EXTRA PRACTICE PROFICIENCY Point de départ Although the passé composé and the imparfait are both past tenses, they have very distinct uses and are not interchangeable. e choice between these two tenses depends on the context and on the speaker’s point of view. Quand tu es entré, tu n’as pas vu que je faisais le ménage? Uses of the passé composé To express actions that started and ended in the past and are viewed by the speaker as completed Je suis allé au concert vendredi. I went to the concert on Friday. J’ai balayé l’escalier deux fois. I swept the stairs twice. To express an action or a sequence of actions that started and ended in the past Tu as fait le lit, tu as sorti la poubelle et tu as mis la table. You made the bed, took out the trash, and set the table. To indicate a change in the mental, emotional or physical state of a person Tout à coup, elle a eu soif. Suddenly, she got thirsty. To narrate facts in a story or describe actions that move the plot forward in a narration Soudain, Thomas a trouvé la réponse à leur question. Suddenly, Thomas found the answer to their question. Uses of the imparfait To talk about actions that lasted for an unspecified duration of time Elle dormait tranquillement. She was sleeping peacefully. To express habitual past actions and events On débarrassait toujours la table à neuf heures. We always cleared the table at 9 o’clock. To describe mental, emotional or physical states or conditions Elle avait faim. She was hungry. To describe the background scene and setting of a story Il faisait beau. The weather was nice. To describe people and things C’était une photo d’une jolie fille. It was a photograph of a pretty girl. 3B.1 The passé composé vs. the imparfait (Summary) Vérifiez Leçon 3B Structures 146 cent quarante-six Communicative Goal Discuss past conditions and events Interactive Grammar Tutorial 146 Teacher’s Edition • Lesson 3B Section Goals In this section, students will review: • the uses and meanings of the passé composé and the imparfait • common expressions indicating past tenses Note If you feel that your students have sufficiently practiced the uses of the passé composé and the imparfait, you may wish to skip Structures 3B.1 and move on to Structures 3B.2; or, you may wish to assign this section as remediation. Scaffolding • To practice contrasting the passé composé vs. the imparfait, first do a review of each tense and its uses. Then write the following sentences on the board: 1. Je vais au cinéma avec un ami. 2. Nous prenons le bus. 3. Après le film, nous mangeons au restaurant. 4. Ensuite, nous faisons une promenade. 5. Nous rentrons tard à la maison. Have students change the sentences above first to the passé composé and then to the imparfait. Have them add adverbs or expressions they’ve learned that signal a past tense. • Follow the Extra Practice suggestion on p. 146. Interpersonal Have students imagine that they own a household cleaning service, and have them create a radio or TV commercial for it. Have them create a logo and a slogan or a jingle to go with their commercial. Tell students to include reviews from customers who talk in detail about what the cleaning service did and give their opinion of their work. Groups Divide the class into small groups. Show the video of the Roman-photo again and have the groups write a summary of the episode, using the passé composé and the imparfait. Have the groups present their summaries and have the class vote for the best one. Grammar Tutorial
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