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Reading: how to get the marks – GCSE French

Foundation and Higher · Grade 4

A method for the reading paper: question first, key words, cognates and context, tricky question types, tenses, opinions and distractors.

Objectives

Explained

What the reading paper tests

The reading paper has texts of different types: emails, adverts, articles, messages, short stories and posts. Some questions are in English and are answered in English or with a tick. Others are in French and are answered in French or with a tick. There is also a translation from French into English. All of them reward careful reading, not translating word for word.

Question types include multiple choice, true or false, matching, filling gaps, short answers and "who said what". Marks are for finding the right information and understanding it exactly, so the small words matter: negatives, numbers, times and tenses. Tap the words to hear them.

Question first, key words second

Read the question carefully and underline the key words. Decide what type of answer you need: a place, a time, a reason, a person, an opinion, a number. Predict some French words you might see: for "Why?" look for «parce que», «car», «à cause de». For "When?" look for «hier», «demain», «le lundi». For "Who?" look for names and pronouns.

Then skim the text for your key words, read around them and answer. If the question is in French, read it twice: «Pourquoi Paul est-il content ?» asks for a reason (parce que…). Answer exactly what is asked: if it asks for two things, give two. Do not give a long answer for one mark, and do not leave a gap.

Check

The question asks "Why is Paul happy?" Which French word are you looking for in the text?

  1. parce que
  2. hier
  3. combien
Show answer

parce que A why question is answered with a reason, introduced by parce que, car or à cause de.

Unknown words: cognates, families and context

You will always meet words you do not know. Do not panic. First, look for cognates: «important», «restaurant», «région». Check the French patterns: «-tion» is -tion, «-ité» is -ity, «-eux» is -ous, and «é-» often replaces s: «école» is school. Second, look for word families: «le travail» helps with «travailleur». Third, use context: the sentence about a «boulangerie» and «du pain» tells you that «un boulanger» is a baker.

Also beware of false friends: «actuellement» means currently, «la librairie» is a bookshop, «assister à» means to attend and «rester» means to stay. If a word does not fit the meaning of the sentence, think of another meaning. Unknown words that do not matter can be skipped. Often the exam gives the English of a rare word next to the text.

Tricky question types

Multiple choice: read all the options, cross out the ones that are clearly wrong, then pick the best match. Beware of options that use words from the text but give the wrong idea. True or false (or "not mentioned"): find the sentence in the text. If it contradicts the statement, it is false. If it is not there at all, it is not mentioned. Matching: use the key words to pair each text or person with a statement. Fill the gaps: check the grammar, because the word must fit the gap.

"Who says what" questions: find each person's name and read their lines only. Look for pronouns: «je» is the speaker, «il» is another person. Questions that ask for an opinion look for words like «j'aime», «je trouve», «à mon avis», «c'est génial», «c'est nul». Positive and negative: «ne … pas», «jamais», «rien» reverse the meaning completely.

Check

A statement says "Léa likes sport". The text says "Léa n'aime pas le sport". What is the answer?

  1. False
  2. True
  3. Not mentioned
Show answer

False N'aime pas is negative, so the statement is false.

Tense, time and opinion

The tense tells you when. A question may ask what someone did last weekend (perfect), what the weather was like (imperfect), or what they will do (future or near future). Look at the verb form and the time words: «hier», «samedi dernier», «l'année prochaine». Match the tense to the question, and ignore details from other times in the text.

Opinions also have shades: «j'adore» is stronger than «j'aime», and «ça ne me plaît pas du tout» is stronger than «je n'aime pas». Words like «assez», «trop», «un peu» and «très» change the degree. Watch the little contrast words: «mais», «pourtant», «cependant», «en revanche». The idea after them is often the answer to "what does X really think?".

A worked example

«Salut. Je m'appelle Maëlle et j'habite à Rennes avec mes parents et mon petit frère. L'année dernière, nous sommes allés en Espagne en voiture, mais le voyage était très long, donc cette année, nous allons prendre l'avion. Mon frère n'aime pas voyager en avion parce qu'il a peur, mais moi, je trouve ça passionnant. Je voudrais visiter Barcelone et manger des tapas.»

Question: "Why is Maëlle's family flying this year?" Key words: why, this year, flying. In the text, find «cette année» and «prendre l'avion»: the reason is before it, «le voyage était très long». Answer: because the drive last year was very long. Not: because her brother is afraid (that is a distractor, and he does not like flying).

Check

In the text, who does not like flying, and why?

  1. Maëlle's brother, because he is afraid.
  2. Maëlle, because it is long.
  3. Maëlle's parents, because it is expensive.
Show answer

Maëlle's brother, because he is afraid. Mon frère n'aime pas voyager en avion parce qu'il a peur.

Answering in French or English

In sections with questions in English, answer in English, briefly and exactly. Include all the detail needed for the mark: "at 7.30 am", not just "morning". In sections with questions in French, you can often lift words from the text, but only the part that answers the question. Do not copy a whole sentence if you only need a word. Copy accurately, with the right form if needed.

Do not add your own opinion. Do not write more than needed. If you must choose between two answers, check that you have not copied both. If a question asks "Quel est le problème ?" give the problem, not the solution. For two-mark questions, give two points. If you really do not know, make an educated guess: there is no penalty.

Exam tips: timing and checking

Divide your time. A reading paper is about a minute per mark, plus time for the translation. Do not spend five minutes on one question. Mark the questions you skip, and come back. Always attempt every question: a blank earns nothing. Read each text only as much as you need to answer.

In the last minutes, check numbers (soixante-dix is 70, quatre-vingts is 80), negatives, and the one-word answers. Check that your answers make sense in English. Common mistakes: confusing «hier» and «demain», mixing up «je» and «il», missing «ne … pas», and writing "A" when the answer is "B" because of a rush.

Check

What should you do if you do not know the answer to a multiple-choice question?

  1. Make an educated guess and move on.
  2. Leave it blank.
  3. Spend ten minutes on it.
Show answer

Make an educated guess and move on. There is no penalty for a wrong answer, and a blank earns nothing.

Key points

Worked examples

Example 1

What does "soixante-quinze" mean in a text about a price?

  1. Soixante is sixty.
  2. Quinze is fifteen.
  3. So 60 + 15 = 75.

Answer: 75

Common slips
  • Slip: sixteen Soixante is 60.
  • Slip: five Quinze is 15.
  • Slip: 65 Add the two numbers.

Example 2

The text says "Je n'aime pas du tout les maths, mais j'adore l'histoire." What does the writer like?

  1. "Ne … pas du tout" is not at all.
  2. "Les maths" are disliked.
  3. "J'adore l'histoire" is loves history.

Answer: History

Common slips
  • Slip: a lot Negative.
  • Slip: they like maths N'aime pas du tout reverses it.
  • Slip: geography Read the word: histoire.

Example 3

The text says "L'année dernière, il y avait peu de touristes, mais cet été, la ville est pleine et les prix ont augmenté." What changed?

  1. "L'année dernière … peu de touristes" is few tourists last year.
  2. "Cet été … la ville est pleine" is the town is full now.
  3. "Les prix ont augmenté" is prices have risen.

Answer: There are more tourists now and prices have gone up.

Common slips
  • Slip: many tourists last year Peu means few.
  • Slip: the town is empty Pleine is full.
  • Slip: prices fell Augmenter is to increase.

Questions and answers

Try each one, then open the answer.

Question 1 Easy

What does "hier" mean in English?

Show answer

Answer: yesterday

  1. Hier means yesterday.
  2. It signals the past.

Question 2 Easy

What does "jamais" mean in English?

Show answer

Answer: never

  1. Jamais means never.
  2. It is a negative.

Question 3 Easy

What does "combien" ask for?

Show answer

Answer: a number

  1. Combien means how much or how many.
  2. The answer is a number or amount.

Question 4 Easy

What does "la librairie" mean in English?

Show answer

Answer: bookshop

  1. A false friend.
  2. Library is la bibliothèque.

Question 5 Medium

What does "Il n'a rien mangé" mean?

Show answer

Answer: He did not eat anything

  1. Ne ... rien is nothing.
  2. Perfect tense.

Question 6 Medium

What does "Nous partirons demain" tell you about time?

Show answer

Answer: future

  1. Partirons is future.
  2. Demain is tomorrow.

Question 7 Medium

What does "Ça ne me plaît pas du tout" mean?

Show answer

Answer: I do not like it at all

  1. Plaire: ça me plaît.
  2. Pas du tout is not at all.

Question 8 Medium

What does "peu" mean in "peu de touristes"?

Show answer

Answer: few

  1. Peu de means few or little.
  2. The opposite of beaucoup de.

Question 9 Hard

What does "Bien que le prix soit élevé, nous l'achèterons" mean?

Show answer

Answer: Although the price is high, we will buy it

  1. Bien que is although.
  2. Achèterons is future.

Question 10 Hard

What does "Sans avoir mangé, il est parti" mean?

Show answer

Answer: Without having eaten, he left

  1. Sans avoir mangé is without having eaten.
  2. Est parti is left.

Question 11 Hard

What does "Ayant raté le train, elle a pris un taxi" mean?

Show answer

Answer: Having missed the train, she took a taxi

  1. Ayant raté is having missed.
  2. Elle a pris is she took.

Question 12 Hard

What does "Il a dit qu'il viendrait si le temps était beau" mean?

Show answer

Answer: He said he would come if the weather was nice

  1. Viendrait is would come.
  2. Si + imperfect.

Exam-style questions

Longer tasks with the marking points. These are Yumio practice questions.

Exam-style question 15 marks

Read: "Lucas n'aime pas le sport, mais il adore la musique. Samedi dernier, il est allé à un concert avec ses amis." (a) What does Lucas like? (b) What did he do on Saturday? [5 marks]

Show answer

Answer: He likes music. He went to a concert with his friends.

  1. N'aime pas is dislikes.
  2. Samedi dernier is last Saturday.
  • Mark (1): Music
  • Mark (2): Went to a concert (1) with his friends (1)
  • Mark (2): Does not like sport (1) / last Saturday (1)

Exam-style question 26 marks

Read: "Bien que la ville soit petite, elle attire beaucoup de touristes. Il y a trente ans, personne ne la connaissait. Maintenant, les habitants se plaignent du bruit mais ils sont fiers de leur patrimoine." Give three details about the town. [6 marks]

Show answer

Answer: The town is small but attracts many tourists. Thirty years ago nobody knew it. Now residents complain about the noise but are proud of their heritage.

  1. Bien que is although.
  2. Personne ne is nobody.
  3. Se plaindre is to complain.
  • Mark (2): Small but many tourists
  • Mark (2): Nobody knew it thirty years ago
  • Mark (2): Residents complain about noise but are proud

Common mistakes

  1. Reading every word first

    Read the question first and look for key words.

  2. Ignoring negatives

    N'aime pas reverses the meaning.

  3. Copying a whole sentence

    Lift only the part that answers.

  4. Leaving a blank

    There is no penalty for a guess.

  5. Mixing up 70 and 80

    Soixante-dix is 70, quatre-vingts is 80.

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