Inspire 1. Méthode de Français. Niveau A1 par Jean-Thierry Le Bougnec and Marie-Jose Lopes, et: Inspire 1. Cahier d'activités. Niveau A1 par Lucas Malcor, and Claire Marchandeau, et: Inspire 2. Méthode de Français. Niveau A2 par Jean-Thierry Le Bougnec and Marie-Jose Lopes, et: Inspire 2. Cahier d'activités. Niveau A2 par Véronique Boisseaux and Lucas Malcor

Abstract

Reviewed by: Inspire 1. Méthode de Français. Niveau A1 par Jean-Thierry Le Bougnec and Marie-Jose Lopes, et: Inspire 1. Cahier d'activités. Niveau A1 par Lucas Malcor, and Claire Marchandeau, et: Inspire 2. Méthode de Français. Niveau A2 par Jean-Thierry Le Bougnec and Marie-Jose Lopes, et: Inspire 2. Cahier d'activités. Niveau A2 par Véronique Boisseaux and Lucas Malcor Joseph Edward Price Le Bougnec, Jean-Thierry and Marie-Jose Lopes. Inspire 1. Méthode de Français. Niveau A1. Paris: Hachette Livre, 2020. ISBN 978-2-01-513575-5. Pp. 143. Malcor, Lucas, and Claire Marchandeau. Inspire 1. Cahier d'activités. Niveau A1. Paris: Hachette Livre, 2020. ISBN: 978-2-01-513576-2. Pp. 128. Le Bougnec, Jean-Thierry and Marie-Jose Lopes. Inspire 2. Méthode de Français. Niveau A2. Paris: Hachette Livre, 2020. ISBN: 978-2-01-513579-3. Pp. 159. Boisseaux, Véronique and Lucas Malcor. Inspire 2. Cahier d'activités. Niveau A2. Paris: Hachette Livre, 2020. ISBN: 978-2-01-513580-9. Pp. 128. Recent years have seen a proliferation of FLE (Français langue étrangère) titles on the market. Affordably priced, attractive, and focused on real-world tasks and CEFR standards, FLE materials offer compelling alternatives to traditional basic language textbooks. Hachette's Inspire series, intended for basic language at the A1 and A2 (CEFR) levels, includes the classroom manual (Livre de l'élève) and the accompanying Cahier d'activités, suitable for use in class and for preparation at home, available in printed or digital formats. The classroom manual for both levels follows the same structure: eight Unités of 12 pages, with nearly all unités consisting of four leçons. With a leçon every 2 pages, students are able to view an entire leçon at one time with the book open in front of them. The unités focus on a wide variety of communicative tasks mirroring the CEFL A1 and A2 standards: greeting, getting information, talking about daily life, giving opinions, narrating in the past, etc. Unités open with a single page detailing the objectives and content, followed by three leçons d'apprentissage, each beginning with an input activity. Numerous creative output activities follow. Each leçon d'apprentissage includes a useful and unobtrusive grammar and vocabulary overview on part of the right-hand side of the page. The fourth leçon (Techniques pour …) focuses on authentic cultural content and output, synthesizing the themes and content of the unité. Unités conclude with activities focused on grammar (S'entraîner), a self-test (Faites le point) and preparation for the DELF. The appendices of both Inspire 1 and Inspire 2 include a précis of phonetics, grammar, conjugation, and an answer key for the S'entraîner activities. Inspire provides an extensive online website (included with the purchase of the book) allowing access to the extensive video and audio content, as well as to additional practice activities, and an instructor's resource site is also available. The Cahier d'activités aligns perfectly with the content of the class manual. The same unités are present, with three sections, one for each leçon d'apprentissage. Following the sequence in the class manual, activities move from input to contextualized communicative use of vocabulary and structures, although leçons are typically longer here (4 pages). Each unité in the Cahier d'activités concludes with a Bilan section, consisting of [End Page 258] compréhension écrite, compréhension orale, production écrite, and production orale sections (in varying order), synthesizing the content of the unité in an almost-IPA fashion. The appendices include a self-evaluation, a sample DELF test, and transcripts of the listening activities. As is the case for the class manual, the free website includes access to all of the recordings of the Cahier d'activités. While strongly focused on preparation for the DELF, the series is well-designed and the flow between the two manuals and between...