C–D. Reading and Writing · Reading and Writing in French: Voices, Stories and Communities

La nature : Reading an Informational Article and Using celui, celle, ce qui and ce que

C1.2 C1.4 C2.1 C2.2 D1.2 D1.3About 70 minutes

Learning goals

I can find the main idea and key details of an informational article about nature.
I can use text features (headings, captions, diagrams, sidebars, bold words) to find and understand information.
I can build vocabulary with word families, prefixes, suffixes and dictionary entries.
I can use the demonstrative pronouns celui, celle, ceux, celles (with de, qui, que, -ci, -là).
I can use ce qui and ce que to mean what in the middle of a sentence and write an informational paragraph.

Words to know

un texte informatif
An informational text: it explains facts about a topic.

un intertitre
A heading inside a text that announces the next section.

une légende
A caption under a picture or diagram.

un encadré
A sidebar: a box with extra information (Le saviez-vous ?).

une famille de mots
A word family: words built from the same root (migrer, la migration, migrateur).

un pronom démonstratif
A pronoun that points to a noun already mentioned: celui, celle, ceux, celles (the one, the ones).

l'asclépiade (n. f.)
Milkweed: the only kind of plant (there are several species) that monarch caterpillars eat.

A tiny traveller

Every fall, something remarkable happens in the sky over Ontario. Today's article explains it. It's an informational text, so its purpose is to explain facts clearly. Writers of informational texts use text features to help you: headings, captions, diagrams and sidebars. Use them before you read the paragraphs.

Remember from Grade 7 and 8: you used reading strategies on informational articles and infographics, and you learned the relative pronouns qui, que, où, dont. Today's new grammar points backwards in the text: demonstrative pronouns like celui and ceux, plus ce qui and ce que.

Worked example

Let's read an informational article using its features

Le monarque, un petit voyageur aux grandes ailes Revue Sciences Jeunesse (an article written for this lesson)

Chaque automne, un phénomène extraordinaire se produit au-dessus de l'Ontario : des millions de papillons orange et noir partent vers le sud. Ce sont des monarques, et leur voyage les mène jusqu'aux montagnes du centre du Mexique, à plusieurs milliers de kilomètres.

Une vie en quatre étapes Comme tous les papillons, le monarque se transforme complètement pendant sa vie. La femelle pond ses œufs sur l'asclépiade. La chenille qui sort de l'œuf mange les feuilles de cette plante, puis elle se transforme en chrysalide. La chrysalide du monarque est verte avec des points dorés. Une à deux semaines plus tard, un papillon adulte en sort.

Une plante indispensable Ce que les chenilles du monarque mangent, c'est uniquement l'asclépiade. Cette plante contient des substances toxiques pour beaucoup d'animaux. Les chenilles les gardent dans leur corps, ce qui rend le monarque mauvais au goût pour les oiseaux. Ses couleurs vives servent d'avertissement : « Ne me mangez pas ! »

Deux sortes de monarques Les monarques nés au printemps et au début de l'été vivent seulement quelques semaines. Ceux qui naissent à la fin de l'été sont différents : ils vivent plusieurs mois. Ce sont eux qui font le grand voyage vers le Mexique. Au printemps suivant, ce ne sont pas ces papillons-là qui arrivent en Ontario, mais leurs descendants.

Le saviez-vous ? Au parc national de la Pointe-Pelée, sur le lac Érié, on peut parfois voir des centaines de monarques se reposer dans les arbres en septembre, avant de traverser le lac.

Comment les aider ? Le nombre de monarques a beaucoup diminué depuis les années 1990. Ce qu'on peut faire ? Planter de l'asclépiade indigène et éviter les pesticides dans son jardin.

Glossaire : se produire = to happen · mener = to lead, to take · une étape = a stage · pondre = to lay (eggs) · une chenille = a caterpillar · doré(e) = golden · indispensable = essential · mauvais au goût = bad-tasting · vif, vive = bright · un avertissement = a warning · les descendants = descendants (children, grandchildren) · indigène (for plants) = native

Features first: the title (un petit voyageur) and four intertitres tell us the plan: life cycle, the plant, two kinds of monarchs, how to help. The encadré Le saviez-vous ? adds a fun fact.
Main idea (introduction): every fall, millions of monarchs fly from Ontario to the mountains of central Mexico.
Section 1: four stages: egg → caterpillar → chrysalis → butterfly. The chrysalis is green with golden dots.
Section 2: caterpillars eat only milkweed; its toxic substances make the butterfly taste bad to birds; the bright colours are a warning.
Section 3 (key detail): summer monarchs live a few weeks; late-summer monarchs live several months and make the trip. Their descendants come back in spring.
Section 4: the number of monarchs has dropped a lot since the 1990s; we can plant native milkweed and avoid pesticides.
Pronoun tracking: Ceux qui naissent... = the monarchs that are born...; ce qui rend... = which makes...; Ce que les chenilles mangent = what the caterpillars eat.

Monarchs make an amazing migration from Ontario to central Mexico. Their caterpillars depend entirely on milkweed, which also protects them from birds. Only the late-summer generation makes the long trip, and people can help by planting native milkweed.

The monarch's complete metamorphosis: egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, butterfly. The arrows go around because the butterfly lays new eggs.

Using text features

Informational texts are rarely read from the first word to the last. Readers jump to what they need, using:

le titre et le sous-titre: the topic and the angle (un petit voyageur).
les intertitres: a map of the sections. To answer What do caterpillars eat?, go straight to Une plante indispensable.
les mots en gras: key terms, often explained nearby or in a glossary.
un schéma et sa légende: a diagram with a caption, like the life cycle above.
un encadré: extra, interesting information that isn't essential to the main idea.

Building vocabulary like a scientist

When you meet a new word, look for its family and its parts:

Word families: migrer (to migrate) → la migration → un oiseau migrateur. Transformer → la transformation. If you know one, you can guess the others.
Suffixes: -tion makes a noun (protéger → la protection); -ment often makes an adverb (complet → complètement); -eur/-euse names a person or thing that does something (voyager → un voyageur).
Prefixes: re- = again (revenir); dé- or dés- = undo, remove (déboiser = to cut down a forest); in-, im- = not (indispensable, impossible).
Dictionary entries use abbreviations: n. m. (masculine noun), n. f. (feminine noun), v. (verb), adj. (adjective), adv. (adverb). The gender matters: l'asclépiade (n. f.) → une asclépiade indigène.

Demonstrative pronouns: the one, the ones

To avoid repeating a noun, French uses celui, celle, ceux, celles. They agree with the noun they replace. They can't stand alone; they are always followed by:

de (belonging): La chrysalide du monarque est verte ; celle de beaucoup d'autres papillons est brune. (celle = la chrysalide)
qui / que (a relative clause): Ceux qui naissent à la fin de l'été vivent plusieurs mois. (ceux = les monarques) · Ma photo préférée est celle que j'ai prise à la Pointe-Pelée.
-ci / -là (this one / that one): Quelle plante ? Celle-ci ou celle-là ?

Four forms that agree with the noun they replace. They are always followed by de, qui/que or -ci/-là.

Ce qui and ce que: what

When what is in the middle of a sentence (not a question), French uses ce qui or ce que:

ce qui = what, as the subject of the next verb: Je me demande ce qui rend le monarque toxique. · Ils les gardent, ce qui rend le monarque mauvais au goût.
ce que = what, as the object (a subject follows): Ce que les chenilles mangent, c'est l'asclépiade. · Explique-moi ce que tu as vu.

Quick test: if a verb follows directly, use ce qui; if a subject (je, les chenilles, on) follows, use ce que.

Worked example

Let's write an informational paragraph

Write a 6-sentence informational paragraph about a Canadian animal (here: the beaver, le castor). Use a heading, one demonstrative pronoun, one ce qui or ce que, and one word-family pair.

Heading (intertitre): Le castor, un ingénieur de la nature
Topic sentence (main idea): Le castor est un grand rongeur qui vit dans les rivières et les lacs du Canada.
Fact with a word family: Il construit des barrages avec des branches et de la boue. Ces constructions créent des étangs. (construire → une construction)
Fact with ce que: Ce que le castor mange, c'est surtout l'écorce, les feuilles et les plantes aquatiques.
Fact with a demonstrative pronoun: Les étangs du castor sont utiles aux autres animaux : ceux qui y vivent incluent des grenouilles, des poissons et des canards.
Concluding fact: Le castor est un symbole officiel du Canada.

Le castor, un ingénieur de la nature Le castor est un grand rongeur qui vit dans les rivières et les lacs du Canada. Il construit des barrages avec des branches et de la boue. Ces constructions créent des étangs. Ce que le castor mange, c'est surtout l'écorce, les feuilles et les plantes aquatiques. Ses étangs sont utiles aux autres animaux : ceux qui y vivent incluent des grenouilles, des poissons et des canards. Le castor est un symbole officiel du Canada.

(un rongeur = a rodent · un barrage = a dam · la boue = mud · un étang = a pond · l'écorce = bark)

Just for fun

No single monarch makes the round trip. The monarchs that fly to Mexico in the fall have never been there: the last ones to make that trip were ancestors several generations back. No map, no GPS, nobody to ask for directions, and they still find the same mountains!

Hands-on activity

Nature reporter: text features at home

You need: a nature or science magazine, a field guide, a cereal box with an animal fact, or a library book about nature; paper and coloured pencils.

Find one informational text and list its text features (title, headings, captions, bold words, diagrams, sidebars). Which feature helped you most? Why?
Choose a plant or animal you can observe near home: a maple tree, a squirrel, a chickadee, a houseplant. Watch it for 5 minutes. (If you observe outdoors near water or roads, bring a grown-up.)
Make a one-page informational poster in French with: a title, two headings, a labelled diagram with a caption, and a Le saviez-vous ? sidebar.
In your text, use one celui/celle/ceux/celles and one ce qui or ce que, and find one word family (observer → l'observation).

Look for: facts you are sure of (check them in a book or a reliable website), text features that help the reader, and correct pronoun agreement.

Your turn

Where do the monarchs from Ontario fly in the fall?

What are the four stages of the monarch's life?

Why don't birds like to eat monarchs?

Which monarchs make the trip to Mexico?

Which section would you read to find out how to help monarchs? What does it suggest?

In Ceux qui naissent à la fin de l'été, what does ceux replace?

What is the purpose of the Le saviez-vous ? box?

More practice: warm-up

What does une légende mean in an informational text?

Which demonstrative pronoun replaces la plante?

Which demonstrative pronoun replaces les papillons?

What does n. f. mean in a dictionary?

Give the noun in the family of migrer.

More practice: on your own

Complete: Mon vélo est rouge ; ____ de mon frère est bleu.

Complete: Parmi ces photos, ____ que je préfère montrent la chrysalide.

ce qui or ce que? Dis-moi ____ tu veux.

ce qui or ce que? ____ m'étonne, c'est la distance du voyage.

Use the prefix: what does déboiser mean, and why?

Challenge

Rewrite to avoid repeating the noun: Les érables de notre rue sont plus vieux que les érables du parc.

Combine with ce qui: Les chenilles mangent seulement l'asclépiade. Cela les rend fragiles si la plante disparaît.

Explain in English why the monarchs that return to Ontario in spring are not the same ones that left. Use the text.

Check your understanding

Quiz

What do monarch caterpillars eat?

Ma chambre est plus petite que ______ de ma sœur.

Je ne comprends pas ______ il dit.

In an informational text, an intertitre is...

Which monarchs make the long trip to Mexico?

La protection is in the same word family as...

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Your child reads an informational article (C1.2), uses its text features to find information (C2.1, C2.2), builds vocabulary with word families, prefixes and dictionary abbreviations (C1.4), and writes an informational paragraph using demonstrative pronouns and ce qui / ce que (D1.2, D1.3).

How to help:

Flip through any non-fiction book or magazine and ask your child to show you a heading, a caption and a sidebar.
If you have a garden or balcony, look into native milkweed together; local nurseries and conservation groups often have advice.

Common difficulties:

Using celui alone (J'aime celui). It needs de, qui, que or -ci/-là.
Agreement: celle for a feminine noun, ceux/celles for plurals.
Ce qui vs ce que: a verb right after → ce qui; a subject after → ce que.

Fact notes: The article's facts are general and well established: monarch caterpillars feed only on milkweed; eastern monarchs overwinter in central Mexico; the late-summer generation lives several months; monarch numbers have dropped since the 1990s; monarchs gather at Point Pelee in late summer. The beaver is an official symbol of Canada.