Grade 5French

Mon Environnement (En Classe)

Classroom items: livre, stylo, cahier, table; describing locations; objects vocabulary.

📖 3 min read · 3 worked examples · 8 practice questions

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The lesson

Today we're starting our French unit on Mon Environnement – the classroom. By the end of this lesson you'll be able to name four classroom items in French and tell where they are. First, let's look at the topic line: Mon Environnement (En Classe). Think of your own classroom here in Kenya – the same desks, books, and boards, just with French words. Our learning goals are two‑fold: 1) name four objects – for example livre (book), stylo (pen), cahier (notebook), table (desk). 2) describe their locations, like "Le livre est sur la table" (the book is on the desk). Can anyone think of where you keep your stylo in our classroom? Raise your hand and share a French sentence. Great ideas! We'll practice these words together, and soon you'll be describing the whole classroom in French, just like you do in English.

Everyone, let's explore some essential French words you'll see around the classroom. First, livre means book. Can anyone tell me what you usually do with a book? (pause for responses) Great, you read and write in it. Next, stylo is a pen. We use a pen to write our notes. Remember to hold it gently. Then we have cahier, which translates to notebook. This is where you keep all your classwork. Finally, table means desk. It's the place where you sit and work. To recap, we learned livre – book, stylo – pen, cahier – notebook, and table – desk.

Let's explore how we describe where things are in French. This slide is all about location words. First, sur means "on." For example, Le livre est sur la table – the book is on the table. Next, sous means "under." You could say Le stylo est sous le cahier – the pen is under the notebook. Then we have à côté de, which translates to "next to." Example: Le crayon est à côté du livre – the pencil is next to the book. Finally, dans means "in." For instance, Le cahier est dans le sac – the notebook is in the bag. Remember these four words—sur, sous, à côté de, and dans—will help you tell where anything is placed.

First, we reviewed the four classroom objects: livre (book), stylo (pen), cahier (notebook), and table (table), together with the four location prepositions sur, sous, dans, and à côté de. Can you picture your own classroom? I encourage each of you to label the items around you in French, using those prepositions. For example, "Le livre est sur la table." Next week we'll start a new theme, "Mon Environnement (À la Maison)," where we'll talk about objects and places you see at home.

Worked examples

Worked Example 1

Next, let's look at our first worked example. Here we have the sentence Le stylo est sur le bureau – "The pen is on the desk." Notice the structure: article + noun + verb + preposition + article + noun. Each word matches a part of the classroom picture we'll see. As we point to the picture, you'll see the stylo on the bureau, just like in the sentence. This visual link helps you remember the order of words. Remember the pattern "article‑noun‑verb‑preposition‑article‑noun" for describing where objects are.

Worked Example 2

Our worked example titled Worked Example 2. The sentence we will examine is Le cahier est sous la table – "The notebook is under the table." Notice the preposition sous. It tells us the notebook is located below the table, showing a spatial relationship. Think about our Kenyan classroom: many students keep their notebooks under the desk when they're not using them, just like this example. Can anyone point out another object that might be under something in your classroom?

Worked Example 3

Worked Example 3, where we practice using the French phrase à côté de. The sentence we'll study is Le livre est à côté de la chaise – "The book is next to the chair." Notice how à côté de links the two objects together. This bullet point reminds us that à côté de means side‑by‑side placement, just like "beside" in English. Here's a picture showing a book beside a chair. Visualizing the scene helps you remember the phrase. Can anyone think of another object you could place à côté de a chair? Try it in French!

Practice questions

First, let's recall the vocabulary: **livre** means *book*, **stylo** means *pen*, **cahier** means *notebook*, and **table** means *table*. For locations, we use prepositions like **sur** (on), **dans** (in), **sous** (under), and **entre** (between).
Take a moment to answer the four short‑answer questions. Write the French word for each English object, and choose the correct preposition for the two sentences.
**stylo** (pen) – ____ is ___ the table. The correct French is **Le stylo est sous la table**.
**cahier** (notebook) – ____ is ___ the desk. That gives **Le cahier est sur le bureau**; **sur** means "on.
**livre** (book) – ____ is ___ the chair. The sentence becomes **Le livre est à côté de la chaise**; **à côté de** means "next to.
**table** (table) – ____ is ___ the room. We write **La table est dans la salle**; **dans** means "in.
Take a moment to write your answers on the worksheet. If you need help, raise your hand and I'll come over.
Let's review the four sentences you just saw: - **Le stylo** (the pen) and the **table** – a pen usually sits *on* a table, so the correct preposition is **sur**. - **Le cahier** (the notebook) and the **sac** (backpack) – items go *inside* a bag, so we use **dans**.

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Mon Environnement (En Classe)

📖 The lesson

✏️ Worked examples