Calendar dates and holidays
Dates de calendrier et jours fériés
- The basic dates and holidays
- How to form the date?
Learn how to discuss calendar dates and holidays in French, including how to form dates, talk about important family and national celebrations such as "le 14 juillet" and "Noël", and use common verbs like "commencer" and "célébrer" in this beginner (A1) lesson designed for practical, everyday conversation.
Listening & reading materials
Practice vocabulary in context with real materials.
Vocabulary (10) Share Copied!
Exercises Share Copied!
These exercises can be done together during conversation lessons or as homework.
Exercise 1: Reorder sentences
Instruction: Make correct sentences and translate.
Exercise 2: Match a word
Instruction: Match the translations
Exercise 3: Cluster the words
Instruction: Sort these words according to their relation either with holidays or with the months of the year.
Jours fériés
Mois de l'année
Exercise 4: Translate and use in a sentence
Instruction: Pick a word, translated and use the word in a sentence or dialogue.
1
Le mois
The month
2
Se souvenir
To remember
3
Le calendrier
The calendar
4
Célébrer
To celebrate
5
La journée
The day
Exercice 5: Conversation exercise
Instruction:
- Say the name of the holiday and it's date. (Say the name of the holiday and it's date.)
- What are your plans for the holidays? With whom are you going to spend it? (What are your plans for the holidays? With whom are you going to spend it?)
- What day is today? (What day is today?)
Teaching guidelines +/- 10 minutes
Example phrases:
|
Noël est le vingt-cinq décembre. Christmas is the twenty-fifth of December. |
|
Les vacances d'été sont en juillet et août. Summer holiday is in July and august. |
|
Pâques tombe toujours à une date différente. Easter is always on another date. |
|
Je prévois de célébrer Noël avec ma famille. I plan to celebrate christmas with my family. |
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Je vais célébrer le Nouvel An avec mes amis. I am going to celebrate new year's with my friends. |
|
Aujourd'hui, c'est le quatorze février 2025. Today is the forteenth of february of 2025. |
| ... |
Exercise 6: Dialogue Cards
Instruction: Select a situation and practice the conversation with your teacher or fellow students.
Exercise 7: Multiple Choice
Instruction: Choose the correct solution
1. La fête ______ toujours le 14 juillet en France.
(The celebration ______ always starts on July 14th in France.)2. Les célébrations ______ tôt le matin le 14 juillet.
(The celebrations ______ early in the morning on July 14th.)3. Nous ______ la journée de travail après la pause café.
(We ______ the workday after the coffee break.)4. Elle ______ à célébrer Noël dès le 24 décembre.
(She ______ starts celebrating Christmas on December 24th.)Exercise 8: Holidays and Important Dates in the Family
Instruction:
Verb Tables
Commencer - Start
Présent
- je commence
- tu commences
- il/elle commence
- nous commençons
- vous commencez
- ils/elles commencent
Célébrer - Celebrate
Présent
- je célèbre
- tu célèbres
- il/elle célèbre
- nous célébrons
- vous célébrez
- ils/elles célèbrent
Se souvenir - Remember
Présent
- je me souviens
- tu te souviens
- il/elle se souvient
- nous nous souvenons
- vous vous souvenez
- ils/elles se souviennent
Exercise 9: Comment former la date?
Instruction: Fill in the correct word.
Grammar: How to form the date?
Show translation Show answersLe 11 novembre, le 1er septembre, le 6 janvier, Le 1er janvier, le 25 décembre, le 15 août, le 1er avril, Le 14 juillet
Grammar Share Copied!
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Verb conjugation tables for this lesson Share Copied!
Commencer to begin Share Copied!
present
| French | English |
|---|---|
| (je/j') je commence | I begin |
| tu commences | you begin |
| il/elle/on commence | he/she/one begins |
| nous commençons | We begin |
| vous commencez | You begin |
| ils/elles commencent | They begin |
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Learn to Talk About Dates and Holidays in French
This lesson introduces you to key French dates and holiday expressions, focusing on everyday situations like family celebrations and important public holidays. You will learn how to form dates properly in French and use them naturally in conversation. For example, phrases like "Le 14 juillet, c'est la fête nationale en France" and "Nous célébrons Noël le 25 décembre en famille" are typical ways to speak about holidays.
Key Dates and Holidays
- Le 14 juillet — Bastille Day (France's national day)
- Le 25 décembre — Noël (Christmas)
- Le 1er janvier — Jour de l'an (New Year's Day)
- Le 1er septembre — La rentrée scolaire (Back to school)
- Le 6 janvier — La fête de l'Épiphanie (Epiphany with galette des rois)
Forming Dates in French
French dates typically include the day followed by the month, e.g., le 14 juillet or le 1er janvier. It’s also useful to include the year when planning or discussing events, as in "le jeudi 25 décembre 2024".
Practice with Dialogues and Conversations
The lesson provides conversational examples to practice asking and giving dates, like:
- "Quelle est la date aujourd'hui ?" — "Nous sommes le 5 mai 2024."
- "Tu sais quand est Noël cette année ?" — "Oui, le 25 décembre 2024."
Verbs Commonly Used with Dates
You will also focus on present tense verb conjugations such as commencer (to start) and célébrer (to celebrate), essential for discussing events, e.g., "La fête commence le 14 juillet." and "Nous célébrons Noël en famille."
Important Differences Between English and French Date Expressions
In French, dates usually start with the article "le" followed by the day and then the month, whereas in English, the month often comes first. Also, ordinal numbers are used for the first day of the month (le 1er) but not for others (le 14). Phrases like "la rentrée scolaire" specifically mean "the start of the school year," highlighting cultural events you might not mention explicitly in English. Useful French phrases to remember include "C'est le..." (It is the...), and "On fête..." (We celebrate...). These structures will help you talk naturally about dates and holiday traditions in French.
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