Matching game
French school years: CP, CE1, sixième, terminale and ages
Confused by CP, CM2, sixième and terminale? Match each French school year to its age and UK/US equivalent, and see why French secondary school counts down.
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In short
French primary school runs CP, CE1, CE2, CM1, CM2 (ages 6–11). Secondary school counts down: collège goes sixième, cinquième, quatrième, troisième (11–15), then lycée goes seconde, première, terminale (15–18), ending with le bac.
Yellow the idea to rememberBlue French to learnRed watch out
Tap one on the left, then its partner on the right.
| Stage | Years | Ages |
|---|---|---|
| l'école maternelle | petite, moyenne, grande section | 3–6 |
| l'école élémentaire | CP, CE1, CE2, CM1, CM2 | 6–11 |
| le collège | 6e, 5e, 4e, 3e (+ le brevet) | 11–15 |
| le lycée | 2de, 1re, terminale (+ le bac) | 15–18 |
CP stands for cours préparatoire, CE for cours élémentaire, CM for cours moyen. The countdown in collège (from sixième to troisième) surprises everyone: a pupil in troisième is older than one in sixième. En terminale is the final year, when students sit the baccalauréat.
- Parent 1
Ton fils est en quelle classe ?
What year is your son in?
- Parent 2
Il est en cinquième, et sa sœur entre en seconde.
He's in year 8 (cinquième), and his sister is starting lycée.
- Parent 1
Déjà ! Et la petite ?
Already! And the little one?
- Parent 2
Elle est en grande section, elle passe au CP en septembre.
She's in reception, she goes into CP in September.
The bac has different streams: le bac général, le bac technologique and le bac professionnel. After it, students go on to university (la fac), preparatory classes (la prépa) or vocational courses. Le brevet at the end of troisième is a smaller national exam.