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At the Beach — A la plage by Dawn-Michelle Baude, Ph.D.

France has many beaches — some are in the South, along the Mediterranean Sea, and some are in the West, along the Atlantic Ocean. France also has a string of islands along both coasts, with beaches all the way around.

One thing that's very important at the beach is the temperature of the water! You probably say things like, “It's cold!” when you hesitate getting wet, or “It's not cold!” when you want your friends to jump in.

In French, you don't use “it” as often for water. Sometimes you use l'eau. You say, L'eau est bonne! (“The water is good”) or Elle est fraîche (“The water is chilly”). And when you get out of the water and the wind blows, you say J'ai froid!(“I'm cold!”).

Using “To Have” — Utiliser “avoir”

One of the most important verbs in French is avoir, which means “to have.” Let's look at the conjugation map so you can get to know it a little better:

<tgroup cols="2"> <colspec align="left" colname="col1" colnum="1" colsep="0" colwidth="50%"/> <colspec align="left" colname="col2" colnum="2" colsep="0" colwidth="50%"/> <thead> <tr> <td><p><B>English</B></p></td> <td><p><B>French</B></p></td> </tr> </thead> <tbody> <tr> <td><p>to have</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>avoir</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>I have</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>j'ai</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>you have</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>tu as</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>he/she/it has</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>il/elle/il a</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>we have</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>nous avons</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>you have</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>vous avez</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>they have</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>ils/elles ont</emphasis></p></td> </tr> </tbody> </tgroup> </table> <div class="npsb"> <h2><emphasis>A la Plage</emphasis></h2> <p>One of these kids went to the beach at the wrong time. Can you put these words where they belong?</p> <p>froid | chaud | l'été | l'hiver</p> <div class="npmo"> <img src="http://0.tqn.com/d/np/kids-french/p105-001.jpg"> </div> </div> <div class="npsb"> <tip> <h2>IMPORTANT TIPS <emphasis>TRUCS IMPORTANTS</emphasis><inlinemediaobject><imageobject><imagedata fileref="!.jpg" format="JPG"/></imageobject></inlinemediaobject></h2> <p>One of the most essential verbs to memorize in French is avoir. You'll need it to make verb tenses, just like you use “have” to do the same thing in English. For example, “I had seen” is <emphasis>J'avais vu</emphasis> in French. “Had” is used to make a verb tense in English the way that <emphasis>avoir</emphasis> is used to make a verb tense in French. The difference is that you'll use <emphasis>avoir</emphasis> a whole lot more than you use “have” because there are more French tenses!</p> </tip> </div> <p>To talk about how you feel temperature in French, you use <emphasis>avoir</emphasis> (“to have”), not <emphasis>être</emphasis> (“to be”).</p> <p>In English you say, “I am cold.” In French, you say, <emphasis>J'ai froid,</emphasis> which happens to literally translate as “I have cold.”</p> <p>You use the same <emphasis>avoir</emphasis> map for getting hungry and thirsty. You say, <emphasis>J'ai soif</emphasis> for “I am thirsty” or <emphasis>J'ai faim</emphasis> for “I am hungry.” At the end of a long, happy day at the beach, you may even say, <emphasis>J'ai sommeil</emphasis> — “I am tired.”</p> <p>The same thing goes for your friends, too. In French, you say, <emphasis>Il a froid</emphasis> (“He is cold”) or <emphasis>Elles ont faim</emphasis> (“They are hungry”). But now here comes something odd: <emphasis>faim, soif, froid</emphasis>, and <emphasis>chaud</emphasis> don't change with the noun, whether it's singular, plural, a masculine word or a feminine word. But the verb still shows the difference between singular and plural!</p> <p>Here's the map for <emphasis>froid</emphasis>:</p> <table frame="none" width="100%"> <title/> <tgroup cols="4"> <colspec align="left" colname="col1" colnum="1" colsep="0" colwidth="25%"/> <colspec align="left" colname="col2" colnum="2" colsep="0" colwidth="25%"/> <colspec align="left" colname="col3" colnum="3" colsep="0" colwidth="25%"/> <colspec align="left" colname="col4" colnum="4" colsep="0" colwidth="25%"/> <thead> <tr> <td><p><B>English</B></p></td> <td><p><B>Gender</B></p></td> <td><p><B>Number</B></p></td> <td><p><B>French</B></p></td> </tr> </thead> <tbody> <tr> <td><p>He is cold.</p></td> <td><p>M</p></td> <td><p>Singular</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>Il a froid.</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>She is cold.</p></td> <td><p>F</p></td> <td><p>Singular</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>Elle a froid.</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>They are cold.</p></td> <td><p>M, or M and F</p></td> <td><p>Plural</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>Ils ont froid.</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>They are cold.</p></td> <td><p>F</p></td> <td><p>Plural</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>Elles ont froid.</emphasis></p></td> </tr> </tbody> </tgroup> </table> <p>Now try to translate the following French sentences into English:</p> <ul> <li><p><emphasis>J'ai soif</emphasis>.</p></li> <li><p><emphasis>Ils ont chaud</emphasis>.</p></li> <li><p><emphasis>Elles ont faim</emphasis>.</p></li> <li><p><emphasis>Elle a faim</emphasis>.</p></li> <li><p><emphasis>Elle a froid</emphasis>.</p></li> <li><p><emphasis>Nous avons chaud</emphasis>.</p></li> <li><p><emphasis>Vous avez froid</emphasis>.</p></li> <li><p><emphasis>J'ai sommeil</emphasis>.</p></li> </ul> <h2>Playing at The Beach — <emphasis>Jouer sur la plage</emphasis></h2> <p>What else do you need to say at the beach? You need to say you see something, <emphasis>Je vois la mer</emphasis> (“I see the sea”). And you need to say you want things, <emphasis>Je veux le chapeau</emphasis> (“I want the hat”). You may also want to say something is beautiful, <emphasis>Le coquillage est beau</emphasis> (“The seashell is beautiful”). Here are some words you might need:</p> <table frame="none" width="100%"> <title/> <tgroup cols="2"> <colspec align="left" colname="col1" colnum="1" colsep="0" colwidth="50%"/> <colspec align="left" colname="col2" colnum="2" colsep="0" colwidth="50%"/> <thead> <tr> <td><p><B>English</B></p></td> <td><p><B>French</B></p></td> </tr> </thead> <tbody> <tr> <td><p>beach</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>la plage</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>sea</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>la mer</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>water</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>l'eau</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>sand</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>le sable</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>sand castle</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>le château de sable</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>shore</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>le rivage</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>wave</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>la vague</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>temperature</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>la température</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>toy</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>le jouet</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>seashell</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>le coquillage</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>crab</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>le crabe</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>sea gull</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>la mouette</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>swimsuit</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>le maillot de bain</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>towel</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>la serviette</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>suntan lotion</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>la crème solaire</emphasis></p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p>sun umbrella</p></td> <td><p><emphasis>le parasol</emphasis></p></td> </tr> </tbody> </tgroup> </table> <p>Now, using all your knowledge of French, fill in the blanks here to make complete French sentences:</p> <p><emphasis>Sur la plage, je vois</emphasis>.</p> <p><emphasis>Je suis sous</emphasis>.</p> <p><emphasis>Dans l'eau, je vois</emphasis>.</p> <p><emphasis>Il voit</emphasis>.</p> <p><emphasis>Les vagues sont</emphasis>.</p> <p><emphasis>Il fait</emphasis>.</p> <p><emphasis>Voici mon</emphasis>.</p> <p><emphasis>Le château de sable est</emphasis>.</p> <p><emphasis>Je veux</emphasis>.</p> <p><emphasis>Elles veulent</emphasis>.</p> <!--/gc--> <div id="pagination"><ul><li class="prev"><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/kids-french/lets-go-outdoors-allons-dehors/trees-and-flowers-arbres-et-fleurs.htm" title="Trees and Flowers — Arbres et fleurs">Trees and Flowers — Arbres et fleurs</a></li><li class="next"><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/kids-french/lets-go-outdoors-allons-dehors/at-the-river-au-bord-de-la-rivire.htm" title="At the River — Au bord de la rivière">At the River — Au bord de la rivière</a> </li></ul></div></div> <div id="coda"> <div id="rel"><div class="n5">Related Articles</div><ul> <li><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/kids-french/lets-go-outdoors-allons-dehors/at-the-beach-a-la-plage.htm" zT="18/1YL/Zn"> At the Beach — A la plage - French for Kids </a></li> <li><a href="http://french.about.com/od/grammar/a/avoir.htm" zT="18/1YL/Zn"> All about Avoir </a></li> <li><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/kids-french/social-life-la-vie-sociale/inviting-friends-over-inviter-des-amis.htm" zT="18/1YL/Zn"> Inviting Friends Over — Inviter des amis - French for Kids </a></li> <li><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/french/subject-pronouns-and-forming-present-tense-verbs/idiomatic-expressions-with-avoir.htm" zT="18/1YL/Zn"> Idiomatic Expressions with Avoir - French </a></li> <li><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/kids-french/all-about-me-tout-sur-moi/my-family-ma-famille.htm" zT="18/1YL/Zn"> My Family — Ma famille - French for Kids </a></li> </ul></div> <div id="sec"><div class="n5">Read More Let's Go Outdoors — Allons dehors</div><ul><ul class="col1"><li ><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/kids-french/lets-go-outdoors-allons-dehors/in-the-garden-dans-le-jardin.htm">In the Garden — Dans le jardin</a></li> <li ><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/kids-french/lets-go-outdoors-allons-dehors/trees-and-flowers-arbres-et-fleurs.htm">Trees and Flowers — Arbres et fleurs</a></li> <li class="btO">At the Beach — A la plage</li> </ul><ul class="col2"><li ><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/kids-french/lets-go-outdoors-allons-dehors/at-the-river-au-bord-de-la-rivire.htm">At the River — Au bord de la rivière</a></li> <li ><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/kids-french/lets-go-outdoors-allons-dehors/at-the-zoo-au-zoo.htm">At the Zoo — Au zoo</a></li> <li ><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/kids-french/lets-go-outdoors-allons-dehors/on-the-farm-a-la-ferme.htm">On the Farm — A la ferme</a></li> </ul></ul></div> </div> <script>if(zSbL<1)zSbL=3;zSB(2);zSbL=0</script> </div> <div id="widgets"><script type="text/javascript">if(z336>0){w('<div id="adB">'+ap[0]+at[4]+as[0]);adunit('','','about.com',ch,gs,336,280,'1','bb',3);w('</div>')}if(z155>0){w('<div 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