Timetable and school day (AQA GCSE French): Revision Notes
Timetable and school day
La journée scolaire
Learning how to talk about your school day and tell the time is essential for describing your daily routine in French. This topic covers everything from school vocabulary to expressing times and discussing your timetable.
Mastering both time expressions and school vocabulary together will help you create natural, flowing conversations about your daily routine. These are fundamental skills that connect to many other areas of French conversation.
Essential vocabulary
Here's your key vocabulary for talking about school life and daily routines:
| French Term | English Translation | French Term | English Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| la journée scolaire | school day | la bibliothèque | library |
| commencer | to start | le cours | lesson |
| déjeuner | lunch | le directeur | headteacher |
| durer | to last | écouter | to listen to |
| finir | to finish | le jour | day |
| la journée | day | se lever | to get up |
| la matière | subject | la récréation | break |
| le sac | bag | scolaire | school (adjective) |
| le cahier | exercise book |
Getting to school
When describing how you travel to school, use these phrases with the key structure Je vais au collège...:
- Je vais au collège... (I go to school...)
- en bus (by bus)
- à pied (on foot)
- en train (by train)
- à vélo (by bike)
- en voiture (by car)
Telling the time in French
Understanding how to express time is crucial for describing your school timetable. French has specific patterns you need to master.
French time expressions follow logical patterns, but they're different from English. Once you understand the system, it becomes much easier to use naturally.
Basic time expressions
For o'clock times, use heure (singular) or heures (plural):
- Il est une heure - It is one o'clock
- Il est trois heures - It is three o'clock
Minutes past the hour
When the minute hand is between 12 and 6, you're expressing minutes past the hour:
- dix heures cinq - five past ten
- six heures et quart - quarter past six
- huit heures et demie - half past eight
Minutes to the hour
When the minute hand is between 6 and 12, use moins (minus/to):
- onze heures moins dix - ten to eleven (literally "eleven hours minus ten")
- deux heures moins le quart - quarter to two
Special times
Midday and midnight have their own terms:
- midi - midday/noon
- minuit - midnight
Critical grammar rule: When using midi or minuit, demi doesn't take an 'e':
- midi et demi - half past twelve in the afternoon
- minuit et demi - half past midnight
This is a common mistake that even advanced students make!
The 24-hour clock
French people commonly use the 24-hour system, especially for official timetables. When using 24-hour time, don't use quart or demie - just state the numbers:
- treize heures quinze - 13:15 (1:15 pm)
- quinze heures trente - 15:30 (3:30 pm)
Example sentences
Here are practical sentences combining school vocabulary with time expressions:
Worked Example: Present Tense School Routine
- Je me lève à sept heures et demie - I get up at half past seven
- Mon premier cours commence à huit heures vingt-cinq - My first lesson starts at twenty-five past eight
- Il y a six cours par jour - There are six lessons per day
- On mange le déjeuner à midi et demi au collège - We eat lunch at half past twelve at school
Worked Example: Past Tense School Activities
- Hier, j'ai fini mes cours à quinze heures - Yesterday, I finished my lessons at 3 o'clock
- J'ai mangé à la cantine à midi - I ate in the canteen at midday
Grammar and pronunciation tips
Essential Grammar Rules:
- Gender agreement: Demi agrees with feminine nouns (demie) but stays demi with midi and minuit
- Word confusion: Remember that journée means 'day', not 'journey'
- Pronunciation: The 's' in heures is silent when followed by a consonant
- Time precision: Listen carefully to distinguish between similar times (8:25 vs 8:35)
Translation practice
Translation Practice: French to English
- Je vais au collège en bus à huit heures moins le quart.
- Ma matière préférée commence à quatorze heures.
Translation Practice: English to French
- I get up at quarter past seven every day.
- We have lunch at half past twelve at school.
Answers:
- I go to school by bus at quarter to eight.
- My favourite subject starts at 2 o'clock (2 pm).
- Je me lève à sept heures et quart tous les jours.
- On mange le déjeuner à midi et demi au collège.
Key Points to Remember:
- Use heure (singular) for one o'clock, heures (plural) for all other times
- Demi becomes demie with feminine nouns, but stays demi after midi and minuit
- The 24-hour clock doesn't use quart or demie - just state the exact numbers
- Journée means 'day', not 'journey' - think of jour (day) inside the word
- Practice listening to times carefully as small differences can change the meaning completely