Using cinema in the FLE classroom is a captivating approach to working on all language skills while engaging learners in an immersive way. Azadée, FLE teacher and trainer, shares her experience and best strategies for integrating the 7th art into French language learning.
🎤 Interview with Azadée, teacher and film enthusiast
Hello Azadée, would you like to introduce yourself?
Hello David. I’ ve been an FLE teacher since 2017 in a French school. In addition to teaching, I also manage a TEF/DFP exam center, train teachers and help create teaching and digital materials.
Today, we’re going to talk about cinema in the FLE classroom. When did you become interested in this subject and why?
My adventure began when I was a pedagogical referent at the Alliance Française de Porto Rico, where I took part in the FESTINEMA project. The aim of this festival was to introduce French-language cinema to students in the United States and American territories. For five years, I created educational booklets on the festival’s films, which were then translated into English and Spanish. This experience showed me just how inexhaustible an educational resource film can be!
🎞 How can cinema be integrated into the FLE classroom?
Do you work on entire films or just sequences?
Both! It all depends on theeducational objective. Sometimes I use a film in its entirety, sometimes just a trailer or an extract. Everything is food for thought: the dialogue, the soundtrack, the poster, the cultural references… The important thing is to choose a precise angle of analysis.
How do you teach a film in the FLE classroom?
I’ve developed my own method. It all starts with an in-depth analysis of the film:
✅ Identify the elements that can be used (dialogue, music, characters, historical context, etc.).
✅ Define a clear pedagogical objective (lexicon, grammar, listening comprehension, etc.).
✅ Select the key extracts or images to be used in class.
The important thing is not to limit yourself and to explore all the pedagogical avenues a film offers!
🎬 Cinema for all levels? Yes !
Can cinema be used with beginners (A1/A2)?
Of course you can! Justadapt the media. For example, you can:
📽 Work on a poster and have students guess the title.
🎶 Use the soundtrack to identify emotions.
🔤 Create a game based on the film’s vocabulary.
Cinema is an audiovisual medium, so images and music help comprehension, even at lower levels!
What skills can you work on with film?
✨ ALL! ✨ Thanks to the chosen extracts, we can develop:
🗣 Oral expression with role-playing.
📖 Written comprehension with synopses.
👂 Oral comprehension with dialogues.
✍ Written expression with creative essays.
🎭 Interaction with debates or improvisation games.
💡 Tips for using film in the FLE classroom
Azadée shares some simple and effective methods:
✔ Play with the title: hide the film’s title and ask students to imagine their own version.
✔ Work on the trailer: analyze visual and audio cues to anticipate the story.
✔ Create a debate: after a key scene, invite students to discuss the characters’ choices.
🔴 Don’t: Never show a film without preparation! Introductory and contextual work is essential to engage learners and help them better understand.
🎥 Where can I find educational films?
There are plenty of free resources available online! The booklets created for FESTINEMA are available on the website of theFrench Embassy in the United States, with cards classified by age group. Before creating your own activities, it’s always a good idea to draw inspiration from existing resources.
📢 Conclusion: an essential teaching tool
Cinema is much more than a simple medium in the FLE classroom: itimmerses learners in the French language and culture, while making learning more fun and interactive. Thanks to Azadée for sharing her experience!
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