A1 French Stories for Beginners
These stories use simple present-tense sentences and everyday vocabulary, so you can start reading real French narratives from your very first weeks of study.
La boulangère de la rue Saint-Michel
The Baker on Rue Saint-Michel
A young woman's first day learning to shape croissants from the owner of a Québec City bakery.
- work
- food
- learning
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La leçon de guitare
The Guitar Lesson
A girl asks her elderly neighbor to teach her guitar, and their Wednesday lessons become a new friendship.
- music
- intergenerational friendship
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Le dimanche au zoo
Sunday at the Zoo
A boy's class trip to the zoo in Réunion ends with a wonderful discovery: a giant tortoise named Georgette.
- animals
- school trip
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Le marché de Dakar
The Dakar Market
A girl helps her aunt sell fabric at the Dakar market and learns to negotiate politely with customers.
- family trade
- culture
- numbers
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Le nouveau vélo
The New Bike
A boy gets a new bike for his birthday and makes a new friend on his first ride to the park.
- friendship
- hobbies
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Le petit jardin
The Little Garden
A boy in Papeete plants tomato seeds on his balcony and learns patience as he watches them grow.
- nature
- patience
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Les cloches de Genève
The Bells of Geneva
A visiting student discovers Geneva's old town during a street-music festival and hears its church bells for the first time.
- travel
- music
- discovery
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Mon premier match
My First Match
A boy joins his neighborhood football team in Abidjan and plays in his very first match.
- sports
- friendship
- confidence
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Un chat dans la classe
A Cat in the Classroom
A stray cat wanders into a Brussels classroom, and the class works together to decide how to care for it.
- school
- animals
- community
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Une lettre pour correspondante
A Letter for a Pen Pal
A girl in Québec writes her very first letter to a new pen pal in Morocco for a school exchange project.
- friendship
- writing
- culture
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