Grade 4 French Ministry Exam: How to Prepare

The Grade 4 French exam is composed of two parts: a reading exam and a writing exam. The two components take place on different dates. The reading exam features two types of texts (narrative text and expository text). It is very important that students provide justification for their answers.

The reading exam takes place over 2 half-days:

• Day 1: Reading the narrative text and answering questions

• Day 2: Reading the expository text and answering questions

The writing exam takes place over 3 half-days:

• Day 1: Presentation and planning of the writing project 

• Day 2: Drafting and revising 

• Day 3: Revising, correcting, and the production of the final copy 

The teacher doesn’t do any marking between the days.

To help your child feel confident about the ministry exam and study more effectively, remind them that they’ll be assessed on their ability do the following:

• understand the important elements of a text
• justify their reactions to a text in a relevant way 
• adapt to the writing situation
• write a coherent text
• use appropriate vocabulary
• use proper sentence structure and punctuation
• use proper spelling and grammar

During the compulsory French examination, your child will be allowed to use the following materials:

• checklist
• spelling list
• standard or specialized unilingual French dictionary
• grammar books
• conjugation tables
• revision guide
• posters
• any other tool typically used in the classroom

The following materials are not permitted during the exam: 

• any digital device (smartphone, wireless headset, smartwatch, etc.) that can be used to communicate, browse the web, translate text, or create, save, or access data 

No special preparation is needed for this exam other than reviewing various reading and writing concepts. All other materials (such as the text to read) are provided on the day of the examination.

Grade 4 will be the first time your child has taken a ministry exam. Make sure to give them these key reminders:

• be aware of how much time you have
• read the instructions for the exam before you begin
• use all the tools available to you

You can also give them the following tips.

For reading:

• Read through the text once without stopping.
• Read all of the questions before you start answering them so you have an idea of how to manage your time.

For writing:

• Take the time to make an outline and stick to it as much as you can.
• Frequently read over what you’ve written.

As with any other exam, putting in the effort to study is essential to doing well on the Grade 4 French exam. To help your child prepare, you can help them go over some of the things they find more difficult (e.g., justifying an answer).

To ensure that your child is ready for the exam and that they have a good grasp of the various concepts learned in class, you can encourage them to look at the following resources (available in French only):

• Top notions
• Trucs pour se préparer à un examen de lecture
• Trucs pour préparer l’écriture d’un texte
• Les types de questions en lecture
• Répertoire de révision
• Utiliser correctement un dictionnaire