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Overview

Grade: 3 & 4
Subject: Core French
Duration: 4 weeks (4 sessions per week, 60 minutes each)
Class size: 25 students
Unit: Mission Possible: French Spy Academy
Focus: Oral communication, vocabulary acquisition, comprehension, and collaborative tasks based on Ontario Curriculum for Core French (2021) aligned with CEFR and Neurolinguistic principles.
Approach: Authentic, contextual, interactive, multi-modal learning featuring missions, role-plays, and team challenges.

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Curriculum Connections (Ontario - 2021, Core French)

Overall Expectations

• Listening and Speaking:
  Oral communication to interact and express ideas clearly with understanding of the spoken language in familiar contexts.
• Reading:
  Reading and understanding simple texts and instructions.
• Writing:
  Using vocabulary and phrases to label, write short sentences, or describe; use vocabulary in meaningful contexts.

Specific Expectations addressed

• Listening and Speaking:
  • 1.1 Listen in French to identify familiar words and phrases (e.g., physical descriptions, commands)
  • 1.2 Use familiar words and phrases in spoken texts to communicate meaningfully and in context
  • 1.3 Use strategies like repetition and asking questions to seek clarification
• Reading:
  • 2.1 Read aloud simple familiar words and phrases using correct pronunciation
  • 2.2 Read and understand brief written instructions and descriptions
• Writing:
  • 3.1 Use familiar vocabulary to write brief descriptions and simple sentences
  • 3.2 Spell a growing repertoire of vocabulary accurately

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Weekly Thematic Breakdown & Lesson Structure

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Week 1: Hair and Numbers

Theme: Identifying spies by hair colour and using numbers as spy codes

Vocabulary

• Hair colours: blond(e), brun(e), roux/rousse, noir, gris, blanc(he)
• Numbers 1-20 in French
• Commands: compte (count), trouve (find), cherche (search), ouvre (open)

Learning Goals

• I can describe hair colours of people.
• I can count from 1 to 20 in French.
• I can follow simple commands in French related to spy missions.

Success Criteria

• Correctly name at least 3 hair colours in French.
• Count aloud from 1-20 without mistakes.
• Follow instructions like "compte jusqu’à 10", "trouve un objet rouge" effectively.

Activities

• Warm-up: Number chant with hand gestures; colours flashcard game
• Mission 1: Spy identification - students receive spy profile cards illustrating hair colours and numbers as coded hints. They must listen carefully and point to the correct spy image.
• Mini mission: Command relay race — teacher issues commands in French (saute, tourne, compte jusqu’à cinq), students perform.
• Group challenge: Number code-breaking task — decode sequences of numbers to reveal secret message about a spy’s hair colour.

Extension for advanced learners

• Create and orally present your own spy description including hair colour and a number code.
• Translate simple full sentences combining hair colour and numbers (e.g., "Le spy a les cheveux noirs et il est numéro sept").

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Week 2: Describing People & Objects

Theme: Expanding descriptions using size, clothing, and simple adjectives

Vocabulary

• People: grand(e), petit(e), jeune, vieux/vieille
• Objects: une loupe (magnifying glass), un sac (bag), un chapeau (hat)
• Additional commands: saute (jump), tourne (turn)

Learning Goals

• I can describe physical appearance and objects using adjectives.
• I can give and follow simple commands during spy missions.

Success Criteria

• Use at least 3 adjectives correctly to describe a person or object.
• Demonstrate understanding of commands by performing accurately.

Activities

• Warm-up: "Simon dit" (Simon says) with new commands.
• Mission 2: Spy outfit description — students work in pairs describing the spy’s clothing and object possessions based on visual prompts.
• Mini mission: Object search — “cherche le chapeau rouge” around the classroom or via pictures.
• Group challenge: Collaborative poster creation — describing one 'spy' using new vocabulary, then role-play introducing the spy to the class.

Extension for advanced learners

• Write and perform a short descriptive paragraph about a new spy combining adjectives for people and objects.

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Week 3: Clues & Locations

Theme: Using multiple clues and prepositions to solve spy puzzles

Vocabulary

• Locations: dans (in), sur (on), sous (under), près de (near), derrière (behind)
• Combining phrases (e.g., un sac sous la table)
• Reviewing all previous vocabulary
• Commands review: cherche, compte, trouve, ouvre, saute, tourne

Learning Goals

• I can use prepositions to describe where objects or spies are located.
• I can combine multiple clues to identify a spy or object.

Success Criteria

• Correct use of at least 3 prepositions to describe location.
• Successfully combine descriptive details (hair colour, clothing, location) to solve a spy puzzle.

Activities

• Warm-up: Preposition scavenger hunt; students give clues to find hidden objects ("Le livre est sous la chaise").
• Mission 3: Spy mystery — students read/find clues using descriptions and prepositions and deduce which spy is at which location.
• Mini mission: Team obstacle course following complex spoken commands using vocab + prepositions.
• Group challenge: Create and share “mystery map” with clues, describing where spies or missives are hidden.

Extension for advanced learners

• Write and orally present a short story combining multiple prepositions and descriptors to narrate a spy’s secret mission route.

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Week 4: Code Breaking & Final Mission

Theme: Applying all vocabulary and commands in a complex task

Vocabulary

• Review all previous vocabulary: hair colour, numbers, adjectives, prepositions, commands
• New: symbols and simple code words (introduce colours, shapes in French as part of code breaking)

Learning Goals

• I can understand and use complex instructions integrating multiple vocabularies.
• I can decode simple French messages and communicate solutions orally.

Success Criteria

• Follow multi-step instructions to complete a final spy mission.
• Work collaboratively to decode messages and present findings in French.

Activities

• Warm-up: Recap game — team quiz with buzzers on any vocabulary/commands learned.
• Final Mission: Spy Academy Graduation — teams follow complex French instructions (including commands, descriptive vocabulary, numbers, and prepositions) to unlock clues and break a code.
• Mini mission: Code breaker challenges with written clues and verbal clues integration.
• Group challenge: Role-play the final spy mission briefing, presenting the decoded message and spy description.

Extension for advanced learners

• Design a coded message using French vocabulary learnt and challenge peers to decode.
• Create and perform an extended dialogue based on the mission story incorporating all vocabulary and commands.

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Daily Lesson Template (Sample 60-minute lesson)

Time	Activity	Details
0-10 min	Warm-up & Review	Interactive song/game related to weekly vocabulary or commands
10-25 min	Introduction of new vocabulary/commands	Multisensory presentation (visual cards, gestures, repetition)
25-40 min	Mini Mission / Team Challenge	Collaborative, physical or puzzle-oriented task in French
40-55 min	Main Mission	Contextual, role-play or problem-solving activity using vocabulary and commands
55-60 min	Reflection & Assessment	“I can...” self-assessment, peer feedback, or quick exit ticket

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Assessment & Feedback

• Formative: Observation during mini and main missions, participation, comprehension during commands, peer feedback during group work.
• Summative: Final week’s mission presentation and code-breaking task demonstrating oral language proficiency, use of vocabulary, and understanding of commands.

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Neurolinguistic & CEFR Alignment Highlights

• Use of TPR (Total Physical Response) for commands to reinforce memory and meaning.
• Emphasis on meaningful input and output in collaborative contexts.
• Scaffolded learning with visual aids and gesture supports.
• Focus on functions matching CEFR A1 level: describing, following instructions, basic interaction.
• Repetition and multi-modal engagement reinforce long-term retention.

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Teacher Tips to WOW

• Use spy-themed props (magnifying glasses, trench coats, hats) to immerse students in the theme.
• Create a “Spy Academy” corner with secret envelopes, codes, and mission briefings to keep engagement high.
• Use tech tools like Kahoot! or Quizizz in the final week to gamify vocabulary quizzes.
• Record or video role-plays for portfolio assessment or to share with families.
• Encourage students to invent secret spy hand signals or code words in French for fun extension activities.

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This dynamic, multi-sensory and fully scripted 4-week unit ensures active, contextualized French use fostering immediate oral proficiency and enthusiastic student participation — perfectly tailored to Ontario’s Core French junior curriculum and your innovative teaching style!