CCEA GCSE French (499) · Grammar spine 4 of 10 — Plans and opinions
Mini-Lesson
Plans & opinions
To reach the top marks you must talk about the future and give your opinion. This lesson builds both: the near future with aller + infinitive, the three modal verbs (pouvoir, vouloir, devoir), the polite je voudrais and il faut, and the opinion verbs with their qualifiers.
Work through each screen and answer the questions as you go — some ask you to recognise the right form, some ask you to produce it by typing. The examples are voiced through CCEA's three Contexts for Learning — identity, lifestyle & culture; local, national, international & global areas of interest; and school life, studies & the world of work. Collect ⭐ stars and press Start.
The near future
aller + infinitive = "going to"
The easiest way to talk about the future is exactly like English "going to": take aller in the present, then add an infinitive:
aller (present) + infinitive= "going to (do)"
je vais manger — I'm going to eat
on va sortir — we're going to go out
ils vont jouer — they're going to play
Just two moving parts: conjugate aller (je vais, tu vas, il va, nous allons, vous allez, ils vont), then park the second verb as a plain infinitive. Never conjugate the second verb.
Sort it
Pick the aller form
Quick check
Making a plan
?How do you say "I'm going to watch TV"? (regarder la télé = to watch TV)
Modal verbs
pouvoir, vouloir, devoir
Three verbs express what you can, want to or must do. They are irregular, and they are almost always followed by an infinitive:
pouvoir — can
je peux
tu peux
il peut
nous pouvons
vous pouvez
ils peuvent
vouloir — want
je veux
tu veux
il veut
nous voulons
vous voulez
ils veulent
devoir — must
je dois
tu dois
il doit
nous devons
vous devez
ils doivent
Always an infinitive next:je dois travailler (I must work), je peux aller (I can go), je veux jouer (I want to play). The second verb never changes.
Type it
Your turn — the near future
1Write "we are going to eat" in French, using on + aller + manger.
Hint: on takes the il form of aller (va), then the infinitive. (nous allons manger also works.)
Modals + infinitive
Chaining a modal to a verb
The pattern is the same every time: modal verb conjugated for the person, then a plain infinitive:
je peux + aller → je peux aller (I can go)
je veux + jouer → je veux jouer (I want to play)
je dois + travailler → je dois travailler (I must work)
Never conjugate the second verb. Write je dois travailler, not je dois travaille. The modal carries the person; the infinitive stays put.
Quick check
Modal + infinitive
?How do you say "I must work"? (devoir = must; travailler = to work)
Type it
Your turn — the "I" of pouvoir
2Write the je ("I") form of pouvoir (to be able / can).
Hint: "I can" — the je form is peux.
Polite & impersonal
je voudrais and il faut
Two more high-value patterns. Use them to sound polite and to say what "one must" do:
je voudrais = "I would like" — softer than je veux. Follow it with an infinitive or a noun: je voudrais manger, je voudrais un café.
il faut + infinitive = "one must / you have to". Il faut réviser (one must revise), il faut manger.
Exam gold:je voudrais and il faut are quick ways to lift your register. Both take an infinitive next (and je voudrais can also take a noun).
Quick check
Being polite
?How do you politely order "I would like a coffee"? (un café = a coffee)
Type it
Your turn — "I would like"
3Write the polite phrase for "I would like" in French.
Hint: it comes from vouloir — the polite "I would like" is je voudrais.
Giving your opinion
aimer, adorer, détester, préférer
Opinion verbs take an infinitive or a noun. They are the heart of every "what do you think?" answer:
j'adore jouer — I love playing · j'adore jouer au football
je déteste les maths — I hate maths
je préfère lire — I prefer reading
Go further: add a clause with penser que / croire que / trouver que ("I think/believe/find that…"), or open with à mon avis ("in my opinion"). Sharpen it with qualifiers: assez (quite), très (very), vraiment (really), un peu (a bit).
Game · Match
Match the infinitive to its "je" form
Tap an infinitive on the left, then tap its "I" form on the right.
INFINITIVE
pouvoir
vouloir
devoir
aimer
préférer
aller
"JE" FORM
je préfère
je peux
je vais
je dois
je veux
j'aime
Type it
Your turn — the "I" of vouloir
4Write the je ("I") form of vouloir (to want).
Hint: "I want" — the je form is veux.
Quick check
An opinion + infinitive
?How do you say "I love playing football"? (jouer au football = to play football)
Sort it
Positive or negative?
Sort each opinion phrase into positive or negative.
Positive opinion
Negative opinion
Adding depth to opinions
Qualifiers and "I think that…"
Turn a plain opinion into a top-mark one. Add a qualifier to grade it, or a clause to justify it:
Qualifiers:assez (quite), très (very), vraiment (really), un peu (a bit) — c'est très intéressant.
Clauses:je pense que …, je crois que …, je trouve que … ("I think/believe/find that…").
Opener:à mon avis = "in my opinion".
Recipe for a strong sentence:à mon avis + opinion verb + qualifier — e.g. à mon avis, je trouve que c'est vraiment nul. Grade every opinion and you climb the mark bands.
Quick check
"One must…"
?How do you say "one must revise"? (réviser = to revise)
Type it
Your turn — "I must leave"
5Write "I must leave" in French, using devoir + partir.
Hint: devoir in the "I" form (je dois) + the infinitive partir.
Plans and opinions together
Building richer sentences
Combine a plan and an opinion and your French leaps up a level:
Plan:ce week-end, je vais jouer au football. ("This weekend I'm going to play football.")
Opinion:à mon avis, c'est vraiment génial. ("In my opinion, it's really great.")
Obligation:mais d'abord, je dois réviser. ("But first, I must revise.")
Golden habit: every future action can be aller + infinitive; every modal keeps its infinitive; every opinion can carry a qualifier. Stack those and you write like a top-band candidate.
Recap
Your plans-and-opinions toolkit
Near future:aller (present) + infinitive — je vais manger, on va sortir, ils vont jouer.