11 MORE French books for your classroom library

Foster a love of reading with these high-interest titles to engage your novice and intermediate French students!

Last Friday we had an independent reading day in class. Here are some of my students’ comments upon seeing the day’s agenda:

“All RIGHT! We’re reading today!”

“Let’s Go, Mrs. Bartels!”

“OMG, I LOVE this!”

“Can I read this book, Mrs. Bartels?”

“Look how cool this is!”

“This is my favorite French book!”

As a teacher, this kind of enthusiasm is music to my ears! It didn’t happen by accident. I’ve been working intentionally to build my classroom library. Click here to read tips to curate a library of high-interest, lower-reading-level texts that will engage your language learners. A year ago I shared ten of my favorite titles; since that time (and thanks to a grant from Xperitas and the American Association of French Teachers) my library has grown.

Here are eleven of my - and my students’ - favorite recent French titles.

11 MORE Books for your classroom library

Books about Sports

Les Sports - Isabelle Burgun

ISBN 978-2-89807-092-1

Short paragraphs, clear headers, and graphic support make this book a ‘go to’ for sports-lovers in your classes. This book has page spreads on sports in different time periods (such as Ancient Greece and the Middle Ages), followed by a wide variety of modern sports ranging from weightlifting to biking to bowling. This book is one of the “Méga éditions” series which are available online www.megaeditions.ca; arrange to have these shipped if you are visiting Quebec!

Tout Sur le Foot - Clive Gifford

ISBN 978-2-26-140686-9

135 pages of soccer trivia and history, sure to delight the growing cohort of soccer fanatics in your classes. This book includes short biographies of notable male and female soccer players, summaries of important soccer games through history, and detailed explanations of soccer rules and playing strategies with labelled diagrams to support comprehension. This book is available on Amazon. It’s one of the most popular titles in my collection.

Sports: 40 Champions Olympiques - Jean-Michel Billioud Gonoh

ISBN 978-2-07-513564-1

Forty one-page profiles of Olympic medal winners; this little gem is engaging and accessible. Each profile includes charts with the athlete’s physical features, competition statistics, notable quotations, and a narrative paragraph about their career. My favorite feature? Three adjectives describing each athlete (with a short explanation of why). This book is great for acquiring vocabulary such as “efficace”, “disciplineé”, ‘féministe”, and “musclé”. Available at many online retailers.

Childhood Classics

While I don’t generally include a lot of books written for young children (read why here), I make exceptions for books my students may have known and loved when they were little.

Où est Spot, mon petit chien - Eric Hill

ISBN 978-2-09-253708-4

This is a sweet story about a mommy dog searching for her puppy. She searches throughout the house (naming furniture items in the process) before she finally finds her baby! The illustrations are sweet, and the repetition helps students acquire language structures and some lower-frequency vocabulary for household items. My kids love this book so much, I’ve used it as the basis for a proficiency-based project on house and furniture. Check it out! (available in French, Spanish, English, Chinese, and Portuguese!)

Bonsoir Lune - Margaret Wise Brown

ISBN 978-2-211-07293

A lot of my students have very fond memories of this bedtime story. Since they have it memorized in English, it’s easy to figure out the vocabulary for random objects such as “”une maison de poupée,” “une paire de gants,” and “la pendule”. Novice students feel accomplished when they can understand every word in this short selection!

Science

Mon Premier Guide de L’Auto - Julien Amado

ISBN 978-2-89754-406-5

I love this book for teaching specialized vocabulary. Beautiful labelled illustrations show the parts of a car, both the body and the engine. The book includes timelines of automotive history, details about notable car models, and explanations and examples of vehicle categories (including “Les Décapotables”, “les VUS”, and “les Véhicules Hors Route”.) Car aficionados in your class will enjoy figuring out the ‘vrai ou faux’ trivia sprinkled through the pages as they immerse themselves in high-interest, technical vocabulary. Available through several online retailers.

Bizarre mais Vrai! Series - National Geographic Kids

Various ISBN’s - search online or on Amazon for this series.

These science or geography-themed books share one “Bizarre Mais Vrai” fact per page, supported by beautiful photos. The vocabulary is lower-frequency and therefore more challenging for students with good tolerance for ambiguity. Students will feel accomplished when they interpret challenging phrases like “Les grand requins blancs peuvent sauter hors de l’eau pour mieux tomber sur leur proie”. The dramatic photo of a vicious shark jumping out of the water will reinforce students’ comprehension - and their engagement with this fun series. Available topics include general “Bizarre mais Vrai” volume 1-5, “les requins’, ‘la nourriture’, ‘le corps humain’, and ‘le Canada’. Available online.

1000 Questions sur les Dinosaures

ISBN 978-2-89807-091-4

In this beautifully presented trivia book each question is posed in a box, often with a small illustration. Answers are printed upside down in the same box. This formatting makes it easy for language learners to keep their place and to pick and choose questions that match their proficiency level and their interest. Questions are organized by animal type, such as: “Les Petits Mammifères et les Insectes”, “de Grands Prédateurs”, and “des Animaux Bien Armés”. A geologic timeline, beautiful illustrations, and photos from archeological sites complete this gem, which will surely enthrall the dinosaur lovers in your class. Available from megaeditions.ca

Les Super Éléments - Colin Stuart & Kimo Abadír

ISBN 978-2-07-519047-3

Make connections to content areas with this book dedicating one page to each chemical element. The authors include an atomic diagram of each element, its properties, where it is found, its toxicity, and what it is used for. A short paragraph explains how the element was discovered. The standardized graphic layout provides a lot of context, and older students will have some background knowledge on this topic from their science classes. Available on Amazon and other online retailers.

Minecraft!

Minecraft - Le Guide du Combat

ISBN 978-2-07-510785-3

My daughter, a reluctant reader, used to read any Minecraft-related title she could get her hands on. So, I was thrilled to find the same books she loved to pore over… IN FRENCH! “Minecraft; Le Guide du Combat” includes diagrams and stat charts for every type of Minecraft weapon and monster along with descriptions of defensive structures to shore up your game. I’ll admit, I don’t know a “Piglin Barbare” from a “Cavalier Squelette” - but my students do, and that’s all I care about! This book is available at several online retailers.

Independent reading is so beneficial for students and makes an easy planning day for you! By keeping your classroom library current, your students will be engaged and challenged to deepen their French proficiency. Click here for 6 tips to implement independent reading with your students. And, what book would you add to this list? Share in the comments!