Catalonia PAU French (Francès 2026) study plan
Catalonia PAU French (Francès 2026) · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 7 hours per week
Reading comprehension of a written text in French & Use of French: grammar, vocabulary and syntax in context
Diagnose current level by completing one full-length PAU-style reading text under timed conditions and scoring it against the official marking criteria.
Identify and list the five question types that appear in the PAU reading section (true/false with justification, synonym/antonym, reference, inference, vocabulary in context) and write a one-line strategy for each.
Build a personal lexicon of 60 high-frequency PAU topic words (environment, technology, education, health, immigration) organised in a spreadsheet with French definition and Catalan equivalent.
Review the three main French past tenses (passé composé, imparfait, plus-que-parfait) and complete 40 transformation exercises with at least 85% accuracy.
Your checkpoint
A scored diagnostic reading test plus a 60-word thematic lexicon spreadsheet and an error log listing every mistake with its grammar or strategy cause.
Reading comprehension of a written text in French & Use of French: grammar, vocabulary and syntax in context
Read four PAU-length texts (350-450 words) and answer all comprehension questions in under 50 minutes each, aiming for 80% accuracy.
Practise justifying true/false answers by quoting the exact line from the text, writing five justifications per text.
Drill pronoun reference questions (lequel, dont, celui-ci, y, en) with 30 contextualised items.
Memorise the connector list for cause, consequence, concession and addition (par conséquent, toutefois, néanmoins, en effet, ainsi) and insert them into ten gapped paragraphs.
Your checkpoint
Four completed reading tests with quoted justifications and a corrected connector exercise showing 90% or better.
Use of French: grammar, vocabulary and syntax in context & Reading comprehension of a written text in French
Master the subjunctive triggers (il faut que, bien que, avant que, pour que) and complete 50 fill-in exercises with 85% accuracy.
Practise word formation (prefixes, suffixes, nominalisation) on 40 items drawn from PAU-style vocabulary exercises.
Answer synonym and antonym questions from three reading texts without using a dictionary first, then verify.
Rewrite five complex sentences from a reading text using different structures (passive, nominalisation, inversion) to test syntactic control.
Your checkpoint
A grammar portfolio with three corrected exercise sets and five rewritten sentences annotated with the transformation applied.
Reading comprehension of a written text in French & Written expression: guided composition or structured text
Complete two full reading sections in exam conditions (60 minutes total) and self-mark strictly against the official rubric.
Analyse three model PAU writing tasks to extract the expected structure (introduction, two developed arguments, conclusion) and produce a reusable outline template.
Write one 120-150 word opinion text on a PAU-style prompt using the template and at least four connectors, then revise it against a checklist.
Learn 20 opinion and hedging expressions (à mon sens, il est indéniable que, certes... mais) and use at least eight of them in the written text.
Your checkpoint
Two timed reading sections plus one polished 120-150 word composition with a self-assessment grid showing strengths and two concrete weaknesses.
Written expression: guided composition or structured text & Use of French: grammar, vocabulary and syntax in context
Write three guided compositions (narrative, opinion, and formal letter or email) of 120-150 words each within 30 minutes.
Self-correct each composition using a checklist covering agreement, tense consistency, accents and connector variety, reducing errors by half between draft one and draft two.
Revise the agreement of past participles (with avoir and être) and complete 30 targeted exercises.
Practise reformulation: rewrite five sentences from your own drafts to avoid repetition and raise register.
Your checkpoint
Three compositions in draft and revised versions with an error count comparison showing measurable improvement.
Written expression: guided composition or structured text & Oral comprehension and/or oral expression (where applicable)
Write two exam-style compositions under strict 30-minute timing with no dictionary and score them against the PAU writing rubric.
Record yourself delivering a two-minute spoken summary of a written text and a one-minute personal opinion, then transcribe and annotate your own errors.
Practise listening comprehension with three short authentic audio clips (news, interview) and answer five questions per clip.
Build a bank of ten spoken phrases for structuring an oral answer (premièrement, d'autre part, pour conclure, en ce qui me concerne).
Your checkpoint
Two timed compositions plus three audio recordings with transcripts and a self-correction annotation sheet.
Reading comprehension of a written text in French & Use of French: grammar, vocabulary and syntax in context & Written expression: guided composition or structured text
Sit one complete mock exam (reading, use of French, writing) under real timing and mark it with the official weighting (40/25/25).
Target the two weakest question types from the mock and complete 30 focused exercises on each.
Redraft the lowest-scoring writing task from the mock and compare scores against the rubric.
Review the full error log from weeks 1-6 and eliminate recurring mistakes by rewriting the affected sentences.
Your checkpoint
A fully marked mock exam with a score breakdown per domain and a prioritised list of the three remaining weaknesses.
Reading comprehension of a written text in French & Written expression: guided composition or structured text & Oral comprehension and/or oral expression (where applicable)
Sit a second complete mock exam including the oral component and score at least 10% higher than the week 7 mock.
Rehearse the oral presentation three times with a timer, keeping to the required duration and covering all required points.
Skim the personal lexicon and connector list daily, testing recall of 30 items per session.
Finalise an exam-day strategy sheet covering time allocation per section, order of answering and checking routines.
Your checkpoint
Final mock exam result with per-domain scores, three oral recordings and a one-page exam-day strategy sheet.
Milestones
Week 2: Score at least 70% on a PAU reading section within the time limit, with every true/false answer justified by a quoted line.
Week 4: Produce a 120-150 word composition in 30 minutes that meets the structural template and uses at least four connectors, scoring 60% or higher on the writing rubric.
Week 6: Deliver a two-minute oral summary and one-minute opinion without reading from notes, with comprehensible pronunciation and at least six structuring phrases.
Week 8: Achieve a full mock exam score at least 10% above the week 7 mock and demonstrate error reduction in the personal error log.