French Preschool Themes

Wondering how to teach French preschool themes so your little ones can learn the French language? This is a great time to introduce thematic vocabulary in a way that's meaningful to the child. Alors, apprenons le français! (Let's learn some French)

Studying animals is a given for most preschool classrooms. Integrate some French into your studies with some of these words:

• un chat (a cat)
• un chien (a dog)
• un canard (a duck)
• un éléphant (an elephant)
• un cheval (a horse)
• une singe (a monkey)
• un loup (a wolf)

Finish your unit by going to the zoo and seeing how many animals your students can name!

Studying the arctic makes a perfect summer theme for when you need to think cool thoughts:

• la neige (snow)
• la glace (ice)
• un ours polaire (polar bear)
• le blanc (white)
• les pingouins (penguins)
• l'océan Arctique (the Arctic ocean)
• un macareux (a puffin)
• une baleine (a whale)

There is a certain fascination that comes with studying bugs, butterflies and bees. Use these vocabulary words to talk about your six legged friends:

• une abeille (a bee)
• une libellule (a dragonfly)
• un insecte (an insect)
• un attenae (attenae)
• un papillon (a butterfly)
• une fourmi (an ant)

Keeping an ant farm in your classroom is also a great way to allow natural investigation to happen.

There are lots of things to study and think about if you're talking about the wild, wild west:

• l'ouest (the west)
• un chevalier (a cowboy)
• l'orpaillage (panning for gold)
• l'or (gold)
• un cheval (a horse)
• les montagnes (mountains)
• faire du camping (camping)

If you think the desert is barren, think again--it makes a fascinating preschool study:

• un cactus (cactus)
• un lézard (lizards)
• un vautour (vulture)
• sable (sand)
• le désert (the dessert)
• une oasis (an oasis)
• un mirage (mirage)
• chameaux (camels)

To complete your unit you can teach the kids a song like "Home on the Range" in French!

What preschooler doesn't like to dig through dirt?

• un ver (a worm)
• légumes (vegetables)
• les mauvaises herbes (weeds)
• planter (to plant something)
• fleurs (flowers)
• eau (water)
• soleil (sun)
• engrais (fertilizer)

If you have space, preschoolers love to tend a garden.

Studying colors is considered basic in preschool:

• red (rouge)
• orange (orange)
• yellow (jaune)
• green (vert)
• purple (violet)
• blue (bleu)
• pink (rose)
• white (blanc)
• black (noir)
• brown (brun)

There is no limit to the amount of fun you can have when you are coming up with preschool themes. For more ideas on how to create themes, check out Creating Themes in French for Preschoolers.