your child reads texts about francophone communities around the world (C1, C3), learns that French has many correct regional varieties, and writes a profile and reply using appropriate conventions (D1, D3).

How to help:

  • Find the four places on a map together. Talk about which languages your own family speaks; many Canadian families are multilingual too.
  • If you know words from another variety of French or another language, share them!

Common difficulties:

  • Prepositions with places (à, en, au, aux). Tip: cities → à; countries ending in -e are usually feminine → en (a few exceptions, such as le Mexique and le Cambodge).
  • Treating other varieties as mistakes. Encourage curiosity.

Facts used: French is the official language of Senegal and Wolof is widely spoken; Belgium's official languages are Dutch, French and German; Haiti's official languages are Haitian Creole and French, and January 1st is Haiti's Independence Day, celebrated with soup joumou; many Cajuns in Louisiana have Acadian ancestors; septante / nonante are used in Belgium and Switzerland. The four young people are fictional. Canadian French used (used in Québec and other parts of Canada): déjeuner / dîner / souper, le soccer, la fin de semaine, magasiner, glisser.