A-Level French Course: A Practical Guide for New Teachers- Managing Homework and Independent Study
Updated: Sep 3
Homework is an important part of A-level French. There is simply too much vocabulary, grammar and topic content for students to make sufficient progress through lesson time alone.
Students need a clear routine, manageable deadlines and a variety of tasks. They also need to understand the difference between completing compulsory homework and studying independently.
This is how I structure homework across Years 12 and 13.
Establishing a routine at the beginning of Year 12
From September until the October half-term, I normally set three pieces of homework each week:
one vocabulary-learning or grammar task, alternating each week;
two tasks linked to La famille en voie de changement.
The topic homework might involve reading, listening, writing, speaking or translation. Using a variety of skills prevents homework from becoming repetitive and gives students regular opportunities to practise different elements of the course.
I stagger the deadlines so that students are not expected to complete everything on the same day. For example, Monday might be the regular deadline for vocabulary or grammar, while the topic tasks are due on a different day.
Giving each type of homework a consistent deadline helps students organise their workload and reduces confusion about what is due and when. It also means that they normally have a full week to complete each task, with lessons in between during which they can ask questions or seek clarification if needed.
This removes one of the most common excuses for incomplete work: students have had both sufficient time and opportunities to ask for help.
Adding film homework after October half-term
After the October half-term, when we begin studying the film, I increase the homework to approximately four tasks per week:
Homework area | Typical weekly allocation |
Current specification topic | Two tasks (or one longer task) |
Film study | One task |
Vocabulary or grammar | One task |
Total study time | Approximately three to four hours |
Again, I stagger the deadlines across the week to help students manage the workload. They are not expected to complete all four tasks for the same lesson.
The number of tasks is less important than the overall workload. Some tasks may take only 15 or 20 minutes, while a more substantial piece of writing or film analysis will take longer. Overall, my Year 12 students usually spend approximately three to four hours on French homework each week.
A Memrise vocabulary course alone can easily require around an hour of regular practice, particularly if students are learning the vocabulary properly rather than rushing through it immediately before the deadline.
Varying the topic homework
The two weekly topic tasks can focus on any of the main language skills. They might include:
listening comprehension;
reading comprehension;
translation into French or English;
preparation for a speaking task;
a written response;
grammar practice;
flipped-learning work introducing content that will be revisited in class.
A varied programme provides a more accurate picture of students’ progress than setting the same type of written task every week. It also allows them to identify the areas in which they need more practice.
Setting listening comprehension for homework
I find listening comprehension particularly useful as homework.
When completing a listening task independently, students can pause the recording, rewind it and listen again. This is not the same as completing a timed examination task, but it provides valuable preparation for the AQA examination, in which students have individual control of the recording.
It also teaches them to judge how long a listening task takes when they are responsible for managing the audio themselves. Some students replay every sentence unnecessarily and spend far too long on a relatively short activity. Others listen only once and give up too quickly.
Independent listening helps them begin finding the right balance. They can learn when to replay a passage, when to move on and how to listen for the main message before focusing on specific details.
When we review the task in class, we can also discuss which sections they found difficult and why. This helps students recognise whether the problem was unfamiliar vocabulary, speed, pronunciation, a distractor or a failure to understand the question.
Using speaking homework
For speaking homework, I often ask students to prepare a stimulus card at home. They record their answers to the three questions and send the recording to me.
Naturally, this does not reproduce the unpredictable element of the final speaking examination or its limited preparation time. However, it still allows me to assess whether students understand the fundamental skills involved.
I can listen for whether they can:
summarise the information on the card for the first question;
react to the information provided for the second question;
develop an answer using relevant topic knowledge;
include analysis or draw conclusions;
use an appropriate range of vocabulary and grammatical structures.
Recorded homework is also useful because students can listen back to their answers before submitting them. They often notice repetition, hesitation or pronunciation problems that they would not identify while speaking. Some will record themselves several times, naturally working to improve their fluency and pronunciation before submitting the final version.
More controlled and spontaneous speaking practice can then take place in lessons as their confidence develops.
Homework in the age of AI
With the tools now available, it is possible for students to use AI to produce almost any piece of homework. We therefore need to communicate clearly why the work has been set and what students lose when they allow a tool to complete it for them.
If the purpose of a task is to practise structuring an answer, retrieving vocabulary or applying a grammar point, submitting an AI-generated answer may produce a polished-looking piece of work, but it does not develop the student’s own skills.
It also gives the teacher an inaccurate picture of what that student can do independently. The problem usually becomes obvious when the same student is asked to complete a similar task in class or under timed conditions.
Expectations around AI should be made clear from the beginning and should follow the school’s policy. Students need to understand the difference between using technology to support their learning and using it to avoid the learning altogether.
Regularly revisiting homework in class also makes the work purposeful. Students know that they may be asked to explain an answer, discuss a text or apply the same language in a new context.
Always checking that homework has been completed
I always check that homework has been completed, but this does not mean that I personally mark every task.
Depending on the purpose of the homework, we might:
correct it together in class;
use it as the starting point for the next lesson;
ask students to self-mark and correct their work in a different-coloured pen;
discuss specific questions or difficulties;
collect it to identify a skill or misconception that needs further teaching;
collect and mark it formally.
If the task was set as flipped learning, we use the content in the following lesson. This makes it clear that the homework was not an isolated exercise: it was preparation for the work students are now expected to complete in class.
Where students self-mark, I may ask them to complete the corrections as a further part of their homework. Simply placing a tick or cross beside an answer is not enough; the useful learning takes place when they identify why an answer was wrong and replace it with an accurate one.
I try to limit my own marking to no more than two pieces of work per class each week. This keeps the workload manageable while still allowing me to monitor students’ work closely.
Not every task requires detailed teacher marking. What matters is that students know their homework will be checked, used or followed up in some way.
Homework and independent study are not the same thing
Completing the set homework is the minimum expectation at A-level. Students should also be encouraged to study French independently.
Independent study might include:
reading French news articles or blogs;
listening to podcasts;
watching videos in French;
exploring an aspect of a topic that interests them;
listening to French music or watching a French-language programme.
These activities may not lead to an immediate mark or written outcome, but they increase students’ exposure to authentic French. Over time, this supports their listening, reading, vocabulary, cultural knowledge and confidence.
Students often need help developing these habits. Simply telling them to “do some independent study” is unlikely to be enough, particularly at the beginning of Year 12.
To provide more direction, my worksheets often include links or QR codes at the bottom. These lead students towards an article, video, podcast or other resource connected to the aspect they are studying.
This gives them a clear starting point while allowing them to take their learning further if they are interested or motivated.
Homework in Year 13
In Year 13, I broadly maintain the same homework structure, but I add regular retrieval and revision of Year 12 content.
A typical week may include:
Homework area | Typical weekly allocation |
Current Year 13 topic | Two tasks (or one longer task) |
Literary work | One task |
Vocabulary or grammar | One task |
Retrieval of Year 12 content or film | One additional task |
IRP | Ongoing milestones |
Total study time | Approximately four to five hours |
The Year 12 retrieval task might revisit topic content or the film. I can use dedicated retrieval activities, or simply set activities from the resources that we did not have time to complete in class.
Students normally mark these retrieval tasks themselves. The purpose is to keep earlier vocabulary and content active rather than add unnecessarily to the teacher’s marking workload.
The Individual Research Project is also running in the background. From approximately December until May, I set clear milestones so that students continue making progress instead of attempting to complete the project at the last minute.
Although IRP work may not appear as a separate piece of homework every week, it still needs to be considered when judging the students’ overall workload.
Year 13 students therefore complete approximately four to five hours of French homework each week, alongside continued encouragement to broaden their knowledge independently through the links and QR codes included on their worksheets.
“We get more homework in French than in any other subject”
My students have often complained that they receive more homework in French than in their other subjects. I understand why it can feel that way, particularly because French homework is divided into several separate tasks rather than one larger weekly assignment.
However, I struggle to see how students can make the progress expected at A-level—and ultimately achieve strong grades—without this regular work outside lessons. Vocabulary, grammar, listening, reading, translation, speaking and the study of a film or book all require repeated practice. There is simply not enough lesson time to cover everything and provide sufficient opportunities for consolidation.
That does not mean setting work for the sake of it. Each task should have a clear purpose, deadlines should be staggered and the total weekly workload should remain reasonable. If students are consistently taking much longer than expected, it is worth investigating why and adjusting where necessary.
Nevertheless, reducing homework simply because another subject sets less would not serve students well. A language develops through frequent exposure and practice, and the progress expected at A-level requires a genuine commitment beyond the classroom.
Homework is not just for home
Students can understandably feel overwhelmed when several subjects set work at the same time. However, the term “homework” can sometimes be misleading, as the work does not necessarily have to be completed at home. Most students have free periods during the school day that can be used to make a start—or even finish—some of their assignments.
Free periods should form part of students’ independent study time. Completing a listening activity, reviewing vocabulary or beginning a translation during the school day can considerably reduce the amount they need to do in the evening.
Of course, not every student has the same circumstances, and some have jobs, caring responsibilities or long journeys. Nevertheless, reminding students to use their free periods productively is an important part of preparing them for the independence expected at A-level and beyond.
Homework during the holiday
I continue to set homework during the school holidays and may use the opportunity to assign a longer task that would be difficult to fit into a normal teaching week.
For example, during the October half-term in Year 12, I ask students to watch the film in full before our weekly film lessons begin. In Year 13, I might ask them to write two essays: one on the book and one on the film.
From Year 12 through to Year 13, students complete approximately three hours of French homework during each school holiday. This maintains continuity without giving them the equivalent of a full week’s usual homework.
Students also receive work for the summer between Years 12 and 13. I ask them to:
review the Standard Memrise levels for all the Year 12 topics;
revise the main tenses and their formation;
read the set novel in English.
These tasks help students retain the foundations established in Year 12 and prepare them for the additional demands of Year 13.
Homework included in my resources
Each of my topic resources—Parts A, B and C—includes two homework tasks:
one vocabulary-learning task;
one topic-content task focusing on reading, listening, speaking, writing or translation.
Across a complete topic, this provides three vocabulary-learning homework tasks and three content-based homework tasks, with the skills covered varying from one part to another.
For Year 13 revision homework, teachers can also use my retrieval activities and vocabulary-practice resources to revisit Year 12 topics.
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