Identities in the making
🌱 Étude croisée Gerwig · Lady Bird × Little Women · 1re axe « Identités et échanges » : se dire / être dit · CECRL B2 · prépare le « 2-min talk » de la tâche finale · consigne élève en anglais ci-dessous


Cross-study task · Naming yourself, being named. Christine McPherson calls herself “Lady Bird”: “It’s given to me by me.” Josephine March signs “Jo” · yet her publisher wants her heroine to be “married by the end”. Pairs: Student A speaks for Lady Bird, Student B for Jo March. In two minutes each, explain who tries to define you (a mother, an aunt, a publisher, a school) and how you answer them. Then, together, answer: Who decides who a young woman is · herself, or the others? Talk about the characters only.
Sentence starters
- People around me expect me to…, whereas I…
- By choosing the name…, she claims…
- Jo’s publisher wants…; in return, she negotiates…
- Both heroines refuse to be defined by…
- Whereas Lady Bird…, Jo…
- In the end, owning your name / your story means…
Follow-up (writing, 180 words): “Own your story.” Explain how each film shows a young woman taking control of the way she is seen. · Comparison table · Lady Bird · Little Women
- Visuels libres
- Fiche identity markers
- Chunks opinion
- Grille orale B1
Tiroir « Je sèche »
Ces pistes sont faites pour la classe ou l’élève qui n’a pas d’outils numériques sous la main.
- Collage papier sans numérique.
- Amorces de phrases.
- Binômes hétérogènes.
- Version écrite à la place de l’oral.
Heure clé en main · 55 min
- 0 à 5 · One-word identity
- 5 à 18 · Document unpacking
- 18 à 32 · Collage plan
- 32 à 48 · Draft talk
- 48 à 55 · Exit claim
Cours · séances 1 (texte + exploitation + lexique + langue + média)
Chaque séance ci-dessous est un cours type manuel de 1re générale · voie générale · section européenne / excellence (CECRL B2) : document original dense, exploitation (inférence + argumentation), lexique en situation, point de langue, média, production ~55 min, travail à la maison. Si pas de micro → lecture à voix haute (sans enregistrement) pour toute consigne d’enregistrement / podcast / captation.

Session 1 · Markers
Language objective · CECRL B2 · conceptual identity markers; problematise assigned vs chosen; academic lexis.
Cours / Document
Inherited, chosen, contested
Identity work in Première is not a mood board. It is a critical sorting of markers: inherited (name, passport, family language), chosen (playlist, club, style), contested (accent, grades, “potential”). The European section expects you to show how institutions and intimates co-author the self.
A passport photo flattens time; a voice note to a friend restores it. Between those poles, teenagers learn to perform coherence for adults while living contradiction. The analytical move is to treat contradiction as data, not failure.
Today you build a glossary of 15 markers and classify each. Then you write one conflict sentence that makes tension visible without melodrama: not “I don’t know who I am”, but “My student ID assigns a stream; my weekend dialect contests that assignment.”
Exploitation
- Define inherited/chosen/contested with one school example each.
- Why is contradiction ‘data’ rather than failure?
- Rewrite a melodramatic identity line into a conflict sentence.
- Which markers are most policed in lycée culture?
- Argument: can a marker be both chosen and contested?
- Transfer: draft your conflict sentence.
Lexique en situation
| Mot / expression | Sens | Exemple |
|---|---|---|
| co-author | co-écrire | Institutions co-author the self. |
| flatten | aplatir | A photo flattens time. |
| perform coherence | jouer la cohérence | Perform coherence for adults. |
| assignment | assignation | Contests that assignment. |
| policed | contrôlé / surveillé | Markers that are policed. |
| dialect | dialecte / variante | Weekend dialect. |
| melodrama | mélodrame | Without melodrama. |
| stream | filière | Assigns a stream. |
Point de langue · Nominalisation & abstraction
Belonging, assignment, performance, contestation densify B2 claims without vagueness.
- Nominalise 4 soft sentences.
- Write 2 abstract + specific pairs.
- Avoid empty ‘things/stuff’.
- Find abstractions in the essay.
- Oral 40s conflict sentence.
- Peer: spot melodrama.
- Hedge one absolute claim.
Média
British Council LearnEnglish · B1/B2 reading ↗
- Note stance phrases.
- Is identity treated as essence or process?
Production en classe · ~55 min
- 0 à 8 · Marker triage warm-up.
- 8 à 22 · Reading + classification.
- 22 à 34 · Conflict sentence lab.
- 34 à 48 · Glossary 15 markers.
- 48 à 55 · Two sentences on board.
À la maison · après la séance 1 · Glossaire 15 markers classés + 1 conflict sentence + 5 phrases B2.
Session 2 · Docs on the axis
Language objective · CECRL B2 · CE of two short docs; paraphrase; reaction 80 à 100 words.
Cours / Document
Doc A / Doc B · who names you?
Doc A (testimony, 95w): “Crossing the prefecture threshold, I rehearse my file number before my first name. Bureaucracy loves stable nouns; I arrive as a verb in progress. My uncle whispers, Speak clearly · as if clarity could dissolve suspicion.”
Doc B (editorial, 100w): “Schools distribute labels with the efficiency of printers: ‘scientific mind’, ‘literary soul’, ‘oral weak’. These stickers organise timetables and sometimes destinies. A healthier culture would treat labels as hypotheses under review, not tattoos.”
Task: paraphrase one quote; write a reaction that links A’s lived threshold to B’s institutional critique.
Exploitation
- Paraphrase Doc A’s ‘verb in progress’.
- What metaphor governs Doc B?
- Convergence: how do both docs treat naming as power?
- Divergence: testimony vs editorial · what each can/can’t do.
- Language: find evaluative lexis in B.
- Reaction plan: 3 bullets before writing.
Lexique en situation
| Mot / expression | Sens | Exemple |
|---|---|---|
| prefecture | préfecture | Prefecture threshold. |
| bureaucracy | bureaucratie | Bureaucracy loves stable nouns. |
| dissolve suspicion | dissiper le soupçon | Clarity could dissolve suspicion. |
| sticker | étiquette | Labels as stickers. |
| hypothesis under review | hypothèse à revoir | Hypotheses under review. |
| tattoo | tatouage | Not tattoos. |
| threshold | seuil | Threshold. |
| destiny | destin | Sometimes destinies. |
Point de langue · Paraphrase without plagiarism
Change structure + lexicon; keep idea; never keep rare metaphor intact unless quoted.
- Paraphrase A in 35 words.
- Paraphrase B’s printer metaphor.
- Quote vs paraphrase clinic.
- Write reaction opener.
- Peer plagiarism check.
- Oral 45s link A↔B.
- Correct patchwriting sample.
Production en classe · ~55 min
- 0 à 6 · Predict from titles.
- 6 à 22 · CE A/B + table.
- 22 à 35 · Paraphrase drills.
- 35 à 48 · Reaction draft 90w.
- 48 à 55 · Share best link.
À la maison · après la séance 2 · Paraphrase 1 quote + reaction 90 à 110 mots reliant A et B.
Session 3 · Collage as argument
Language objective · CECRL B2 · collage with thesis; legend 4 elements; oral outline.
Cours / Document
A collage that disagrees with itself
Decorative collages fail Première. Yours must stage tension: three elements minimum (inherited / chosen / contested) and a thesis visible in arrangement, not only in a caption. Legends argue: “This bus ticket (chosen mobility) sits under a stamped form (inherited administration) to show…”.
Outline oral 2 min: hook with friction → walk three elements → name the quarrel → open question to audience.
Exploitation
- Why must a collage ‘disagree with itself’?
- Write one arguing legend (not descriptive).
- Structure the 2-min talk from memory.
- Ethics of using family photos in class?
- Thesis test: can someone disagree?
- Transfer: list image sources + credits.
Lexique en situation
| Mot / expression | Sens | Exemple |
|---|---|---|
| stage tension | mettre en scène une tension | Stage tension. |
| arrangement | disposition | Thesis in arrangement. |
| legend | légende argumentée | Legends argue. |
| quarrel | querelle / différend | Name the quarrel. |
| mobility | mobilité | Chosen mobility. |
| stamped form | formulaire tamponné | Stamped form. |
| credit | crédit photo | Credits required. |
| friction | friction | Hook with friction. |
Point de langue · Presentational signposting
First… / What this juxtaposes is… / The open question is…
- Write 5 signposts.
- Oral outline without collage yet.
- Reduce ‘so/yeah’.
- Peer time 2 min.
- Fix weak legend.
- Add concession.
- Exit ticket thesis.
Média
Unsplash identity visuals via media bank + BC ↗
- How does an image argue?
- Note juxtaposition effect.
Production en classe · ~55 min
- 0 à 8 · Bad vs arguing collage.
- 8 à 30 · Build collage + legends.
- 30 à 45 · Outline oral.
- 45 à 55 · Micro-pitches 40s.
À la maison · après la séance 3 · Légender 4 éléments ; outline oral 2 min (notes).
Session 4 · Rehearse timed
Language objective · CECRL B2 · timed 2-min talk; phonology of emphasis; self-record alternative = voix haute.
Cours / Document
Emphasis is interpretation
At B2, stress patterns should highlight evaluative nouns: assignment, contestation, hypothesis. Rehearse with a partner’s stopwatch. Si pas de micro → lecture à voix haute is the mandatory fallback · same timing, same feedback grid (message / lexique / phonologie / interaction readiness).
Exploitation
- Mark stress on your 5 key nouns.
- Which line is most interpretive? Say why.
- Repair plan if you blank at 1:20.
- Feedback: evidence-based tip for partner.
- Avoid recital: where will you look up from notes?
- Ethics: what personal detail will you keep offstage?
Lexique en situation
| Mot / expression | Sens | Exemple |
|---|---|---|
| emphasis | mise en relief | Emphasis is interpretation. |
| stopwatch | chronomètre | Partner’s stopwatch. |
| blank | trou de mémoire | If you blank. |
| recital | récital appris | Avoid recital. |
| offstage | hors scène | Keep offstage. |
| fallback | repli | Mandatory fallback. |
| grid | grille | Feedback grid. |
| evaluative | évaluatif | Evaluative nouns. |
Point de langue · Chunking for breath & meaning
Slash sense-groups; breathe at idea boundaries, not at commas only.
- Slash your script.
- Practice 2 tempos.
- Partner scores intelligibility.
- Reduce filler.
- One whispered→projected drill.
- Time 2:00 exactly.
- Note 1 fix.
Si pas de micro → lecture à voix haute chronométrée 2 min, grille message/lexique/phonologie.
Production en classe · ~55 min
- 0 à 8 · Stress gym.
- 8 à 20 · Slash scripts.
- 20 à 48 · Timed rehearsals ×2.
- 48 à 55 · Fix list.
À la maison · après la séance 4 · Enregistrer 2 min OU Si pas de micro → 2 lectures chronométrées à voix haute + auto-grille.
Session 5 · Gallery & questions
Language objective · CECRL B2 · perform collage talk; answer 2 probing Qs; peer feedback.
Cours / Document
Questions that test the thesis
Probe types: clarification of a metaphor; counter (“Isn’t this overthinking?”); comparison with a peer doc; ethics of exposure. Strong answers concede + reframe + micro-example. Triumph tone fails.
Exploitation
- Script concede→reframe for ‘overthinking’.
- Which probe type scares you · prepare it.
- Listener task: write one non-yes/no question.
- Self-eval rubric in your words.
- What will you change after first round?
- Civic: how does identity talk stay respectful?
Lexique en situation
| Mot / expression | Sens | Exemple |
|---|---|---|
| probe | question sonde | Probe types. |
| exposure | exposition de soi | Ethics of exposure. |
| reframe | recadrer | Concede + reframe. |
| triumph tone | ton de triomphe | Triumph tone fails. |
| gallery | galerie | Gallery talks. |
| probing | perspicace | Probing Qs. |
| respectful | respectueux | Stay respectful. |
| micro-example | micro-exemple | + micro-example. |
Point de langue · Interaction frames B2
What I meant by X is… / That’s fair; I’d still maintain… / A clearer instance is…
- Build 4 frames.
- Hot-seat practice.
- Tone check.
- Reduce defensiveness.
- Collect best Q.
- Final talks.
- Debrief.
Si pas de micro → passages gallery à voix haute + Q&R, sans captation.
Production en classe · ~55 min
- 0 à 6 · Probe bank.
- 6 à 45 · Gallery + Q.
- 45 à 55 · Feedback synthesis.
À la maison · après la séance 5 · Peer feedback fiche + réécriture de l’interprétation (6 lignes).
Mid-sequence homework
Atelier formatif (méthode) · feuille élève, support, barème & corrigé.
End-of-sequence assessment homework
- Nature. Oral continu sur axe identities.
- Durée. Prépa 8 min · oral 2 à 3 min.
Full homework + mark scheme + answers →
Pack en ligne : feuille élève, support, barème tabulaire, corrigé pliable.
Photos & vidéos
Banque complète de la séquence → · liens légaux uniquement
Photos
- CollageAssemblageExploitation · Layers of identity? · What cut / keep?Unsplash License
- PasseportVoyageExploitation · Belonging vs mobility? · Axis in one sentence.Unsplash License
- Famille diverseFamilleExploitation · Stereotypes to avoid? · 2-min talk hook.Unsplash License
- AutoportraitsAutoportraitsExploitation · Art as identity claim? · Compare 2 portraits.Wikimedia
Vidéos
- TED-Ed identity/cultureIdentité culturelleExploitation · Thesis of the talk? · Link collage oral.TED-Ed
- British Council Video ZoneListening B1Exploitation · Chunks for talk. · Recommend to a peer?British Council
- Lumni AnglaisClipsExploitation · Register? Cultural refs? · 30-sec summary.Lumni




