L'Accord du Participe Passé (Past Participle Agreement)

Learning ObjectivesIdentify the past participle with the helping verb 'avoir' (to have).Apply the rule that the past participle does not agree with the subject when using 'avoir' (to have).Talk about simple past events.Imagine you're telling a friend about your weekend. You say: "J'ai joué (I played) [zhay zhoo-AY] hockey 🏒." Your sister, she a joué (played) [ah zhoo-AY] the piano 🎹. Your parents, they ont joué (played) [ohn zhoo-AY] cards 🃏. Do you notice something? The word "joué" (played) [zhoo-AY] never changes! In this lesson, we're going to find out why.Real-World ApplicationsTelling your family about your day.Writing a short paragraph about your vacation.Understanding a simple story in the past tense.

For this lesson, we'll use words you already know. Here are the important concepts:ConceptDefinitionExampleLe Passé Composé (The Past Tense) [luh pah-say kom-poh-ZAY]A verb tense used to talk about a completed action in the past. It's made of two parts.J'ai mangé (I ate) [zhay mahn-ZHAY] une pomme (an apple) [oon puhm].L'auxiliaire Avoir (The Helping Verb 'To Have') [loh-ksee-lee-AIR ah-VWAHR]The first verb in the *passé composé* (a form of 'to have'). It's a 'helping' verb.Tu as (You have) [too ah] fini (finished) [fee-NEE]. Elles ont (They have) [ehlz ohn] chanté (sung) [shahn-TAY].Le Participe Passé (The Past Participle) [luh pahr-tee-SEEP pah-SAY]The second verb in the *passé composé*. It represents the main action.Nous avons parlé (We talked) [noo zah-vohn pahr-LAY]. Il a vu (He saw)...

The Golden Rule with the Helping Verb AVOIRRule: When you use the helping verb avoir (to have) [ah-VWAHR] in the *passé composé*, the past participle never agrees with the subject of the verb. It always stays the same, no matter if the subject is masculine, feminine, singular, or plural.Examples:J'ai mangé (I ate) [zhay mahn-ZHAY]. (subject: I)Tu as mangé (You ate) [too ah mahn-ZHAY]. (subject: you)Il a mangé (He ate) [eel ah mahn-ZHAY]. (subject: he, masculine singular)Elle a mangé (She ate) [ehl ah mahn-ZHAY]. (subject: she, feminine singular)Nous avons mangé (We ate) [noo zah-vohn mahn-ZHAY]. (subject: we)Vous avez mangé (You ate) [voo zah-vay mahn-ZHAY]. (subject: you, plural/formal)Ils ont mangé (They ate) [eelz ohn mahn-ZHAY]. (subject: they, masculine plural)Elles ont mangé (They at...