I’m sure that we can all agree that learning the alphabet en français is super important for our French Kindergarten students. I am also finding that, since the pandemic, a review for my first grade students in September each year is also now essential!
In maternelle especially, some students come to school having never been exposed to the alphabet or letters before.
And, for those who have, it’s likely to have been in English.
It can also be pretty confusing for those students who already know their letters in English, but are now expected to know them en français. Our students need lots of practice and exposure to the French alphabet in lots of different ways – singing their ABCs over and over is not going to cut it!
However, there are some great resources out there! Alphabet posters and reference charts are ideal for a French classroom. Also, anchor words that begin with each letter (that are CONSISTENT among activities, resources, and even grade levels), games, literacy centres, and a variety of activities that reach different learning styles can all help our students master their letters and their sounds.
Do you want FREE Alphabet en français resources?
In this blog post, I will be sharing 10 different FREE resources that you can use to help you with your alphabet instruction at any point in the school year.
Additionally, in this post, I’ve included freebies that include materials for the whole alphabet en français — not just letter Aa samples from larger products, in hopes they will better help you.
You’re definitely going to want to save this post to come back to whenever you have students who need a little extra boost — it’s FULL of French alphabet goodies!
Side note – as always, most of the freebies that I have made are available in my Free French Resource Library, if you’re a member. If you aren’t a member yet, just CLICK HERE, enter your info, hit the pink button, and I will send you an email right away with the password and access instructions!
Alphabet Posters
If you’re looking for alphabet posters, then there are some awesome French TPTers who have you covered!
In my school, we use the same posters from maternelle through to grade two – because this keeps our anchor words consistent and helps support our struggling alphabet learners.
Free posters are a great way to convince your lower elementary team to make the switch to match!
Here are a couple freebie options:
1. FRENCH ALPHABET POSTERS from Parfaitement Parnell
Tia’s posters are super cute and simple, and come with a variety of options.
2. FRENCH NATURE ALPHABET POSTERS from Je me demande
These posters are amazing! They feature real photographs and an image from nature for each letter of the alphabet.
French Alphabet Charts
On my quest for French alphabet freebies, I came across a few very cute French alphabet charts!
When you are deciding which to use, just remember that consistency across anchor words is something important to consider, especially if French is your students’ second language.
3. FREE ALPHABET CHART – For French Immersion
If you are looking for a free Alphabet Chart en français, Lucy has a great one. I actually use my alphabet posters and just print them 16 to a page (double sided) to keep things consistent, but if you don’t have your alphabet posters available digitally, I highly recommend using this chart.
You can use it as a warm up during guided reading (have your students go through and say each letter name, sound, and the image), and it also makes a fantastic référentiel to keep in their writing folders for when they are trying to sound out words.
4. FRENCH ALPHABET CHART FREEBIE – The French Apple
I couldn’t help but add this one to the list when I saw it. Sophia’s resources are SO cute, and effective!
Alphabet en français Activities
5. LECTURE DE VITESSE – Maternelle avec Mme Andrea
Lecture de vitesse is an activity that I use as part of my “Lecture a soi” literacy centre. You can read more about that here. I use this free, non-seasonal version of the game because it can be used at any point of the year to encourage students to work on their alphabet fluency.
To play, students grab a deck of alphabet cards and a stopwatch (I bought mine on Amazon). Firstly, they will start the timer and say the letter names or sounds as fast as they can. Once they get through the deck, they stop the timer and record their score on the recording sheet. Then they can try again and see if they can get a faster time. The stop watch makes it a pretty big hit!
6. UNCOVER THE PICTURE BOOM CARDS – Maternelle avec Mme Andrea
If you discovered Boom Cards during online learning, then you already know how engaging they can be!
This freebie is a fun puzzle for students. When they correctly identify the initial letter of each vocabulary word, they will gradually uncover the hidden picture.
Note: You (the teacher) will need a Boom Learning account to use this freebie. Your students can have their own accounts, or you can play whole-group using your account and the “FastPin” method.
Alphabet matching puzzles always go over well during literacy centres. These ice cream cones are cute and fun, and your students will love matching upper- and lowercase letters. I teach my kids how to check their answers against our alphabet posters, and I put matching stickers on the backs of each pair to make them self-correcting.
8. EEK! REQUIN! – Maternelle avec Mme Andrea
My students loooove EEK!, and so do I! I use it both as a warm up game during guided reading and as an independent centre.
To play, students fill the game board with alphabet cards and roll a die. If they can say the letter name beside the number they roll, they get to keep the card. If they roll a six, the shark eats them and all the cards go back in the cup. The game never ends, so it makes a perfect literacy centre!!
French Alphabet Desk Plates
9. FRENCH ALPHABET DESK PLATES FREEBIE – La classe de Mme Caroline
If your students need access to the alphabet right on their desks or tables, then check out this freebie!
It includes an image for each letter (en français) and also clearly shows correct letter formation.
I love when primary resources use primary-friendly fonts!
French Alphabet Assessment
10. ÉVALUATION DE L’ALPHABET – SONS & NOMS – Mme Marissa
If you need a simple, free assessment, then Mme Marissa’s got you!
She’s got options for uppercase, lowercase, and sounds in this freebie.
Need more Alphabet en français Resources?
I hope that some of these French alphabet freebies will help you out as you teach your French students their alphabet this year. As I have noted, some students take a long time to learn their letters en français – be patient and give them as much exposure and make it as fun as you can!
Eventually, they’ll get there! :)
If you still need more, you can check out ALL my French alphabet resources with one simple click.
Just head HERE to see everything French alphabet-related in my TPT store!
Related Alphabet en français Blog Posts
If you want to read more about how I teach and review the alphabet with my students, then be sure to check out these related blog posts:
- How to Use Editable Mats for Alphabet Practice
- How to Help Your Maternelle Students Learn Their Letters
- An Engaging, Effective Way to Review the Alphabet With Your French Primary Students
- Une lettre par jour, ou une lettre par semaine?
