If you are a Canadian French teacher, it is likely that you teach South Asian and non-South Asian students who celebrate Diwali. Diwali is one of the biggest celebrations for Hindus, Sikhs and Jains around the world. Therefore, it is an important part of the lives of our students who celebrate. Here are five French activities for Diwali for the FSL or French Immersion classroom.
French Diwali Activities
Le Diwali arrive! Celebrate Diwali en français in your French classroom with these 6 French Diwali activities. These activities also serve as excellent French emergency sub plans (French supply plans in Ontario) & French early finisher activities. Whether you teach French Immersion or Core French, teaching French Diwali vocabulary in a fun and engaging way is a must! These French Diwali activities are ideal for high novice French to intermediate French students.
What activities are included in this resource?
- French Diwali vocabulary handout – all nouns
- French reading comprehension passage on Diwali as celebrated by Sikhs (one of the largest South Asian communities in Canada) in Canada
- French Diwali word search
- French Diwali writing prompt with sentence structures
- French Diwali vocabulary colour by code
- French Diwali Trouve quelqu’un qui or Find someone who
- French charades cards to practice French Diwali vocabulary
- French Diwali verbs handout
Le plus beau Diwali – Sonali Shah & Chaaya Prabhat
In Le plus beau Diwali, we meet the main character who is eagerly anticipating celebrating Diwali this year.
Ariana is excited to make Indian desserts, wear her brand-new outfit, and go to the mandir. However, her three-year-old brother Rafi ruins it all!
He spills flour all over the floor and destroys her brand-new outfit!
Ariana is especially looking forward to participating in the rangoli contest, for which she has been preparing for weeks. Unfortunately, her brother accidentally ruins her design. Fortunately, both the judge and the audience are impressed with the result, and Ariana ultimately wins first place!
At the end of the story, Ariana realizes that life wouldn’t be the same without her little brother.
This is a heartwarming story of family and Diwali.
French level: low-intermediate. All in present tense, some futur proche.
Learn about the origins of Diwali via a French reading comprehension article
Next, we have a French reading comprehension article on Diwali!
Looking for an inclusive and engaging French reading comprehension article? This article will teach your French students all about the celebration of Diwali. The French article is ideal for FSL/Core French or French Immersion students.
The best part about this text is that it includes three different levels all in one document: novice, intermediate, and advanced!
Your students will explore the origins of Diwali and its significance to Hindus, Sikhs and Jains around the world.
Read Le Diwali de Binny
Next, we have another excellent French picture book with South Asian representation!
I started learning French at the age of 13. I am now 28 years old and for the first time in my life, there is a French picture book with an Indian character written by a fellow Indian!
When I received Le Diwali de Binny in the mail, I could not express in words how excited I felt. If you teach Core French or French Immersion, you should definitely have this book as a read-aloud or in your classroom library!
Play a French game on Diwali to test your students’ knowledge on Le Diwali
Next, we have a French game to test your students’ knowledge on Diwali!
I created this French activity for Diwali. If you’re not aware, I am a Punjabi teacher, born and raised in Canada. Diwali also happens to be my favourite Indian celebration.
Introduce your Core French and/or French Immersion students to the beautiful, diverse celebration of Diwali. This French reading comprehension-themed game will assess your students’ prior knowledge of Diwali and introduce them to the important cultural aspects of the celebration.
Watch Des lumières pour Gita on ONF
Last but not least, we have an animated short film with a South Asian protagonist.
Des lumières pour Gita is a French short film available on Office National du Film (National Film Board of Canada).
