Theme 1.3: Free-Time Activities and Hobbies - Listening Comprehension
Listening comprehension for the Free-time activities and hobbies theme tests understanding of spoken French about sport, music, reading, cinema and gaming, in monologues, dialogues and short reports at both tiers, with every item played twice. Examiners are testing whether a student can extract specific detail (which activity, how often, with whom, an opinion with a reason), follow comparisons between past and present hobbies, and catch numbers, times and negatives that change the meaning of a plan or preference.
Before you start
Make sure you're comfortable with these topics first:
Method
- Read the questions and options before the recording starts, underline activity names, and decide whether the question wants a frequency, a place, or an opinion.
- Predict vocabulary from the title: sports (le foot, la natation, l'équitation), instruments (jouer du piano/de la guitare), leisure verbs (faire du/de la, jouer à/au/aux), and places (le stade, la salle de sport, la bibliothèque).
- On the first listening, focus on gist: what the speaker does, how they feel about it, and whether more than one activity is mentioned.
- Learn the grammar rule that is often tested by ear: jouer à + le/la/les for sports and games (je joue au foot, je joue aux échecs) versus jouer de + le/la for instruments (je joue de la guitare) - mishearing à for de changes whether the activity is a sport or an instrument.
- Track the tense contrast: imperfect for a childhood hobby (quand j'étais petit, je faisais de la danse) versus present for now (maintenant je fais du karaté) or the near future for a plan (je vais essayer l'escalade).
- Catch frequency and duration precisely: une fois par semaine (once a week), tous les samedis (every Saturday), pendant deux heures (for two hours).
- Track negatives: je ne fais plus de foot (I no longer play football), je n'ai jamais essayé (I have never tried) - a missed ne changes a habit into its opposite.
- Note self-corrections and opinion connectives (mais, par contre) that flag a change of activity or a mixed opinion; use the second listening to confirm numbers, days and reasons.
Worked example
You hear: 'Quand j'étais petite, je faisais de la danse classique tous les mercredis, mais je n'aimais pas vraiment ça. Maintenant, je joue au basket avec mon équipe deux fois par semaine, et c'est vraiment ma passion.' Question: Compare the speaker's past and present hobbies.
- Predict vocabulary before listening: dance, basketball, team sport terms.
- Identify the tense: the imperfect 'je faisais' plus 'quand j'étais petite' signals a repeated childhood activity.
- Catch the day and frequency: 'tous les mercredis' means every Wednesday, describing the imperfect habit.
- Note the opinion: 'je n'aimais pas vraiment ça' (didn't really like it) - a negative opinion about the past hobby.
- Identify the present-tense contrast: 'maintenant, je joue au basket... deux fois par semaine' uses jouer à + le = au basket, twice a week now.
- Full answer: As a child she did classical dance every Wednesday but did not really enjoy it; now she plays basketball with her team twice a week and it is a real passion for her.
Practice questions
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Q1Fill the gap: 'Je joue ___ foot le samedi.' (à/au/de/du)Show answer
Answer: au - jouer à + le becomes au foot, used for a sport or game.
Q2Fill the gap: 'Elle joue ___ piano depuis cinq ans.'Show answer
Answer: du - jouer de + le becomes du piano, used for a musical instrument.
Q3What does 'je ne fais plus d'équitation' mean?Show answer
Answer: 'I no longer go horse riding' - ne...plus reverses a past habit into 'not anymore'.
Q4You hear 'deux fois par semaine'. How often is this?Show answer
Answer: Twice a week.
Q5A speaker says 'j'aimais le foot... enfin, je devrais dire le rugby'. Which sport should you record?Show answer
Answer: Rugby - 'enfin, je devrais dire' signals a self-correction, so the second sport named is the intended answer.
Q6Translate: 'je vais essayer l'escalade ce week-end'.Show answer
Answer: I am going to try climbing this weekend (near future: aller + infinitive).
Q7Before listening to a text titled 'Mon week-end idéal', predict three words you might hear.Show answer
Answer: Any three of: se détendre, sortir avec des amis, faire la grasse matinée, regarder un film, se reposer.
Q8What is the difference in tense between 'je jouais au tennis' and 'j'ai joué au tennis hier'?Show answer
Answer: 'Je jouais' (imperfect) describes a past habit or ongoing action with no fixed end ('I used to play' / 'I was playing'), while 'j'ai joué' (perfect) reports one completed, specific past event ('I played yesterday').
Exam-style questions
Written in the style of a GCSE French exam paper, with a full mark scheme.
Transcript of the recording: Le week-end, je fais souvent du sport avec mon frère. On joue au foot au parc, normalement le samedi matin, et ça dure environ deux heures. L'après-midi, je retrouve mes amies en ville ; on va au cinéma une fois par mois, et le billet coûte à peu près neuf euros. Avant, je faisais aussi de la natation, mais je n'ai plus le temps à cause des devoirs. Ce que je préfère vraiment, c'est lire ; je lis au moins trois livres par mois. Questions: 1) What does the speaker do on Saturday mornings, and for how long? 2) How often do they go to the cinema, and how much does a ticket cost? 3) What hobby have they stopped, and why? 4) What is the speaker's favourite activity, and how many books do they read a month?
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Transcript of the recording: - Sami : Tu veux faire quelque chose ce week-end ? - Inès : Oui, avec plaisir ! On pourrait aller à la patinoire, non ? - Sami : Ah non, je n'aime pas du tout patiner, je suis vraiment maladroit. Par contre, j'adore l'escalade ; il y a un nouveau centre près du centre-ville. - Inès : D'accord, alors on ira... enfin, allons-y plutôt dimanche, parce que samedi je dois garder ma petite sœur. - Sami : Pas de problème. On se retrouve à quatorze heures devant la gare ? Questions: 1) What activity does Inès suggest, and how does Sami feel about it? 2) What does Sami suggest instead, and where is it? 3) Why do they decide to meet on Sunday rather than Saturday? 4) What time and where are they meeting?
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Free printable worksheet
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