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Describe a photo in four or five accurate sentences, and write a short message of 20 to 50 words that covers every point and gives opinions.
Short writing tasks come in several forms. The first is a few sentences about a photo: you say what you see, where it is, who is there and what they are doing. The second is a short message of 20 to 50 words in response to bullet points, for example about a trip, a friend or your school. Both reward clear, correct sentences that answer every point, not long, risky ones.
Plan before you write: read the bullet points, underline the key words and decide the tense for each. Write one sentence per point at least. Do not leave a bullet point out: every one adds content marks. Tap the words to hear them.
Use simple, safe structures. «Sur la photo, il y a …» (in the photo there is). «On voit …» (you can see). «Il y a un homme / une femme / des enfants» (there is a man, a woman, children). «Il / Elle porte …» (he / she is wearing). «Ils jouent / mangent / marchent» (they are playing, eating, walking). Add where: «dans un parc», «à la plage», «dans une cuisine». Add the weather: «Il fait beau».
Then add an opinion or a comment: «À mon avis, ils sont contents», «Je trouve que c'est une belle photo», «Ça a l'air amusant» (it looks fun). Do not try to describe too much; four good sentences are better than seven with mistakes. Check the agreement: «une grande maison», «des enfants contents».
How do you say "In the photo, there are two children who are playing football"?
Sur la photo, il y a deux enfants qui jouent au foot. Il y a, the plural verb jouent, and jouer à + le = au.
Each sentence needs a subject, a verb and a detail. Start simple: «Il y a un chien.» Then add where: «Il y a un chien dans le jardin.» Then an adjective: «Il y a un grand chien noir dans le jardin.» Then an opinion: «Il y a un grand chien noir dans le jardin et il a l'air gentil.» Use «et», «mais» and «parce que» to join ideas.
Vary your verbs: «voir», «porter», «jouer», «manger», «regarder», «marcher», «sourire». Vary your sentence starters: «Sur la photo», «À gauche», «À droite», «Au premier plan» (in the foreground), «Au fond» (in the background). Use present tense for the photo because it is happening now. Use «il fait» for the weather.
A typical task: "Write a message to your French friend about your holiday. Say where you went, what you did, what the weather was like and what you will do next time." Cover each point in order. «Je suis allé en Espagne avec ma famille. J'ai nagé et j'ai mangé des glaces. Il faisait très chaud. La prochaine fois, je voudrais aller en Italie.»
For about 40 words, give two sentences for the most important points and one for the others. Include an opinion with a reason in at least one sentence: «C'était génial parce que la plage était magnifique». Start and end naturally: «Salut Léa,» and «À bientôt». Write in the right tense for each point.
The bullet point says "what you did last weekend". Which sentence answers it?
Samedi dernier, j'ai joué au foot et j'ai regardé un film. The perfect tense with samedi dernier answers what you did.
Give opinions with reasons, even in a short answer. «J'aime mon collège parce que les profs sont sympas.» «Je n'aime pas les devoirs parce que c'est ennuyeux.» «Ma matière préférée est l'histoire car c'est passionnant.» A reason can be a short clause: «parce que c'est utile», «car j'adore ça», «à cause de la pluie».
Use different openers: «à mon avis», «je pense que», «je trouve que», «selon moi». Use different adjectives: «génial», «super», «intéressant», «fatigant», «difficile», «amusant». Do not repeat «c'est bien» or «c'est bon» every time. A single well-explained opinion is worth more than three plain ones.
Even in a short message, show more than one tense. If the topic is the present (your school), add one sentence in the past («L'année dernière, j'ai participé à un échange») or the future («L'année prochaine, je voudrais étudier l'espagnol»). Choose forms you control: «j'ai joué», «j'ai mangé», «je suis allé», «il faisait beau», «je vais voyager», «je voudrais».
Practise this pattern for any topic: present (what it is like), past (what you did), future (what you will do). For example, for "my town": «J'habite dans une ville moyenne. L'été dernier, j'ai visité le musée. L'année prochaine, je vais aller au festival». It shows range with only three short sentences.
Which short answer shows three time frames?
J'habite à Leeds, j'ai visité le château l'été dernier et je vais aller au festival. It uses the present (habite), the perfect (ai visité) and the near future (vais aller).
Photo (five sentences): «Sur la photo, il y a une famille dans un parc. Il fait beau et le ciel est bleu. Une fille porte une robe jaune et un garçon joue au ballon. Au fond, on voit de grands arbres. À mon avis, ils sont contents parce qu'ils passent du temps ensemble.»
Message (about 45 words): «Salut Léa, merci pour ton message. Pendant les vacances, je suis allé à Nice avec ma famille. Il faisait très chaud et nous avons nagé tous les jours. C'était génial parce que la plage était magnifique. L'été prochain, je voudrais visiter l'Italie. Écris-moi bientôt.» It covers where, what, weather, opinion with a reason and the future.
Before you finish, check: have you answered every bullet point? Is there an opinion with a reason? Is there more than one tense? Are the verbs correct? Does each adjective agree? Are accents in place? Did you use a variety of verbs and connectives? Cross out errors neatly and rewrite.
Do not use a dictionary for words you cannot remember in the exam, because it is not allowed in most papers: use words you know, or find another way to say it. Do not write in English. Do not write far over the word count: it takes time, and errors cost marks. Accuracy and coverage matter more than length.
What should you do if you cannot remember a word for the message?
Use a similar word or another way to say it. Another way to say it still communicates the message.
Write one sentence about a photo of a beach with people swimming.
Answer: Sur la photo, il y a des gens qui nagent à la plage.
Write two sentences about a photo of a family in a park: say what they wear and the weather.
Answer: Il fait beau. Une fille porte une robe rouge.
Write three sentences for a message: where you went on holiday, what the weather was like, and what you will do next year.
Answer: Je suis allé en Espagne. Il faisait chaud. L'année prochaine, j'irai en Italie.
Try each one, then open the answer.
Translate into French: In the photo, there is a girl.
Answer: Sur la photo, il y a une fille
Translate into French: She is wearing a blue jumper.
Answer: Elle porte un pull bleu
Translate into French: It is sunny.
Answer: Il fait beau
Translate into French: On the left, there is a tree.
Answer: À gauche, il y a un arbre
Translate into French: The children are playing in the park and they look happy.
Answer: Les enfants jouent dans le parc et ils ont l'air contents
Translate into French: I think that the photo is beautiful because the weather is good.
Answer: Je pense que la photo est belle parce qu'il fait beau
Translate into French: Last summer I went to Nice with my family.
Answer: L'été dernier, je suis allé à Nice avec ma famille
Translate into French: Next year I would like to visit Italy.
Answer: L'année prochaine, je voudrais visiter l'Italie
Translate into French: In the foreground there is a family who are eating, and in the background you can see the mountains.
Answer: Au premier plan, il y a une famille qui mange, et au fond, on voit les montagnes
Translate into French: It was very hot, so we swam every day, and it was great because the beach was beautiful.
Answer: Il faisait très chaud, donc nous avons nagé tous les jours, et c'était génial parce que la plage était belle
Translate into French: I live in Leeds, I visited the castle last summer and I am going to go to the festival next month.
Answer: J'habite à Leeds, j'ai visité le château l'été dernier et je vais aller au festival le mois prochain
What does "Au fond, on voit une grande montagne et à droite, des enfants jouent au ballon" mean?
Answer: In the background you can see a big mountain and on the right children are playing with a ball
Longer tasks with the marking points. These are Yumio practice questions.
Write four sentences in French about a photo of a family having a picnic in a park. Say what you can see, what they are wearing and give an opinion. [5 marks]
Answer: Sur la photo, il y a une famille dans un parc. Ils mangent un pique-nique. Une fille porte une robe jaune. À mon avis, ils sont contents parce qu'il fait beau.
Write about 40 words in French about your last holiday. Say where you went, what the weather was like, what you did, and what you will do next year. [6 marks]
Answer: L'été dernier, je suis allé à Nice avec ma famille. Il faisait très chaud et nous avons nagé tous les jours. C'était génial parce que la plage était magnifique. L'année prochaine, j'irai en Italie avec mes amis.
Photo famille.
Write a full sentence with a verb.
Il est beau (for the weather)
Use il fait beau.
Leaving out a bullet point
Cover every point.
An opinion with no reason
Add parce que and a reason.
Writing only in the present
Add one past or future sentence.
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