What you can now do
Skills checklist🧒Talk about childhood
- Imparfait: quand j'étais petit, je jouais…
- Describe a past state / habit
- "Je me souviens de…"
📰Understand news in brief
- Radio reports (vocabulary of an accident)
- passer · arriver · heurter · témoin
- "Sur place / sur les lieux"
🎬Tell a past story
- Passé composé = punctual events
- Imparfait = description, backdrop, habit
- "Il pleuvait quand l'accident est arrivé."
⏰The recent past
- venir de + infinitive = "to have just done…"
- Je viens de finir.
- Il vient d'arriver.
📅Place events in time
- en 2020 · le 14 février · à 7 h
- il y a 5 ans · pendant 10 ans
- depuis 2020 · dans 3 jours
🎯Express purpose
- pour + noun · pour + infinitive
- Je vais en France pour apprendre le français.
- "In order to… / to…"
Grammar synthesis
Everything in one place① The imparfait — formation
Stem = present-tense nous form minus -ons.
| Verb | nous (present) | stem | imparfait |
|---|---|---|---|
| parler | nous parlons | parl- | je parlais |
| finir | nous finissons | finiss- | je finissais |
| prendre | nous prenons | pren- | je prenais |
| avoir | nous avons | av- | j'avais |
| faire | nous faisons | fais- | je faisais |
| être ⚠️ | — | ét- | j'étais |
📌 Endings: -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient
② Imparfait vs Passé composé
| Imparfait 🎨 | Passé composé 🎬 |
|---|---|
| Description | Punctual event |
| State, backdrop | Completed action |
| Action in progress | Brief action |
| Habit | One-off action |
| Il pleuvait. | Il a téléphoné. |
| Tous les jours, je sortais. | Hier, je suis sorti. |
📝 English check: "was/were doing" or "used to/would do" → imparfait. "did" / "have done" → passé composé.
③ Recent past — venir de + infinitive
For something that just happened:
Je viens de finir mon devoir. "I've just finished my homework."
Il vient d'arriver. "He's just arrived."
④ Time markers + Purpose
| Time | Purpose |
|---|---|
| en 2020 | pour apprendre |
| il y a 5 ans | pour mes parents |
| pendant 3 ans | pour ne pas être en retard |
| depuis longtemps |
Wedding blog
Tell the storyYou've just started a family blog. Tell the story of your wedding day on it: where and how the day went; who was there; what the weather was like.
💍 My wedding
Je me souviens, c'était en…
📅 21 September 2025Childhood friends
Catching up👫 On Trombi.com
You've reconnected with a childhood friend on the French alumni site Trombi.com (the FR equivalent of Classmates.com). Now you're meeting up at a café to talk about your current life and tell each other what you've done from high school until today. With your partner, role-play the scene.
Things to ask:
- How long has it been since we last saw each other?
- Do you remember our … teacher?
- Do you remember what we used to do after school?
- What about now — what do you do? Where do you live?
- Do you have a family? Kids?
💡 Mix imparfait (memories) and passé composé (events)!
News in brief
Listening taskListen to the radio report. Tell your partner what happened.
- Where did the event happen? →
- When? →
- What exactly happened? →
- Were there any injured? →
- What was the weather like? →
💡 No auto-check — compare with your partner.
Movie festival — your first memory
Writing competition🎬 Ciné Cinéma — Competition
Want to win a free movie ticket? For the Fête du cinéma, tell us about your first memory of going to the movies in 150 words max!
🎟️ Read the document, then send your text to the magazine.
💡 Ideas:
- How old were you?
- Who were you with? (parents, siblings, friends…)
- Which film? What genre? (animated, action, comedy…)
- How did you feel? (scared, happy, surprised…)
- What was it like? (the room, the seats, the popcorn…)
Self-test
20 questions20 questions to check that you've mastered Unit 8.
Self-test · 20 questions
1. Imparfait: Quand j' petit, je jouais au foot. (être)
2. Mes grands-parents à Lyon. (habiter)
3. Nous le train pour la mer. (prendre)
4. Tu le chocolat ? (aimer)
5. Les enfants du sport. (faire)
6. Recent past: Je . (finir)
7. Il . (arriver)
8. Nous . (manger)
9. PC or imparfait? Hier, je au cinéma.
10. Il quand je suis parti. (pleuvoir)
11. Tous les matins, on un café ensemble.
12. Quand le téléphone , je dormais.
13. Place in time: Je suis né 2000.
14. La fête nationale, c'est 14 juillet.
15. J'apprends le français 6 mois.
16. J'ai habité à Boston 5 ans.
17. Je suis arrivée 3 jours.
18. Purpose: Je vais à Paris apprendre le français.
19. Il téléphone sa mère.
20. Symbol: Notre-Dame de Paris reopened in:
🎯 Final score:
- 18-20 / 20 ⭐⭐⭐ — Excellent! The imparfait holds no secrets for you.
- 14-17 / 20 ⭐⭐ — Very good. Review the passé composé / imparfait split.
- 10-13 / 20 ⭐ — Not bad. Redo the exercises in lessons 29-30.
- under 10 — Take your time and start over. Past tenses are a huge piece of French!