Chez moi et dans mon quartier
Chapter Objectives
By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:
- Name a small set of rooms in a home and a small set of neighborhood places.
- Use il y a with an article or a quantity to say what is present somewhere.
- Locate people and things using a controlled set of location expressions: dans, devant, à côté de, en face de, and près de.
- Choose the correct contracted form (au, aux, du, des) or unchanged combination (à la, à l', de la, de l') with support.
- Select the demonstrative determiner ce, cet, cette, or ces to point out a specific room or place, with support.
- Recognize the fixed expression il n'y a pas de... and use it optionally in a supported model.
- Complete a short, supported spoken and written description of a home and its immediate neighborhood.
Communication Scenario
Léa, the new student from Chapter 5, invites Amina over to see her apartment for the first time. Amina asks about the rooms, what is in them, and what the neighborhood is like nearby. This chapter opens Unit II: La vie quotidienne, where you move from talking about people to talking about the everyday spaces people live in.
- This chapter introduces il y a, contractions with à and de, a small set of location expressions, and demonstrative determiners. It does not introduce any new verb conjugation, and it does not develop full negation.
- Tu and vous, question formation, and the vocabulary from Chapters 1–5 remain active throughout. Use them alongside the new material in this chapter.
Core Vocabulary: Home and Neighborhood
The following productive vocabulary supports this chapter's communication goals. Each noun is presented with its article so that gender is learned from first exposure. Keep this list as your active working vocabulary for the speaking and writing tasks below.
| French | English | Gender / Plural |
|---|---|---|
| un appartement | an apartment | m., des appartements |
| une maison | a house | f., des maisons |
| la chambre | the bedroom | f., les chambres |
| le salon | the living room | m., les salons |
| la cuisine | the kitchen | f., les cuisines |
| la salle de bains | the bathroom | f. |
| le jardin | the garden / yard | m., les jardins |
| la fenêtre | the window | f., les fenêtres |
| la porte | the door | f., les portes |
| French | English | Gender / Plural |
|---|---|---|
| le quartier | the neighborhood | m., les quartiers |
| la rue | the street | f., les rues |
| le parc | the park | m., les parcs |
| la boulangerie | the bakery | f., les boulangeries |
| le marché | the market | m., les marchés |
| l'école (f.) | the school | f., les écoles |
| French | English |
|---|---|
| dans | in |
| devant | in front of |
| à côté de | next to |
| en face de | across from |
| près de | near |
| French | English | Status |
|---|---|---|
| la salle à manger | the dining room | Supported; not required for production. |
| le bureau | the home office / desk | Supported; not required for production. |
| la banque | the bank | Supported; appears in examples with a gloss. |
| l'hôpital (m.) | the hospital | Supported; appears in examples with a gloss. |
| le balcon | the balcony | Supported; appears in the model dialogue and reading. |
| l'immeuble (m.) | the apartment building | Supported; appears in the model dialogue. |
| sous | under | Receptive only. |
| derrière | behind | Receptive only. |
| loin de | far from | Receptive only. |
| le rez-de-chaussée | the ground floor | Receptive only; useful for reading listings. |
| le sous-sol | the basement | Receptive only. |
No new tense or verb conjugation appears in this chapter. Every task uses être, avoir, il y a, and structures consolidated in Chapters 1–5.
Pronunciation: Elision and Nasal Vowels in Place Vocabulary
This chapter reviews two pronunciation and spelling systems you have already begun, applied to new vocabulary.
Elision. Before a vowel sound, le and la become l', and the vowel is written with an apostrophe instead of being pronounced as a separate syllable. This chapter's vocabulary includes several elided nouns: l'école, l'appartement, and the supported word l'hôpital. Say each one as a single smooth syllable group rather than pausing between the article and the noun.
Nasal vowels. Several words in this chapter contain nasal vowels, and different spellings represent different nasal vowel sounds: the -in of jardin, the -on of salon, and the en in the final -ment of appartement each represent a distinct nasal vowel, not the same sound spelled three ways. Listen for the vowel quality; do not assume that a nasal spelling always leaves the following consonant silent. In banque, for example, the nasal vowel is followed by a clearly pronounced /k/ sound.
Language Focus: Il y a, Location, and Contractions
Purpose: describe what is present in a home or neighborhood, say where things are located, and point to specific rooms or places using demonstrative determiners.
6.1 Il y a — Saying what there is
Il y a means "there is" or "there are." It does not change for number: the same form is used whether one thing or several things are present. The pattern practiced in this chapter is il y a followed by an article or a quantity and then a noun.
| Form | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| il y a + article + noun | Il y a une cuisine. | There is a kitchen. |
| il y a + quantity + noun | Il y a deux chambres. | There are two bedrooms. |
| il y a + article + noun | Il y a un parc. | There is a park. |
In the patterns practiced here, use il y a to present the existence of something, and use être with a location expression to locate something already identified. This is a helpful working distinction for this chapter's tasks; it is not a complete account of every context in which French uses these structures.
A supported fixed expression. You may see or hear il n'y a pas de..., meaning "there is no..." or "there are no...," as in the model dialogue's il n'y a pas de jardin. Recognize this expression and, if you like, reuse it exactly as modeled. You are not asked to build new negative sentences on your own in this chapter; a full explanation and practice of negation begins in Chapter 7.
6.2 Locating people and things
6.3 Contractions with à and de
À and de combine with the definite articles le and les to form a single contracted word: au, aux, du, and des. Before la or an elided l', à and de do not contract; they remain separate words.
| Article | à + article | de + article |
|---|---|---|
| le | au | du |
| les | aux | des |
| la | à la | de la |
| l' | à l' | de l' |
Au, aux, du, and des are true contractions: a single word replaces two. À la, à l', de la, and de l' are combinations that stay as two separate words.
- Il y a une boulangerie au marché. There is a bakery at the market. (à + le → au)
- La banque est près du parc. The bank is near the park. (de + le → du)
- L'école est à côté de la banque. The school is next to the bank. (à + la stays à la)
- Le parc est en face de l'hôpital. The park is across from the hospital. (de + l' stays de l')
6.4 Demonstrative determiners
At this stage, ce, cet, cette, and ces are practiced for pointing out a specific item in view, without the added suffixes -ci and -là, which are outside this chapter's scope.
Controlled practice — Choose the correct demonstrative:
- ___ salon
- ___ appartement
- ___ chambre
- ___ fenêtres
Answers appear in the Answer Key at the end of the chapter.
Model Dialogue: Bienvenue chez moi
Supported vocabulary in this dialogue: le balcon (the balcony), l'immeuble (the apartment building).
Context: Léa welcomes Amina to her apartment for the first time.
Notice how il y a introduces new information (il y a un balcon), while être locates something already known (le parc est à côté de l'école). The negative expression il n'y a pas de jardin is a fixed formula for recognition in this chapter.
Listening Practice
If no audio recording is available, ask a partner, instructor, or text-to-speech tool to read the lines below aloud, or read them aloud to yourself slowly.
Supported vocabulary in this script: la table (the table).
- What rooms are in the house?
- What is in the garden?
- What neighborhood place is mentioned besides the bakery?
- Where is the bakery located?
Speaking Practice
Pratique contrôlée — Controlled practice: a supported home tour
Using the frame below, describe a home (your own or an imagined one) in five short steps. Consult the vocabulary tables as needed.
- Name the type of home: J'habite dans un appartement / une maison.
- Name two rooms: Il y a...
- Make one il y a sentence about something in a room.
- Point to one room with a demonstrative: Cette chambre est grande.
- Locate one neighborhood place: La boulangerie est à côté du...
Tâche communicative — Communicative task: describe your home to a partner
With a partner, take turns using the five-step frame above to describe your homes. Ask your partner one follow-up question, such as Est-ce qu'il y a un jardin ? or Comment est ton quartier ?
Pratique individuelle — Solo alternative
Record yourself completing the five-step frame for an imaginary apartment. You may consult the vocabulary and grammar tables while you record.
Reading Practice
Supported vocabulary in this passage: le balcon (the balcony).
Mon quartier à Dakar — My neighborhood in Dakar
J'habite dans un appartement à Dakar. Il y a un salon, une cuisine et une chambre. Il y a aussi un balcon. Dans mon quartier, il y a un marché, une boulangerie et un parc. La boulangerie est devant le marché. L'école est à côté du parc. J'aime ce quartier.
Tâche de lecture — Reading task:
- What type of home is described?
- What rooms are named?
- What neighborhood places are named?
- Where are the bakery and the school, according to the passage?
- Find the demonstrative phrase in the last sentence.
Writing Workshop
Complete the following linked writing tasks in order. You may consult the vocabulary, contraction, and demonstrative tables throughout.
Tâche 1 — Complete with the correct à/de + article form:
Tâche 2 — Select the demonstrative determiner:
Tâche 3 — Home and Neighborhood Card: Complete a short card of four or five separate sentences describing a home and one neighborhood place. Use the frame below, substituting your own details and productive vocabulary from this chapter.
- Complete Tâche 1 and Tâche 2 first. Check each answer against the tables in the Language Focus section.
- Choose your home type and two or three rooms. Adapt line 1 and line 2 of the frame.
- Choose one demonstrative determiner. Adapt line 3, pointing to a room of your choice.
- Choose one neighborhood place and one location expression. Adapt line 4 or line 5.
- Read your card aloud once. Listen for elision in words like l'école and for the nasal vowels in jardin, salon, and appartement.
Liste de révision — Editing checklist:
- I named one home type.
- I named two or three rooms.
- I used il y a with an article or a quantity.
- I selected one demonstrative determiner from the table.
- I used one location expression from the productive list.
- I checked whether au, aux, du, or des was needed.
- I used only productive or supported vocabulary from this chapter.
- I kept my sentences separate and short, as in the frame.
Culture and Communication
In many urban Francophone contexts, learners may encounter apartment buildings, neighborhood shops, public markets, schools, and parks. Housing patterns and access to services vary widely by city, region, income, and local infrastructure, so no single description applies to every Francophone community.
The vocabulary in this chapter is used productively across France and much of the Francophone world, but what a word describes can vary. A marché may be open-air, indoor, permanent, or weekly, depending on the community; the term itself does not indicate which. This is a difference in local life, not in the language, and none of these forms is more "correct" than another.
Common Mistakes
Error: Writing à le parc or de le marché instead of using the required contraction.
Correction: à + le always becomes au, and de + le always becomes du: au parc, du marché. Only la and l' stay unchanged, as à la, à l', de la, and de l'.
Error: Introducing something already named with il y a instead of locating it with être.
Correction: In the patterns practiced here, use il y a only to introduce new information: Il y a un parc. Once the thing is named, locate it with être: Le parc est à côté de l'école.
Error: Writing ce appartement or ce chambre.
Correction: Use cet before a masculine noun beginning with a vowel sound: cet appartement. Use cette for any feminine singular noun: cette chambre.
Chapter Review
Partie A — Compréhension (Comprehension)
1. Return to the Model Dialogue, and answer these short questions.
- Does Léa's apartment have a garden? What does it have instead?
- Where is the bank located, according to Léa?
Partie B — Écriture (Writing)
1. Complete with the correct form: Le marché est près ______ (de + le) parc.
2. Complete with the correct demonstrative: ______ (this) fenêtre est grande.
3. Write one sentence saying what there is in your own bedroom, using il y a with an article.
Partie C — Lecture (Reading)
1. Return to "Mon quartier à Dakar," and list every neighborhood place mentioned, together with its location where one is given.
Partie D — Oral (Speaking)
1. With a partner, use the five-step home-tour frame from the Speaking Practice section to describe your homes to each other.
Guided Performance Practice
Chapter 6 Guided Practice
Chez moi : A Supported Home and Neighborhood Description
This activity is formative, not pass/fail. Learners may consult all vocabulary, contraction, location, and demonstrative tables throughout.
Complete the following connected tasks, in order.
- Read the model dialogue and "Mon quartier à Dakar." Answer the comprehension questions above before continuing.
- Answer the listening questions. Listen to the script once or twice before answering.
- Complete the à/de + article exercise. Check each answer against the contraction table.
- Complete the demonstrative exercise. Check each answer against the demonstrative table.
- Complete one four- or five-line Home and Neighborhood Card. Use the supplied frame and substitute your own details.
- Read your card aloud once. Listen for elision and nasal vowels.
| Practice area | What the learner is beginning to demonstrate |
|---|---|
| Home vocabulary | Names a small number of rooms with support. |
| Existence | Uses il y a in a supplied pattern. |
| Location | Selects one practiced location expression. |
| Article forms | Selects au, aux, du, or des where needed. |
| Demonstratives | Selects ce, cet, cette, or ces. |
| Task completeness | Completes a short, supported card with the required elements. |
This chapter uses only material introduced in Chapters 1–6. Productive negation is not part of this practice; il n'y a pas de... remains a supported fixed expression.
Answer Key
Model Dialogue — Comprehension
- No, there isn't a garden; there's a balcony instead.
- The bank is near the market.
Language Focus — Demonstrative Practice
- ce salon
- cet appartement
- cette chambre
- ces fenêtres
Listening
- A living room, a kitchen, and two bedrooms.
- A table.
- A park.
- Across from the school.
Reading
- An apartment.
- A living room, a kitchen, and a bedroom. (The apartment also has a balcony, which is a home feature, not a room.)
- A market, a bakery, and a park.
- The bakery is in front of the market; the school is next to the park.
- ce quartier.
Writing Workshop — À/de + Article Forms
- au (Il y a un café au marché.)
- du (Le parc est près du marché.)
- des (La boulangerie est à côté des maisons.)
- aux (J'habite aux États-Unis.)
- de la (La maison est près de la banque.)
- à la (Il y a une porte à la boulangerie.)
- de l' (Le parc est en face de l'hôpital.)
- à l' (Il y a un jardin à l'école.)
Writing Workshop — Tâche 2 (demonstratives)
- ce
- cet
- cette
- ces
Writing Workshop — Tâche 3 (model home card)
J'habite dans un appartement. Il y a un salon et une cuisine. Cette chambre est grande. La boulangerie est à côté du marché. Le parc est près de l'école.
Required elements: one home type, two or three rooms, one il y a sentence with an article, one demonstrative, and one located neighborhood place. Other accurate, supported answers are acceptable.
Chapter Review — Writing
- du (Le marché est près du parc.)
- Cette (Cette fenêtre est grande.)
- Sample answer: Dans ma chambre, il y a une fenêtre. Other accurate sentences using il y a with an article are acceptable.
Chapter Review — Reading
The neighborhood places are the market, the bakery, the park, and the school. The bakery is in front of the market, and the school is next to the park.
Looking Ahead
Ce que vous commencez à faire — What you are beginning to do
You are beginning to use il y a to say what is present somewhere, name a small set of rooms and neighborhood places, select a basic location expression, recognize the fixed negative formula il n'y a pas de..., choose among au, aux, du, and des, and use ce, cet, cette, or ces with support. This begins Unit II: La vie quotidienne.