French, Spanish, Italian Indefinite and Definite Articles
I find that my students respond very well to direct instruction and targeted practice of key grammatical concepts like Indefinite and Definite Articles, Nouns, and Gender in French (les articles indéfinis et définis), Spanish (los artículos indefinidos y definidos), and Italian (gli articoli indeterminativi e determinativi). If you’re working with novice language learners, you’ll want to check out the learning materials, practice activities, and assessments I’ve compiled to help make your lesson planning effortless!
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Articles in French, Spanish, and Italian
Here are the Indefinite & Definite Articles you will want to target in French, Spanish, and Italian:
French Indefinite & Definite Articles:
Indefinite: un, une, des
Definite: le, la, l’, les
Spanish Indefinite & Definite Articles:
Indefinite: un, una, unos, unas
Definite: el, la, los, las
Italian Indefinite & Definite Articles:
Indefinite: un, uno, una, un’
Definite: il, lo, l’, la, i, gli, or le
How to Teach Articles, Nouns, and Gender
As there are some notable differences between indefinite and definite articles in the target language and English, it’s important to have a high-quality, detailed instructional support that helps break down the grammar in easily understood terms, providing plenty of definitions and examples. You’ll also want to make sure to talk about nouns and gender (masculine vs. feminine), as novice language learners need this information!
While teaching using this Google Slides presentation, students will fill in key information on their Student Class Notes. This helps them learn the content better and serves as an awesome study resource for them to refer back to. * Note: These documents are fully editable, so you can add, subtract, and modify to best suit your needs!
Providing Students with Practice Activities
Students need a LOT of practice with Indefinite & Definite Articles to achieve mastery. This is my favorite part of the “instructional cycle” - students using what I’ve taught them in engaging and authentic ways… to accomplish a task and communicate and/or collaborate with their peers. So much fun! What types of practice activities can you offer your students?
Well, I like to start off with a practice worksheet (or two! I just photocopy them front/back) that has students implement the grammar they’ve just learned. I’ll then review the worksheet with students using one of the following methods:
Whole-class review: I project the worksheet(s) on the board and have students come up to the board to fill in the right answers. Sometimes I’ll write the answers in myself, but why rob students of the opportunity to write on the whiteboard?!
Peer review: Students work together to correct each other’s work. When students are done, they can come up to the front of the room and grab an Answer Key that I’ve already printed out, so that they can be extra certain that all of their answers are correct.
Here’s a sample of the types of worksheets and practice games/activities you’ll find in my French, Spanish and Italian Indefinite & Definite Articles Resource:
I like to give a few practice exercises for students to complete for homework. In my view, students really do benefit from a bit of extra practice at home to further reinforce the work we’ve done in the classroom. The following class, we’ll start with a Do-Now related to the vocabulary, check the homework assignment, and then play a grammar-related game.
How to Assess Learning
It’s so important to formatively assess your students prior to, during, and after instruction, so that you can gather data on student learning as well as prepare targeted interventions to help remediate students’ knowledge gaps. I often like to use Exit Tickets post-instruction to see how much students have acquired and retained during instruction - I use the data to inform what the Do-Now of my next class might address. I also use Quizzes to gather data on learning outcomes and ensure that my students are ready to move on to the next piece of the unit.
Pro Tip: You can also use Exit Tickets as Entry Tickets at the start of class!
Ready to help your students learn, practice, and master this critical grammar concept in your World Language class? Want to take a closer look at the resources provided in my French Indefinite & Definite Articles, Spanish Indefinite & Definite Articles, and Italian Indefinite & Definite Articles resources? Check them out on my TpT Store by clicking the thumbnails below!
Happy language teaching,
~ Michael
