Liberté (Angelo)

1: Bonjour! Ça va?

Communication (what students will be able to do):

By the end of this chapter, students will be able to:

1. Greet other people and introduce themselves.
2. Understand basic commands given in French class and respond appropriately.
3. Count and spell in French.
4. Identify and describe themselves, other people, and objects.

Culture (what students will know about the French-speaking world):

By the end of this chapter, students will know something about:

1. Where French is spoken and by how many people; the definition of “Francophone.”
2. How to address another person formally or informally, as appropriate.
3. Customs of greeting in France and other Francophone countries.

Grammar/ Tools (what students need to know): In order to perform these communicative tasks, students will have to understand and be able to use correctly the following structures:

1. The French alphabet, numbers, and some basics of French pronunciation.
2. The subject pronouns and the difference between tu and vous in French.
3. The conjugation of the present tense of the verb être.
4. The concept of gender for nouns and of gender and number agreement of adjectives.

In many French-speaking countries, people kiss each other on the cheek or shake hands when they meet. In everyday situations, female friends kiss, while men and mixed couples will kiss or shake hands depending on their level of acquaintance. The kiss (le bisou or la bise) usually begins on the right cheek, which means you should first move your head to your left; the number of kisses varies from one to four depending on the region or country and on the level of emotion. A kiss or handshake is also given upon leaving, even if the two parties have been together only a few minutes. Another aspect of French-speaking cultures you should be aware of is the space between people. In many countries, people stand closer together than Américans do, so do not step back if the person you are meeting stands quite close.

Many French names can be used for both men and women, sometimes with different spelling but the same pronunciation (e.g. René, Renée), other times exactly the same for men and women (e.g. Dominique). For centuries, French names were predominantly saints’ names, and recognizably “French” – but nowadays, many Arabic and English names are also popular, sometimes adapted into more French forms. You can see lien: here if your first name is common in France. (See “fréquence” and use the “statistiques” box.)