Coucou ☕️🇫🇷🥐 I'm Amélie Laurent and this is a 🌱 free edition 🌱 of my newsletter, where I supercharge your progress from A2 to B2 through colloquial dialogues. Your support means the world to me.
Salut mes amis ! 👋 Bienvenue à nouveau.
Part of the secret of creating stimulating and interesting lessons for lots of students is finding topics that apply to almost everyone.
Pets are one of those things. Sure, some of you don’t have any pets right now. But almost everyone has strong memories of pets in their life at some point.
What joy our furry or scaly or feathery friends can bring. I’m sure some of you have a furry friend close by right now! (Lucky you!)
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A x
T’as des animaux de compagnie ? 🐈
Dialogue Audio 🎧
Dialogue du Jour
Alexandre : Dis Sophie, tu as des animaux de compagnie ✪ ?
Sophie : Salut Alexandre, oui, j'ai un chat qui s'appelle ✪ Minou. Et toi ?
Alexandre : J'ai un chien, un berger allemand, il s'appelle Max. Il est trop cool.
Sophie : Oh, j'adore les bergers allemands, ils sont super intelligents. Comment tu l'as eu ?
Alexandre : C'était un cadeau de mon père, il me l'a offert pour mon anniversaire il y a quelques années ✪. Et toi, comment tu as eu Minou ?
Sophie : C'était un chaton perdu, je l'ai trouvé dans la rue un jour, il était tout petit. J'ai décidé de le garder et, maintenant, il est devenu mon meilleur ami.
Alexandre : C'est cool, grâce à toi ✪, il a une belle vie. Il est beaucoup plus chanceux que la plupart des chats abandonnés. Et tu en as d'autres, des animaux ?
Sophie : Non, juste Minou pour le moment. Et toi, tu as d'autres animaux à part Max ?
Alexandre : Non, que lui, mais j'aimerais bien avoir un aquarium un jour. J'aime bien les poissons.
♡ 𝕃𝕚𝕜𝕖 𝕓𝕖𝕝𝕠𝕨 👇
✪ Notes
les animaux de compagnie = les bêtes domestiques = pets
A bit long winded but this is the way we say it! I find it quite touching actually, a literal description of what our furry friends are: animals to keep us company. When someone asks, "Tu as des animaux de compagnie?", they're not just inquiring about your pets; they're opening a door to endless stories about Minou or Médor.
s'appeler = to be named. The classic. What you won’t have heard from your high school French teacher? Learn m'appelle + s'appelle and you’ll have covered 99% of your bases. That’s the French with Amélie way: efficient and crazy realistic. "Je m'appelle Amélie, et mon chat s'appelle Minou." (My name is Amélie, and my cat is named Minou.)
il y a quelques années ✨d = il y a un certain temps = a few years ago
‘There is/there are’ yes but ‘il y a’ also has a side gig talking about the past.
See here (if you’re keen). Actually quite easy to get a grasp on. Elle avait la grippe il y a un mois - She had the flu a month ago.
grâce à toi ✨= à cause de toi (but in a good way!) = thanks to you
This is the phrase you whip out to express gratitude. It's like sprinkling fairy dust of appreciation over someone's actions. Example: "Grâce à toi, j'ai découvert ce merveilleux café." (Thanks to you, I discovered this wonderful café.)
*✨ = especially ‘Frenchie’ words/phrases you should try and use more
*🧩 = ‘canned’ expressions or phrases that are best learned as a whole, like puzzle-pieces.
Translation
A: Say Sophie, do you have any pets?
S: Hi Alexandre, yes, I have a cat named Minou. And you?
A: I have a dog, a German Shepherd, his name is Max. He is super cool.
S: Oh, I love German Shepherds, they are super intelligent. How did you get him?
A: It was a gift from my father, he gave it to me for my birthday a few years ago. And you, how did you get Minou?
S: He was a lost kitten, I found him on the street one day, he was very small. I decided to keep him and now he has become my best friend.
A: That's cool, thanks to you, he has a nice life. He is much luckier than most abandoned cats. And do you have others, pets?
S: No, just Minou for now. And you, do you have other animals besides Max?
A: No, just him, but I would like to have an aquarium one day. I like fish.
✉️ Votre invitation à Paris
⏪ Catch Up On Recent Dialogues
👑 Comment of the week
Quel est ton film préféré de tous les temps ? 🎬 Mark a répondu:
Excellent dialogue, ni trop facile, ni trop dur, et le sujet etait interessant. J'ai vraiment apprécie ca. S'il vous plait, continuez a les venir !
French 101 🇫🇷: Chez le médecin 1 🩺 Lewis a dit:
Je voyagais être NYC et Hong Hong tout les trois ou quatre mois.... le décalage horaire de 12 heures était horrible. De HK a NYC j'ai besoin de deux semaines pour me sentir bien.
Writing Prompt ✍️ Alors, t’as des animaux de compagnie ?
All answers are welcome. One word.. or one sentence.
Write me your answer in the comments. I can’t wait to read them! 👇🏼
Exercise 1 - Fill in the blank 💪
Quickly test your comprehension, accelerate your learning. 🚀
Mon nouveau chiot ___ Rex.
My new puppy is called Rex.J'adore observer ___ jouer dans le jardin.
I love watching the pets play in the garden.J'ai commencé mon nouveau travail ___.
I started my new job a week ago.J'ai ___ un nouveau café sympa près du bureau.
I discovered a nice new café near the office.J'ai réussi mon examen ___, merci pour ton aide !
I passed my exam thanks to you, thanks for your help!
If you’re struggling the ✪ Notes section is always a good place to look. 😉 The answers are all in the dialogue or notes section.
[NO PEEKING] Answer Key: 1. s'appelle 2. les animaux de compagnie 3. il y a une semaine 4. découvert 5. grâce à toi
Exercise 2 - Translate ⚡
If you can translate each of these sentences after the lesson then you’re making real progress. They can also me used as flashcards.
C'était un chaton perdu, mais grâce à Sophie, il a trouvé un foyer aimant.
Comment peut-on ignorer un chaton perdu, errant dans les rues ?
Minou est devenu bien plus qu'un animal de compagnie, il est devenu mon meilleur ami.
Alexandre n'a qu'un chien, mais pour lui, c'est suffisant.
Sophie a toujours rêvé d'avoir un animal, et maintenant, Minou est devenu son meilleur ami.
1. It was a lost kitten, but thanks to Sophie, it found a loving home.
2. How can one ignore a lost kitten wandering in the streets?
3. Minou has become much more than a pet, he has become my best friend.
4. Alexandre has only one dog, but for him, that's enough.
5. Sophie always dreamed of having an animal, and now, Minou has become her best friend.
🪄 Petit Bonus
Also see this adorable post about Paris' dogs by the wonderful Lindsey of the…
👑Une Façon d'utiliser ce Dialogue
Here’s one way you could use the dialogue this week:
🥪 Listening sandwich - Listen to the recording x3 times, then read the dialogue and fill in your understanding, then listen again.
This is a great way for beginners to boost their oral comprehension in small helpful doses. Listening first exercises your brain, and listening again after studying allows you solidifying the connections. It’s also encouraging as you can see what you’ve learned !
Check out my quick guide🔗 for different ways you can learn with these dialogues. Perfect if you’re finding them too easy or too hard. 🙌🏻
𝔻𝕠𝕟'𝕥 𝕗𝕠𝕣𝕘𝕖𝕥 𝕥𝕠 ♡ 𝕝𝕚𝕜𝕖 𝕠𝕟 𝕊𝕦𝕓𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕔𝕜👇
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Adieu, mes étoiles brillantes! Keep shining in your French journey. ✨📚
Amélie x
T’as des animaux de compagnie ? 🐈