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A2 French story: the volunteer remembers the wrong start time

Edited by Chris Lee · Updated · About the library

Read an A2 French first-volunteering story in which an old email conflicts with a dated update. Identify the correct arrival time and the confirmation.

In short

Compare the message dates and what the update explicitly changes. Adam’s 2 September email says 9 h, but the 5 September update moves the volunteer meeting to 10 h 30. The organiser confirms that later time. Public opening at 11 h is a separate event.

Three volunteers at an outdoor Zéro Déchet association stand.
Zéro Déchet volunteers at their stand in Saint-Étienne in 2019. Resized and converted to WebP. Touam (Hervé Agnoux) · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

The story contains three times with different jobs: the old volunteer arrival, the revised team meeting and public opening. Follow the dates on the emails and the organiser’s reply rather than choosing the first time Adam remembers.

A2 · ancien message et mise à jour

Trop tôt pour la première journée

Le 7 septembre, Adam allait aider pour la première fois à une fête de quartier. Il avait reçu un e-mail le 2 septembre : les bénévoles devaient arriver à neuf heures pour préparer la salle. Il avait noté cet horaire dans son agenda et préparé son sac la veille.

À neuf heures, Adam était devant le bâtiment, mais la porte était fermée. Une affiche1 annonçait l’ouverture au public à onze heures. Il ne savait pas si cette information concernait aussi les bénévoles. Il a donc cherché le message de l’association sur son téléphone.

D’abord, il a rouvert l’ancien e-mail. Puis il a remarqué un deuxième message, daté du 5 septembre, avec l’objet « Nouvel horaire2 pour les bénévoles ». Il l’avait reçu, mais ne l’avait pas lu. La salle était déjà installée : le rendez-vous3 était maintenant à dix heures trente.

Adam a appelé la responsable pour confirmer4. Elle lui a expliqué que le nouvel horaire concernait toute l’équipe d’accueil. « Vous n’avez rien à préparer à neuf heures. Nous vous attendons à dix heures trente », a-t-elle précisé. Adam a corrigé son agenda et est allé prendre un café près de la place.

À dix heures quinze, il était de retour. Quand les autres bénévoles sont arrivés, il leur a montré le message le plus récent5. Ensemble, ils ont préparé l’accueil avant l’ouverture au public. Adam avait attendu inutilement, mais il avait résolu le doute en comparant les dates et en demandant une confirmation6.

Read it in English

On 7 September, Adam was going to help at a neighbourhood festival for the first time. He had received an email on 2 September: volunteers were to arrive at nine to prepare the room. He had noted that time in his diary and packed his bag the evening before.

At nine, Adam was outside the building, but the door was closed. A poster announced public opening at eleven. He did not know whether that information also applied to volunteers. So he looked for the association’s message on his phone.

First, he reopened the old email. Then he noticed a second message, dated 5 September, with the subject “New time for volunteers”. He had received it but had not read it. The room was already set up: the meeting was now at half past ten.

Adam called the organiser to confirm. She explained that the new time concerned the whole welcome team. “You have nothing to prepare at nine. We’re expecting you at half past ten,” she clarified. Adam corrected his diary and went for a coffee near the square.

At quarter past ten, he was back. When the other volunteers arrived, he showed them the most recent message. Together, they prepared the welcome area before public opening. Adam had waited unnecessarily, but had resolved the uncertainty by comparing the dates and asking for confirmation.

The poster answers a different question

Ouverture au public gives the visitor time. Adam is a volunteer, so he still needs the team’s meeting time. The newer email supplies that update, and the phone call establishes that it applies to his welcome team. The story gives more than a newer date: it states the change and confirms its scope.

Question 1No account needed
Which email contains the revised volunteer time?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

The message dated 5 September. The 5 September message is headed Nouvel horaire pour les bénévoles.

Question 2No account needed
What time does the organiser confirm for the welcome team?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

10 h 30. She explicitly says Nous vous attendons à dix heures trente.

Question 3No account needed
What does Adam do after the call?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

He corrects his diary and returns before the revised meeting.. The last two paragraphs describe the corrected agenda and 10 h 15 return.

To summarise, keep the original instruction, the updated instruction and the confirmation on separate lines. This shows how the uncertainty was resolved without assuming that a public notice must describe a volunteer’s arrival.

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