Teaching French with movie scenes: a ready A2 lesson plan
Showing a whole French film in class feels like a treat and works like a holiday: ninety minutes, little French produced, and a class that read the English subtitles. A two-minute scene does the opposite. Students watch it four times without getting bored, every line can be explained, and the scene gives you a situation to role-play.
Below is a complete 55-minute lesson plan built on one A2 scene, then how to run the same plan at B1. Every scene mentioned is a guided lesson on the Parisly films shelf for teachers, with French subtitles, the full transcript, the vocabulary and one grammar point.
Why one scene beats one film
- Repetition without boredom. A scene is short enough to watch four times; a film is not.
- A real situation. Someone wants something, someone refuses, someone asks questions. That is the raw material of a speaking task.
- One grammar point, in context. Each scene on Parisly is chosen for a structure it really uses, several times.
- Animated films are the gentlest way in. Clear voices, simple stories many students already know in their own language.
The scene: Raiponce, « Flynn dans la tour » (A2)
In the French version of Disney's Tangled, « Flynn dans la tour » is the scene where Rapunzel (Raiponce in French) questions the stranger who has climbed into her tower. The grammar point of the lesson is questions by inversion (Qui êtes-vous ?), a form A2 students recognise in writing but rarely hear.
If you would rather start with a free scene, the Raiponce tavern scene (B1, ça sent / ça a l'air) is free on Parisly, no account needed.
The 55-minute lesson plan
1. Warm-up (5 min)
Show a still from the scene. Ask in French: Who is she? Where is she? Who is he? What does she want to know? Write their questions on the board exactly as they say them, mistakes included: you will come back to them.
2. First viewing, no subtitles (5 min)
One task only: who wants what? Students answer in one sentence each. Do not explain anything yet.
3. Second viewing, French subtitles (10 min)
Now with the French subtitles. Give three or four true/false statements about the scene, then check together. Students who missed the first viewing catch up here; that is what the subtitles are for.
4. Grammar: three ways to ask a question (15 min)
On the board, one question written three ways:
| Register | Form |
|---|---|
| spoken, everyday | Vous êtes qui ? |
| neutral | Est-ce que vous êtes… ? |
| formal / written | Qui êtes-vous ? |
Third viewing: students note every question they hear and sort it into the table. Then go back to the warm-up questions on the board and turn each one into its inverted form. The lesson on Parisly explains the point step by step; set it as homework if time is short.
5. Role-play: the interrogation (15 min)
Pairs. One student is the stranger who has just come in; the other asks at least five questions, at least three of them by inversion. Swap roles. The best pairs perform for the class, who count the inversions.
6. Wrap-up and homework (5 min)
Each student writes the three questions they would ask the stranger. For homework, send them the lesson: they watch the scene again alone, with the questions after each block and the words worth knowing picked out.
Adapting the plan for B1: Dix pour cent
At B1, swap the scene and keep the structure. « Le lendemain matin » from the French series Dix pour cent (Call My Agent!) is a B1 lesson whose grammar point is the passé composé:
- warm-up: from the title, students imagine what happened the night before;
- grammar hunt: every passé composé they hear, sorted into avoir and être;
- speaking task: one student tells the story of their own "night before", the others ask questions.
For a register lesson, the other Dix pour cent scene, « L'engueulade en voiture » (B1), teaches negation without "ne", the way French people actually speak when they argue.
Other scenes that fit the same plan
| Scene | Level | Grammar point |
|---|---|---|
| Vice-Versa 2 — Anxiété prévoit l'avenir | A2 | finir par + infinitif |
| Kirikou — le chapeau | A2 | the comparative with plus… que |
| Kirikou — petit et grand | A2 | quand + futur simple |
| Astérix — Le Domaine des Dieux | A2 | ni… ni |
| Lupin — la course-poursuite à vélo | B1 | the imperative |
| Le Roi Lion — Zazu | B1 | the futur simple |
All of them are listed by level on the films page for teachers. Students can browse the same scenes on the learner pages (A2, B1).
What Parisly gives you, and what you bring
Parisly gives you the scene with French subtitles, every line transcribed, the vocabulary, questions after each part and the grammar point explained step by step. You bring the class: the warm-up, the role-play, the energy. When the lesson is over, you can send it to a student in one click, with its homework.
For a listening lesson built on radio instead of film, see French listening activities for the classroom; for news, French lesson plan from the news.
Questions teachers ask
Should students watch with English subtitles?
No. French subtitles from the second viewing on: students read and hear the same words, which is exactly what links spelling and sound.
Are Disney dubs real French?
Yes. The French versions are performed by French actors, at a pace close to natural speech, and they are often the easiest real French your students will hear.
What if my class is mixed A2 and B1?
Use the A2 scene for everyone and give B1 students a harder task: they must use three different question forms in the role-play.
