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PlayOwl

French · Preschool

Notice Sounds and Written Forms

A gentle, adult-led first look at how French sounds and spelling work, for children who are ready (most often in Pre-K or Kindergarten). Children learn to hear ou (as in hibou) and on (as in ballon), discover that the letters oi say wa (le roi, l'étoile, trois), and notice two French surprises: letters we write but do not hear at the end of words (le chat, le lit, la souris) and the accent on é (bébé, école). They sort pictures by sound, spot letters and build words with tiles.

  • 3 lessons
  • About 35 minutes
  • Sounds and letters: 5 questions
  • Ways to answer: choose an answer, highlight a text, match pairs, sort into groups and arrange tiles
See plans Included with Family, Teacher and School plans. Open in PlayOwl

What learners will discover

  • Hear the difference between the sounds ou (as in hibou) and on (as in ballon) and sort pictures by the sound in their French names.
  • Notice that the letters o and i side by side say wa (le roi, l'oiseau, le poisson, l'étoile, trois, noir) and find oi in written words.
  • Notice letters we write but do not hear at the end of words (le chat, le lit, la souris, petit, le riz) and the accent on é (bébé, école), and build bébé from bé + bé.

Lessons

  1. Le son ou, le son on 5 steps2 practiceabout 11 min
  2. oi dit wa 6 steps2 practiceabout 12 min
  3. Lettres muettes et é 6 steps2 practiceabout 12 min
  4. Sounds and letters 5 questions at the end

Keep exploring

Games to practice with

More preschool world language

Guide for grown-ups