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Top ten free French teaching web sites for able pupils

Oh no! Not another "top ten"....

These are the sites I value the most highly for teaching my pupils aged 11 to 18 in a grammar school. They may not be the best, but they are the ones we use most. In no particular order.....

1. LanguagesOnline.

This is our favourite web site by far for interactive grammar and vocabulary work. It is written and designed mainly by Andrew Balaam from Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe. It is attractive, challenging and enjoyed by students. It can be used from the front, but is best used in a computer suite.

2. Curiosphere.tv.

This is the site I first go to when searching out listening material for A2 students. Clips are often interviews with experts ina field. The speech is clear and slow enough for comprehension, with repetition. The standard is challenging, above that required in A2 level examinations. It is a large archive covering many A-level topics. You can use Curosphere in a computer suite or from the whiteboard.

3. Ashcombe School "video quizzes"

Although the sound quality is not as good as one would like, the concept is simple and sound. Interviews with French assistants accompanied by hot potato gap fill exercises. You can reveal the transcript and see a translation. You can use this site in a computer suite or a classroom from the front.

4.  BBC Learning Zone Class Clips (Secondary French).

I enjoy using the short video extracts from the front of the class. The BBC has built up a large archive of French videos at various levels. They are a good source of situational French.

5.  Youtube.

A marvellous source of songs, slides and videos of all types.

6.  TES Connect.

The best repository of powerpoints and worksheets around. the quality and accuracy varies, but if I am looking for an instant resource, it is the place I start (after frenchteacher.net)

7.  MFL Sunderland.

This is hosted by Clare Seccombe and has a good range of accurate worksheets and other resources produced by various teachers. Some of the material is too easy for the ablest students, but there are very useful sheets, especially when it comes to controlled assessment time.

8. Languages Resources.

This is Samantha Lunn's site which has a very large range of resources, some of which are too easy for the able learner. It is not error-free, but it is easy to edit Word docs and powerpoints.

9.  Lafrancebis

This site is hosted in Japan by Christophe Bergue from Kobe University and contains,among other things, good listening material with interactive tasks good for able Y11 pupils, or AS Level students. Easy to use and interesting sources.

10.  Frenchteacher.net

Well, I couldn't omit this site as it is the one we use most. The very large range of worksheets, texts with exercises, powerpoints, lesson ideas and links, all suit able students very well indeed.

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